Anchor BanCorp Wisconsin said Thursday that it has offered buyouts to nearly 20% of its employees and is closing six branches as part of its ongoing effort to improve efficiency.

Financial Institutions Inc. in Warsaw, N.Y., has begun a $35 million debt offering to help fund growth.

Prosper Marketplace, one of the leading U.S. consumer marketplace lenders, announced $165 million in equity funding from large banks and other investors Wednesday.

The $5.8 billion First Financial said in a press release Wednesday that it will pay $1.9 million in cash for 4Trust Mortgage in a deal that should close next month.

Regions Bank in Birmingham, Ala., has hired a former SunTrust Banks executive to join its wealth management group.

Pinnacle Financial Partners in Nashville has agreed to buy CapitalMark Bank & Trust in Chattanooga, Tenn.

M&T Bank still can't get the Fed's blessing to buy Hudson City. The latest delay raises questions about Hudson City's fate and what could be going on internally at the Fed to keep the acquisition in limbo.

CBank in Cincinnati has agreed to buy Commercial Industrial Finance, a St. Louis equipment leasing and finance firm.

First-quarter earnings calls will rev up in the next week. Here are some community banks that could have a lot to say about M&A, compliance and cost cutting.

Bryn Mawr Bank in Bryn Mawr, Pa., has bought Robert J. McAllister Agency. The $2.2 billion-asset company did not say what it paid for the Philadelphia-area insurance and risk management agency.

A breakdown of M&A announcements in the financial services industry for the week ended April 4.

A key deadline for anti-fraud card technology is prompting more retailers and banks to take a hard look at mobile payments platforms.

HMN Financial in Rochester, Minn., has agreed to buy certain assets and liabilities of Kasson State Bank.

An "unexpected" regulatory delay has forced M&T Bank in Buffalo, N.Y., and Hudson City Bancorp in Paramus, N.J., to delay their merger for the fourth time.

John W. Allison is always on the hunt for non-dilutive deals that will boost his Arkansas company's earnings. That has largely led to deals for Florida banks, but Home just agreed to buy nearly $300 million in nationwide commercial real estate credits and recruited a team to open a loan production office in New York.

Home BancShares in Conway, Ark., has found another opportunity in the failure of Doral Bank.

Wintrust Financial in Rosemont, Ill., has announced its second acquisition in four days.

A unit of BB&T in Winston-Salem, N.C., has agreed to buy certain assets from a wholesale insurance broker in New Jersey.

First Financial Bankshares in Abilene, Texas, has agreed to buy FBC Bancshares in Conroe, Texas.

As the industry's recovery boosts hopes of new-bank activity, some are already focused on what the greater stability could mean for the embattled industrial loan company charter.