Tennessee

The Memphis, Tenn., company also reported an improvement in credit quality during the first quarter.

These execs say they are finding ways to reduce fixed costs in areas such as branching and personnel, offer appealing tech, yet provide in-person services when customers have concerns.

The Tennessee company has been working to resolve a memorandum of understanding tied to its CRE exposure.

Pinnacle Financial wanted to be in high-growth markets. BNC Bancorp saw more regulatory burden looming and limited opportunities to sell itself. Those factors spurred what is currently the year's second-biggest bank deal.

Bankers oppose legislation that would let local governments finance energy efficiency projects with liens ahead of the mortgage.

Commerce Union had been focused on expanding around Nashville, Tenn., until a lender based 120 miles away was available to hire.

DeVan Ard will succeed William DeBerry when DeBerry retires in June.

The $1.9 billion deal – the industry's largest announced in 2017 – will create a bank with nearly $20 billion in assets.

About $12 million of the proceeds will go toward exiting the Small Business Lending Fund.

The company would prefer buying banks with $5 billion to $10 billion in assets unless it finds an appealing alternative in a strategic market such as Raleigh or Nashville.

The commercial-and-industrial loan space is overheated, higher rates could stifle mortgage refinancings, and subprime auto delinquencies are on the rise. Bankers could be fighting these fires and more in the new year.

A former director at Pinnacle Financial Partners who pleaded guilty to insider trading agreed to pay a heftier fine after a judge rejected the initial penalty as being too low.

SmartFinancial in Knoxville, Tenn., has agreed to buy a branch in Tennessee from a division of Atlantic Capital Bank in Atlanta.

First Bancshares in Hattiesburg, Miss., has exited the Troubled Asset Relief Program, thanks partly to an assist from another bank.

The Music City is booming because of entertainment and health care. Still, banks are monitoring growth in areas such as real estate development for signs of stress.

James Cope, a former Pinnacle Financial Partners director who pleaded guilty to insider trading in October, was supposed to pay a $55,000 fine as part of a plea deal. But the judge hearing the case contends he should pay more.

First Tennessee Bank in Memphis is giving veteran regional leader Pam Fansler an unusual retirement present: a chairmanship.

Pinnacle Financial in Nashville, Tenn., has sold $120 million in subordinated notes and will use the proceeds to retire existing debt and bolster its capital levels.

Simmons First National in Pine Bluff, Ark., has agreed to buy the parent of First South Bank in Jackson, Tenn.

Franklin Financial Network in Franklin, Tenn., has filed plans to raise up to $62 million in a common stock offering.