Stifel Financial, the Missouri-based investment bank known for snapping up regional rivals and Wall Street castoffs, agreed to buy Barclays Plc's U.S. wealth- management business.

Borrowing from the playbook of other banks that faced similar challenges, Pittsburgh-based PNC hopes its new sponsorship deal with Chicago's beloved Bears football team will help it catch up in a major market where it ranks No. 8.

Steep legal fees used to make it difficult for smaller banks to invest in renewable energy tax credits. A new fund is looking to lower the typical legal fees that have made such investments cost-prohibitive for community banks.

Regions Financial in Birmingham, Ala., has agreed to pay $90 million to settle a 2009 shareholder lawsuit over its acquisition of AmSouth Bancorp.

WestStar Bank in El Paso, Texas, is planning to merge with First National Bank in El Paso.

Two private-equity investors have priced their offering of shares in Central Pacific Financial in Honolulu.

Bankers scratching their heads about how to attract millennials can take some comfort knowing that generations ago their predecessors also struggled to connect with America's youth. Crocker National Bank found a way, though.

PBB Bancorp in Los Angeles and First Mountain Bank in Big Bear Lake, Calif., are discussing a merger.

The regulatory burden for originators has not only been the main driver of acquisition activity in mortgages but also influences deal structures. Acquirers are looking to craft transactions so they don't get burned by targets' compliance lapses.

First Capital in Corydon, Ind., has agreed to buy Peoples Bancorp Inc. of Bullitt County in Shepherdsville, Ky.

The 28-year-old Young Americans Bank was founded to teach kids to save, but now the bank is focused on showing its customers how to spend wisely. CEO Richard Martinez says tots still prefer paper statements, while tweens are getting their allowance via bill pay.

As part of its proposed sale to Royal Bank of Canada, City National has made a big Community Reinvestment Act commitment, which includes targeting small-business loans at the minority- and women-owned suppliers of three power companies.

Eastern Bank is considering a plan that would boost its biggest donations from $50,000 to seven-figure sums. While the plan could shrink the total number of grants given, it should also allow the organization to have more influence in certain areas.

Liberty Bank in Middletown, Conn., has agreed to buy Naugatuck Valley Financial in Naugatuck, Conn.

General Electric has put virtually all of its U.S. commercial loan businesses on the market after hiring banks to unload $20 billion of assets in its health-care, railcar and franchise finance divisions, according to people with knowledge of the matter.

BB&T has received regulatory approval for its acquisition of Bank of Kentucky Financial, with the Federal Reserve providing a blueprint for approvals of future deals.

Blue Valley Ban Corp. in Overland Park, Kan., has agreed to acquire a branch in its hometown owned by The Federal Savings Bank in Chicago.

WSFS Bank has teamed up with ZenBanx, a fintech startup founded by a pioneer of direct banking, Arkadi Kuhlmann. WSFS will be the first in the U.S. to power a mobile account that lets users park money in up to five currencies and send remittances. The partnership is the latest example of a traditional bank trying to inject innovation into its culture.

An investment bank cautioned Bank of the Ozarks that its target, Bank of the Carolinas, was in talks with another suitor and "did not wish to jeopardize that transaction," a filing disclosed. The Arkansas acquirer pushed on and ended up walking away with the deal less than two months later.

Bay Banks of Virginia in Kilmarnock has issued $7 million in subordinated debt.