Rockville Financial (RCKB) in Glastonbury, Conn., and United Financial Bancorp (UBNK) in West Springfield, Mass., have secured four of the five regulatory approvals needed to complete their high-profile merger.

Salisbury Bancorp (SAL) in Lakeville, Conn., has agreed to buy Riverside Bank in Poughkeepsie, N.Y.

Post-crisis structural changes will trigger a wave of community bank M&A, creating new regional bank powerhouses. Investors will pressure management to acquire, sell or return capital through dividends or repurchases. There will be no runners-up in the coming consolidation.

Associated Banc-Corp (ASBC) in Green Bay, Wis., seems poised to make acquisitions.

Westfield Bancorp in Westfield Center, Ohio, has agreed to buy Valley Savings Bank in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio. The deal will give Westfield two additional branches and boost its assets to nearly $1 billion.

There is a lot of work to be done behind the scenes before Citizens can become independent of Royal Bank of Scotland, including the establishment of new technological, administrative and financial reporting systems, CEO Bruce Van Saun says.

A breakdown of M&A announcements in the financial services industry for the week ended March 15.

Talmer Bancorp (TLMR) in Troy, Mich., could enjoy a bigger-than-expected benefit from its purchase of Michigan Commerce Bank.

Once thought of as cheap capital, Tarp is getting more expensive as the dividend rate jumps from 5% to 9%. Banks that are still in the program could see the increase as one more force pushing them to consider their options.

Square 1 Financial in Durham, N.C., is planning to hit the road to promote its planned initial public offering.

CBFH in Orange, Texas, has agreed to purchase MC Bancshares in Houston.

RBS Citizens Financial Group has appointed Ellen Taylor as executive vice president and head of investor relations, where she will oversee the Providence, R.I., company's preparations to become a public company later this year.

Virginia National Bankshares (VABK) in Charlottesville, Va., is facing pressure from an activist investor to consider selling itself.

Investors Bancorp (ISBC) in Short Hills, N.J., could raise more than $2.6 billion as part of a highly anticipated second-step conversion.

Black Knight Financial Services is seeking a buyer for PCLender, one of its three loan origination systems, three years after acquiring it.

American Banker on Friday received the 2014 Jesse Neal Award for Best Website from the Association of Business Information and Media Companies.

Ares Commercial Real Estate Corporation (ACRE) has received $50 million in new funding that it says it will use to increase its lending.

Analysts Joseph Fenech and Kevin Fitzsimmons have resigned from the research department at Sandler O'Neill.

Thomas Lee, the JPMorgan Chase chief equity strategist who has called for gains in American stocks for six straight years and got them in four, is leaving the firm.

You might expect Manolo Sanchez, the CEO of BBVA Compass, to renounce traditional branches since his bank is spending $117 million on the online-only startup Simple. But he joined other senior bank executives in defending the branch as "still relevant."