California

Farmers & Merchants Bank of Long Beach (FMBL) in California posted higher quarterly profits as lending grew.

Bay Commercial Bank (BCML) in Walnut Creek, Calif., has agreed to buy Bank On It Inc. (BKOT) in Stockton, Calif.

Westamerica Bancorp (WABC) of San Rafael, Calif., posted net income of $16.1 million for the fourth quarter, a 16.1% decrease from a year earlier.

Soo Bong Min, the president and chief executive of BBCN Bank in Los Angeles, has stepped down after less than a year on the job.

Neighborhood National Bank in San Diego has named a former leader of Regents Bank as its president and chief executive.

Community Bank in Pasadena, Calif., has hired a chief executive.

Central Valley Community Bancorp in Fresno, Calif., has redeemed $7 million of preferred stock issued to the Treasury Department under the Small Business Lending Fund.

PacWest Bancorp (PACW) in Los Angeles will take a $12 million after-tax charge in the fourth quarter because of stock awards connected to its pending acquisition of CapitalSource (CSE).

River Valley Community Bank in Yuba City, Calif., has named John M. Jelavich as its new president.

The Federal Reserve Board has approved Community West Bancshares' (CWBC) request to pay dividends on preferred stock.

Cathay General Bancorp in Los Angeles has announced a number of executive changes, including the appointment of Irwin Wong to the newly created position of chief retail administration and regulatory affairs officer.

Buoyed by its success on the West Coast, Operation Hope is partnering with the likes of SunTrust and Popular Community Bank to set up its financial literacy centers in such cities as Memphis, Atlanta, Washington and New York.

Bank of Commerce Holdings (BOCH) in Redding, Calif., continued to revamp its executive team by hiring Robert Muttera as chief credit officer.

Early in the year Hanmi Financial in Los Angeles was poised to put itself up for sale. But its deal to buy a Texas bank with operations in six states could rearm Hanmi in its fight with BBCN Bancorp and Wilshire Bancorp to be the top Korean-American bank.

Hanmi Financial (HAFC) in Los Angeles has agreed to buy Central Bancorp in Garland, Texas.

Pacific Mercantile Bancorp (PMBC) in Costa Mesa, Calif., is getting out of the mortgage business to focus on business banking.

MetroCorp (MCBI) in Houston hired a consultant to scout possible Chinese suitors before agreeing to sell to East West Bancorp (EWBC) in Los Angeles.

Tom Meuser will leave the role at the end of the year, the Sacramento Business Journal reported Tuesday. George Cook, the bank's president, will succeed him.

Patriot Financial Partners, a Philadelphia PE firm that specializes in community banks, has agreed to buy more than 1.5 million shares of Banc of California for $13.25 each, a price 6% higher than the company's Tuesday closing price of $12.46 a share.

Banc of California (BANC) in Irvine has filed documents that would allow it to offer up to $1 billion of securities.