NBT Bancorp (NBTB) in Norwich, N.Y., reported fourth-quarter net income of $17.9 million, a 37% increase from a year earlier.

FirstMerit (FMER) in Akron, Ohio, announced a substantial increase in net income because of its April purchase of Citizens Republic Bancorp in Flint, Mich.

Institutions with solid, but underperforming assets and lagging stock price valuation multiples are vulnerable to activist investors. Address problems before they are attracted to your bank.

The global M&A market in 2013 was solid across all sectors, according to a report by advisory firm Greenberg Advisors.

The $300 million merger will create the state's biggest community bank -- and could convince other institutions to pursue similar deals.

A breakdown of M&A announcements in the financial services industry for the week ended Jan. 25.

Bank of Montreal is in talks to buy F&C Asset Management Plc, manager of the oldest U.K. investment fund, for about 697 million pounds ($1.2 billion) in what would be the second-largest takeover in its 196-year history.

A number of community banks have removed CEOs, announced plans to sell or reached compromises with dissident shareholders in recent weeks. And proxy season has yet to hit its stride.

Hanmi Financial (HAFC) in Los Angeles reported dip in quarterly profits because of costs related to its planned acquisition of Central Bancorp.

A new accounting framework could give banks a leg up in small-business lending by making it cheaper for companies to provide accurate financials, but accounting experts are divided over whether the standards are an improvement or risky and confusing.

VantageSouth Bancshares (VSB) in Raleigh, N.C., and Yadkin Financial (YDKN) in Elkin, N.C., are merging.

The Oklahoma State Banking Department has closed Bank of Union in El Reno.

The Mississippi bank's latest acquisition would take it into the Austin, Texas, market, but CEO Dan Rollins refuses to answer questions from investors and analysts about how quickly it would earn back its dilution of tangible book value.

CEO Gary Crosby believes new technology will help the Buffalo, N.Y., company generate revenue more in line with being a large financial institution. But his $250 million investment pledge didn't sit well with investors who were hoping for cost-cutting.

Independent Bank Corp. (INDB) of Rockland, Mass., reported net income Thursday of $10.6 million for the fourth quarter of 2013, a 6.2% increase from the same quarter in 2012.

The sale represents roughly 73% of the private student loans held by First Marblehead's bank, Union Federal, according to the company's Thursday regulatory filing. Union Federal will receive 103.5% of principal in the deal.

KeyCorp may ultimately need to buy some niche business lines, or sell its operations in some fringe markets, to cure its efficiency woes.

Richard Davis, the head of U.S. Bancorp, criticized other banks that, he says, are overly dependent on releases of loan-loss reserves to boost earnings.

Wells Fargo & Co. (WFC), the largest U.S. home lender, agreed to sell more than 40 percent of its insurance brokerage locations to focus bricks-and-mortar operations on higher-growth regions and bigger clients.