Illinois

Mercantile Bancorp Inc. of Quincy, Ill., said Tuesday that it narrowed its fourth-quarter loss to $4.3 million, from $6.7 million a year earlier.

First Midwest Bank in Itasca, Ill., wants to make it perfectly clear — it is not to be confused with Midwest Bank and Trust Co.

Amid concerns about its future, Amcore Financial Inc. in Rockford, Ill., said it had sold 12 branches and two stand-alone drive-up sites of its main subsidiary, Amcore Bank.

Accountants for Amcore Financial Inc. of Rockford, Ill., said its future is in doubt.

Last week's reversal of a tax court decision means Subchapter S bank owners will continue paying taxes as they have for years.

ShoreBank Corp. in Chicago announced Wednesday that veteran Chicago banker David Vitale is set to become its executive chairman should it raise the capital it needs.

FirstMerit Corp. of Akron, Ohio, will need sharp elbows as it expands into the city of broad shoulders.

Institutions in Florida, Illinois, Maryland and Utah failed Friday, bringing the year's total to 26. The failed banks held combined assets of roughly $1.1 billion and their resolution is expected to cost the Deposit Insurance Fund more than $300 million.

Institutions in Florida, Illinois, Maryland and Utah failed Friday, bringing the year's total to 26. The failed banks held combined assets of roughly $1.1 billion and their resolution is expected to cost the Deposit Insurance Fund more than $300 million.

Wintrust Financial Corp. in Lake Forest, Ill., on Thursday announced pricing for a common stock offering expected to raise at least $183 million of fresh capital.

Alexi Giannoulias, a Democrat in a race for the Senate against five-term U.S. Rep. Mark Kirk, a Republican, warned of the possible fate of his family's Broadway Bank during a Wednesday meeting with the Chicago Sun-Times editorial board, according to local media reports. Giannoulias would not comment to American Banker.

Midwest Banc Holdings Inc. has won another round in its battle for recapitalization, as a result of an unusual move by the Treasury Department.

Taylor Capital Group Inc. in Rosemont, Ill., announced it is selling its corporate trust business to Amalgamated Bank of Chicago.

Small banks face myriad and often frustrating obstacles to acquiring failed banks. But some smart strategies have separated the successful bidders from the rest, including raising excess capital well before a bid, targeting fewer and smaller banks, tracking enforcement actions of potential failures and bringing in well-seasoned management to see a deal through.

WASHINGTON — Four failures late Friday cost the government an additional $1 billion.Among the closings, which brought the year's total to 20, was that of $3.6 billion-asset La Jolla Bank in La Jolla, Calif. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. sold La Jolla's operations to OneWest Bank in Pasadena in the second recent deal for the buyers of the failed IndyMac Bank.

A Chicago entrepreneur is suing the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. to win back capital he invested in a bank in the months before it failed.

Fourth-quarter earnings reports from small and midsize banking companies showcase some favorable trends, notably that credit deterioration appears to be stabilizing and deposits have bloomed on many balance sheets.

Loan sales helped a growing number of community banks push some of their problems out the door in the fourth quarter.

With dwindling capital and mounting losses, ShoreBank Corp. in Chicago is seeking a bailout from the state of Illinois.

After nearly two years of rapid asset growth, PrivateBancorp Inc. in Chicago is expected to have a much slower 2010 as it gets its financial house in order.