The company knew it would soon expand outside of Michigan, but management thought it might buy a $2 billion-asset bank based in Indiana. Talmer Bancorp was much bigger than that and it instead offered opportunity in Ohio.

By selling its community banking products to Fiserv, ACI has signaled it is no longer interested is no longer interested in that space. Fiserv, meanwhile, is beefing up its small-institution offerings.

The former president of a Texas community bank was sentenced to two years in federal prison for manipulating the bank's books and embezzling money to pay her daughter's sorority dues.

Unless banks devote the same amount of investment as standalone incubators, the innovation labs launched by financial institutions will be a short-term fad.

C.K. Hong used his resignation letter to issue a scathing rebuke of the Los Angeles company's $1 billion acquisition, while claiming that he had been on a "dysfunctional board … characterized by factionalism and a lack of transparency." BBCN strongly disagreed, claiming that Hong was upset that plans were already in place to remove him from the board.

Bank consolidation is gaining traction in several Midwestern states, including Ohio, Illinois, Michigan and Wisconsin. Here are some of the more notable deals announced in the last year.

First Citizens BancShares in Raleigh, N.C., said Wednesday that its fourth-quarter profit fell 32.1% from a year earlier, to $42.7 million.

Umpqua Holdings in Portland, Ore., posted stronger quarterly earnings because of an increase in mortgage banking fees and lower costs.

Centrue Financial in Ottawa, Ill., has agreed to sell three branches in Illinois.

BOK Financial in Oklahoma plans to further increase its reserves to cover loan losses amid the energy slump, emphasize health care and other non-energy sectors, and expand in markets like Kansas City that are less reliant on oil.

The company no longer feels the need to sell loans since it has a deal in hand to confidently cross a key regulatory threshold. Still, management said it likes the revenue opportunities from occasionally selling off originations.

The combination of falling stock prices, higher-risk strategies and signs of worsening credit quality does not bode well for the industry's road ahead.

The $9 billion-asset company said in a press release Monday that it will incur about $5 million in additional expenses during the first half of this year to cover the cost of closing the offices.

New York Community Bancorp in Westbury, N.Y., posted a fourth-quarter loss after incurring a large charge from prepaying $10.4 billion in wholesale borrowings.

Banks that prioritize structural changes in their compliance process will make risk frameworks more effective and sustainable over time.

Banco Santander SA built up capital in the fourth quarter, easing investor concern about its ability to bolster buffers, as Spain's largest lender booked charges that wiped out profit.

The Mississippi bank hopes its settlement talks with the CFPB and Justice Department ultimately clear the way for it to complete acquisitions in Texas and Louisiana, but time is running short.

Talmer agreed to sell itself in a privately negotiated deal that values the company at 150% of its tangible book value. For some analysts and investors, the company should have considered an auction — or not selling at all.

Fintech is a chic topic at Davos, but it's barely a blip on the radar of analysts who lock in on hard numbers during earnings calls. Yet with tech taking a bigger role in financial services, mobile banking or the blockchain might soon become as topical as efficiency ratios or net interest margins.

More than half of the deals announced so far this year have involved sellers from the Midwest. Expect activity in the region to rise as more banks mimic Huntington Bancshares and Chemical Financial by becoming acquirers.