Yadkin Valley Financial has raised $45 million through a private placement and said it will use the funds to "complete strategic classified asset disposition sales."

The New York firm led by Joseph Stilwell disclosed stakes in four new thrifts and cashed out of 10 other institutions during the third quarter. Its investments often signal plans to pressure companies to improve shareholder value.

Critics of nonbanks contend that consumers use "high-cost" alternatives because they are financially illiterate. But, like most simplistic conclusions, this one is seldom accompanied by facts and is as wrong as it is demeaning of the innate intelligence of these consumers.

A pickup in lending lifted First California Financial Group (FCAL) in Westlake Village in the third quarter.

Third-quarter income at Susquehanna Bancshares (SUSQ) more than doubled as loan growth soared, partly from two recent acquisitions.

Texas Capital Bancshares (TCBI) relied on loan growth and fee income to offset pressure on its net interest margin during the third quarter.

Nationstar Mortgage bid roughly $2.907 billion for the origination and servicing assets of Residential Capital Corp., about $93 million shy of the top bid placed by Ocwen Financial and its partner Walter Investment Management Corp.

A legal settlement and an investment loss weighed on United Bankshares (UBSI) in Charleston, W.Va., in the third quarter.

Well-intentioned policies are causing inadvertent redlining. Our proposed Dignity Mortgage would show there are few if any additional risks of lending to the large cohort of presently excluded prospective homebuyers.

General Electric held takeover talks with New Jersey's Hudson City Bancorp shortly before the lender agreed to a $3.7 billion sale to M&T Bank in August, three people with knowledge of the matter said.

LINTHICUM, Md. – State Employees CU of Maryland officially opened its 22nd branch Monday at the University of Maryland in downtown Baltimore.

SPRINGFIELD, Ore. – Northwest Community CU has submitted a proposal to officials in Eugene to buy a 1.8-acre city-owned plot and develop it into a new headquarters for the $720 million credit union.

Lower credit costs and higher mortgage banking revenue pushed MainSource Financial Group's (MSFG) third-quarter net income up 34.5% from a year earlier to $6.5 million.

The Walla Walla, Wash., company Banner (BANR) said profit rose on improved income from mortgage banking, deposit fees and other service charges.

A state law that eased restrictions on credit card rates in Ohio influenced the move, the Columbus company said.

Leaders of the largest banks are using third-quarter calls to discuss a reluctance to pursue bank acquisitions. The underlying message? Smaller banks are likely to spur the next big wave of consolidation.

A lawsuit accusing Bank of America and Countrywide Home Loans of misrepresenting mortgages gets to the core of their disputes with the government-sponsored housing giants over mortgage putbacks.

Longtime JPMorgan Chase banker Charlie Scharf looks like the safe choice to replace retiring Visa CEO Joseph Saunders. But for the "top dog" payments network, safe is usually wise.

PL Capital recently put Malvern Bancorp and Orrstown Financial on notice that it is watching management's moves, while First Financial Northwest continues to absorb litigation costs months after an investor contested the results of an annual meeting.

Preeta Bansal, the former general counsel and senior policy advisor at the Office of Management and Budget, is joining the bank's London office as global general counsel for litigation and regulatory affairs.