New York Community Bancorp wants Washington to raise the asset size for systemically important financial institutions, but in the meanwhile its asset sales to stay under the threshold helped to boost profits and its CEO is pursuing possible M&A deals.

Astoria Financial in Lake Success, N.Y., reported higher quarterly profit that benefitted from a sizable reserve release.

Ameris Bancorp in Moultrie, Ga., has has agreed to buy Merchants and Southern Banks of Florida in Gainesville, along with a number of Bank of America branches.

City National Corp., Hollywood's "bank to the stars," could expand its entertainment business to London within five years under ownership by Royal Bank of Canada, Chief Executive Officer Russell Goldsmith said.

Alamogordo Financial Group in New Mexico has split the roles of president and chief executive.

First Horizon successfully lobbied for a lower exchange ratio for its purchase of TrustAtlantic in North Carolina after four commercial lenders left the seller to open an office for another bank.

UMB Financial in Kansas City, Mo., reported lower quarterly profits after taking a loss on certain alternative investments.

Anchor Bancorp in Madison, Wis., has agreed to sell one of its branches to Royal Bank in Elroy, Wis.

Hudson City Bancorp in Paramus, N.J., reported lower quarterly profits as its loan book keeps shrinking.

Doral Financial in San Juan, Puerto Rico, said that the FDIC has placed its bank under a prompt corrective action directive, an enforcement order that is often considered one of the last public warnings before regulators move to place the bank into conservatorship.

Big banks had a forgettable fourth quarter thanks to old problems like tight margins and new ones like the collapse in oil prices, but executives who could fall back on products such as credit cards, insurance and investment banking had something to brag on.

United Community Banks in Blairsville, Ga., has agreed to buy MoneyTree Corp. in Lenoir City, Tenn.

Farmers National Banc Corp. in Canfield, Ohio, has agreed to buy National Bancshares in Orrville, Ohio.

Carroll Bancorp in Sykesville, Md., has raised $5.1 million through a private placement of its common stock.

Liberty Bank & Trust in New Orleans has received regulatory approval to buy First Tuskegee Bank in Alabama, more than a year after the deal was first announced.

Old National Bancorp in Evansville, Ind., has agreed to buy Mutual Underwriters Insurance in Louisville, Ky.

Prosper Marketplace, the online lending platform that arranges funding for unsecured consumer loans, announced its first takeover Tuesday, paying $21 million to buy American HealthCare Lending. The target offers loans for elective medical procedures.

Two Pennsylvania banks recently called off a mutual conversion/merger after the FDIC rejected it on policy grounds. The decision – and lack of guidance from the FDIC – could spell trouble for other banks with similar plans.

A breakdown of M&A announcements in the financial services industry for the week ended Jan. 24.

Hamilton Bancorp in Towson, Md., has added a banking veteran to its board.