The acquisition would be Alerus' first since it bought Private Bank Minnesota in Minneapolis in June 2014. The Beacon deal would boost Alerus' total assets in Minnesota to about $771 million.

While banks have significantly decreased their problem assets from their 2010 peak, sour credits remain much higher than in 2006. A number of banks have been reluctant to sell these assets because of low interest rates and a struggle to find better investments.

Codorus Valley Bancorp in York, Pa., has hired Dwight Utz as its chief operating officer. Utz succeeded Mike Allen, who resigned in March and is now executive-in-residence of The Graham Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership Studies at Penn State University.

First Niagara Financial Group Inc. is exploring a sale of the firm or other opportunities, according to people briefed on the matter. The bank holding company's shares rose in extended trading.

Chile's Banco de Credito e Inversiones has received regulatory approval to acquire City National Bank of Florida, more than two years after the deal was announced.

First Midwest Bancorp in Itasca, Ill., has agreed to buy Peoples' Bank of Arlington Heights in Illinois.

Lloyd Blankfein, chief executive officer of Goldman Sachs Group, said he has a “highly curable” form of lymphoma and will undergo chemotherapy over the next several months.

Wells Fargo has seven women on its 16-member board, a 44% ratio that is twice that of the average top 25 bank. It got there, in large part, by looking beyond C-suites for qualified directors.

Kent Wiechert, owner of Weststar Mortgage in Albuquerque, N.M., has acquired Goldwater Bank in Scottsdale, Ariz.

Atlantic Capital Bancshares in Atlanta plans to issue $50 million in subordinated debt to finance its acquisition of First Security Group in Tennessee.

Fidelity Bank in Fuquay-Varina, N.C., has agreed to buy a branch from First Citizens BancShares.

It could take six months or more before people who deal in collateralized loan obligations receive more explicit regulatory guidance on "skin in the game" rules.

Peoples State Bank in Albia, Iowa, has agreed to acquire a branch from Iowa City's MidWestOne Bank.

California Bank of Commerce in Lafayette, Calif., has agreed to buy Pan Pacific Bank in Fremont, Calif.

Two banks with labor ties — Amalgamated Bank of Chicago and United Business Bank in Oakland — are beginning to aggressively court commercial clients.

BB&T will close a loan-processing center in Hagerstown, Md., which it obtained from its acquisition of Susquehanna Bancshares.

First Horizon National in Memphis, Tenn., has received regulators' approval to acquire TrustAtlantic Financial, after it delayed the closing date.

The Stamford, Conn.-based credit card issuer expects to be independent by the end of the year, and predicts that it will benefit from its separation from General Electric.

Fundera, which runs a website where small-business owners can shop for loans, has raised $11.5 million in new equity funding.

BankUnited in Miami Lakes, Fla., will book a $50 million income-tax benefit in the third quarter.