South Carolina

The company agreed to pay $162 million to buy First South Bancorp in Washington, N.C. It is the fifth time this year that a bank in North Carolina has agreed to be sold to a buyer from another state.

Beacon Community Bank aims to become the first bank to open in Charleston, S.C., in a decade.

The Palmetto State joins Alabama, Florida, Texas and other states to provide greater interstate branching access to members.

GrandSouth Bancorp's issues with floor-plan loans to car dealers serve as a reminder of another pitfall in auto lending besides consumer loans.

His decades-long career in credit unions spans three different state leagues and was proceeded by 21 years of military service.

The Georgia company invested in HCSB Financial's recapitalization a year before agreeing to buy the coastal South Carolina bank. Doing so allowed United to stay to close to HCSB and its board, which helped when the time came to discuss a deal.

The deal is the latest coastal acquisition for United Community. For HCSB, the sale is the final chapter in a turnaround that began 13 months earlier.

The deal, which is expected to close in the fourth quarter, values Cornerstone at $25.8 million.

The founders of the South Carolina bank, which liquidated after lavish spending and losses depleted its capital, paid a total of $55,000 in fines and face restrictions on future employment.

While most ads for the big game are shrouded in secrecy, the credit union unveiled three spots and asked the public to choose which one should run Sunday.

The South Carolina company plans to use proceeds for acquisitions and organic growth.

Carolina Alliance Bank in Spartanburg, S.C., is planning to form a holding company.

The $20.7 billion-asset company said in a press release Monday that it had tapped Samuel Erwin as its regional president responsible for covering the state. Erwin will operate from Greenville, S.C.

Citizens Building and Loan in Greer, S.C., will have a new president and chief executive next year.

The longtime CEO of Oconee Federal Financial in Seneca, S.C., is handing the reins to his son. Curtis T. Evatt, Oconee's president and chief financial officer, will succeed T. Rhett Evatt as CEO of the $484 million-asset holding company and Oconee Federal Savings and Loan Association on Jan. 1.

Banks have been waiting on Justice Department guidelines on how to make their websites compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act, but many are being advised to take action now or face lawsuits from disabled customers.

Carolina Financial in Charleston, S.C., has agreed to buy Greer Bancshares in South Carolina.

The $381 million-asset company said its bank was no longer under a consent order with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and the South Carolina State Board of Financial Institutions.

Higher mortgage banking revenue and commercial real estate lending offset merger costs at United Community Banks in Blairsville, Ga., leading to an improvement in third-quarter profit.

F.N.B. Corp. in Pittsburgh has selected more executives from Yadkin Financial in Raleigh, N.C., to take on leadership roles for its new markets in the Carolinas.