Investors expected rates to increase last year. When they didn't, it showed up everywhere: stock prices, earnings estimates and banks' decisions to sell or go public. In a wide-ranging interview, KBW CEO Thomas Michaud reflects on what turned out to be a good year for M&A, what is driving deals and his firm's role in bringing companies together.

Carolina Alliance Bank in Spartanburg, S.C., has agreed to buy PBSC Financial in Greenville, S.C.

A breakdown of M&A announcements in the financial services industry for the week ended March 21.

M&T Bank and Hudson City Bancorp plan to mail ballots this week to shareholders asking for approval of the companies' planned merger.

Community Bank Shares of Indiana in New Albany has registered to sell stock on behalf of several investors.

Metro Bancorp has a little more breathing room after an activist investor withdrew one of its two nominees for the Harrisburg, Pa., company’s board.

The $1.1 billion-asset company filed a shelf registration with the Securities and Exchange Commission late last week that will allow it to sell securities and issue debt.

Regulatory approval of Primary Bank in New Hampshire does not make a trend, but observers are hopeful it signals a more promising near future for the chartering of new banks.

Sterne Agee's investment bank was among the most active last year, handling 18 deals. But the parent company's pending sale is leaving observers wondering what will happen to the people who shepherded those transactions.

Peapack-Gladstone Financial in Bedminster, N.J., has agreed to buy Wealth Management Consultants in Morristown, N.J.

Ohio's largest mutual bank is planning to form a holding company to position itself for acquisitions and other growth opportunities.

The usefulness of in-store branches is a hotly debated topic in the banking industry. But some institutions are successfully landing customers — and increasingly valuable deposits — through such locations.

Bank of New York Mellon is building out a new investment firm with the mortgage specialist Amherst Holdings. The move is its second major commitment to a fixed income-related fund this year.

Not only should regulators investigate the timing of OneWest's charitable donations to supporters of its proposed merger with CIT Group, they should encourage both banks to adopt clear CRA benchmarks that would hold them accountable for future investments in local communities.

To shake off years of sluggish growth, Citizens Financial is going hard after asset classes that other banks are starting to back away from. The Providence, R.I., company says the growth opportunity outweighs the risk.

U.S. Bancorp has hired a former Santander Bank executive to oversee the diversified industries segment of its large corporate banking division in New England.

If successful, Provident Bank in Massachusetts and Cincinnati Federal in Ohio would become the first new mutual holding companies since 2011, giving some hope that the structure could make a comeback.

Kevin Cummings, the New Jersey company's CEO, transformed Investors to sizable bank prior to its second-step conversion last May. With $2.2 billion in capital and an updated core system, Cummings has his sights on the company's next growth phase.

WSFS Financial in Wilmington, Del., has made a number of executive changes following the planned departure of its chief financial officer.

Branch closures can prompt online blowback as community members worry about employee layoffs and stranded customers. A bank's best move is to get in front of the issue and respond directly to locals' concerns.