Regulators failed four banks late Friday, pushing the total number of collapses this year to 143. Closures are now are at their highest point since the S&L crisis.

The Office of Thrift Supervision has given Superior Bancorp of Birmingham, Ala., until the end of March to strengthen capital ratios significantly.

The largest shareholder of Sterling Bancshares Inc. is preparing for a proxy contest to overhaul the Houston company's board.

The private-equity commitments that Central Pacific Financial Corp. of Honolulu touted in its Nov. 2 earnings release have been finalized.

Beneficial Mutual Bancorp Inc. posted a surprise third-quarter loss on Oct. 22 from an unexpected, and unwelcome, event: its charging off of the decline in collateral values for all of its criticized loans.

A federal court entered a judgment of more than $3.6 million against a payment processor and its subsidiary that allegedly debited consumers’ bank accounts illegally on behalf of deceptive telemarketers, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced Friday.

Unicredit America Inc., an Erie, Pa.-based collection agency, collected money from unsuspecting consumers by pretending to hold hearings in a room decorated to look like a courtroom, according to a lawsuit filed Friday against the company in Pennsylvania.

North American Financial Holdings Inc. is set to pick up a big chunk of a North Carolina bank in a bid to build a Southeast powerhouse.

A handful of small banks have also struck deals recently that will heighten their name recognition and allow them to cull customers out of massive audiences.

AscendOne Corp., a Columbia, Md.-based debt management business, will pay $4.5 million to settle charges that the company misled consumers about its for-profit status.

A bankruptcy judge allowed AmericanWest to move forward with plans to hold an auction for its bank, despite an objection from a hedge fund attempting to impede the deal.

When all is said and done, home values will likely increase and foreclosed properties will likely experience the greatest benefit of this given their less-expensive price tags.

Herald National Bank has turned a profit less than two years after being started at the height of the financial crisis.

Carolina Bank Holdings Inc. reported a third-quarter loss Tuesday of $2.1 million, compared to a $110,000 loss a year earlier.

Tower Bancorp Inc. and First Chester County Corp. have extended for a third time the deadline for completing their merger.

Private-equity firms are showing more confidence that credit-quality problems are ebbing. Several recent capital infusions have caught the eye of analysts, especially an announcement on Monday by Brand Group Holdings Inc.

There is a sales group that is more hard core than car salesmen. I'm talking about Girl Scouts. In the eyes of the recipients of their sales pitches, you're a pushy salesperson.

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Ten students at East Forsyth High School have launched Winston-Salem’s first student-run credit union managed by Truliant FCU.

SAN ANTONIO – River City FCU reached an agreement with H.E. Butt Grocery Co. to open three new branches inside local H-E-B stores.

RIVERSIDE, Calif. – Altura Credit Union is closing one of its two branches in Hemet, Calif., Credit Union Journal has learned.