Finance

What asset threshold? Community banks may not be required by law to conduct stress tests, but about one in three have been asked by their examiners to do so, according to a recent survey of banks.

Meta Financial Group in Sioux Falls, S.D., agreed to sell $3.1 million of common stock to a group of existing investors and reached a separate agreement to issue prepaid cards for a business partner.

Banks better get ready for a quick, steep increase in deposit costs after the Fed raises rates. Technology, new regulations and other factors have changed the slower-paced retail-banking game of old, JPMorgan Chase executives say.

National Bank Holdings in Greenwood Village, Colo., plans to repurchase as much as $100 million of its common stock.

First Choice Bank, in Cerritos, Calif., has raised $30 million from a secondary stock offering.

Equitable Financial in Grand Island, Neb., said its depositors and stockholders have approved its plan to convert from a mutual thrift to a fully stock-owned company.

Citizens Community Bank in South Hill, Va., has redeemed about 75% of its outstanding preferred stock in the Small Business Lending Fund.

MidWestOne Financial Group in Iowa City, Iowa has raised $8.4 million in a private placement of its common stock.

Atlantic Coast Financial in Jacksonville, Fla., has taken several steps to restructure its debt holdings, including prepaying $60 million in advances with the Federal Home Loan Bank and $56.3 million of securities sold under separate repurchase agreements.

Access National's four-year-old wealth management subsidiary has grown rapidly and is poised to enter the black. The allure of fee revenues has drawn many community banks into this field amid weak loan growth and tight interest margins.

Credit Karma in San Francisco has raised $175 million in venture capital to expand its product offerings for consumers' personal finances.

CoBiz Financial in Denver plans to issue up subordinated debt to redeem its shares in the Small Business Lending Fund.

The $20.4 billion-asset company said in a news release that it could offer fixed-to-floating rate non-cumulative perpetual preferred stock, according to a shelf registration filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Atlantic Coast Financial in Jacksonville, Fla., is in talks to restructure its debt and has reversed the valuation allowance on a deferred tax asset.

BOK Financial in Tulsa, Okla., and Webster Financial in Waterbury, Conn., each reported that its Tier 1 common equity ratio would remain above regulators' minimum guideline, as regional banks continue to disclose Dodd-Frank Act stress-test results.

Executives have taken a wide range of approaches to deal with the prolonged period of low interest rates and the risks associated with their eventual rise. Some of those balance-sheet strategies have cut into banks' profitability and thus their efficiency.

First Resource Bank in Exton, Pa., plans to raise $6 million through a combination of common stock and subordinated debt to raise funds to redeem most of its Small Business Lending Fund preferred shares.

The Fed finalized a rule increasing an asset-size threshold that lets smaller banks finance deals with up to 75% in debt. That benefit, along with an exemption from Basel III capital rules, could prompt some bankers to second-guess short-term growth as they weigh their options.

New servicing standards issued by the government-sponsored enterprises are unlikely to pose a hurdle for the biggest nonbank players in the market, but small servicers could find it more challenging.

The Salt Lake City company was a prolific acquirer through the 1990s but has been quiet on the M&A front for several years. It's likely to stay that way in the near term, Chairman and CEO Harris Simmons said.