CenterState Banks Inc. is merging three of its national banking subsidiaries in Florida by the end of the year, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

First Financial Bankshares Inc. in Abilene, Texas, said Thursday that it agreed to acquire Sam Houston Financial Corp. in a $22.2 million cash-and-stock deal.

WILKES BARRE, Penn. – Cross Valley FCU has completed branding ATMs at two local Walgreens stores in Kingston and Scranton.

RIVERDALE, Utah – America First CU, which acquired five Nevada branches as part of last year’s deal for failed Community One FCU in Las Vegas, is opening a sixth branch in the state, in Henderson.

TAMPA, Fla. – GTE FCU, fighting off big losses for 2008 and 2009, announced yesterday it is closing another five branches, after shuttering three branches last year.

SI Financial Group has approved a process under which it will convert from a mutual-holding company to a stock-holding one. A host of financial companies the past several months have been undergoing the demutualization process, moving away from a structure under which customers or policyholders own a large chuck of a company.

United Community Financial Corp. in Youngstown, Ohio, is setting the stage for a new leader.

City National Corp. in Los Angeles said it will raise as much as $300 million in senior notes so that it can extinguish more expensive debt issued late last year.

Under normal circumstances, Capitol Federal Financial in Topeka, Kan., would be wrapping up the process it began more than two months ago to convert from a mutual holding company to a stock company.

Consumer borrowing fell again in the U.S. in July as households reduced credit card use for a 23rd consecutive month. Borrowing dropped at an annual rate of $3.6 billion, according to the Federal Reserve's G.19 report. That marked the 17th drop in credit in the past 18 months.

Banco Davivienda of Bogota, was given permission Tuesday to convert a subsidiary already in the U.S., Bancafe International, into an international branch in Miami.

Republic First Bank in Philadelphia is changing its name — to Republic Bank. The $934 million-asset unit of Republic First Bancorp Inc. announced the change Wednesday, as part of rebranding efforts following the March collapse of its deal to sell itself to Metro Bancorp Inc. of Harrisburg, Pa.

Anchor BanCorp Wisconsin Inc.'s primary regulator has approved, with conditions, its recapitalization plan after it aggressively sold branches and reduced assets to raise capital levels.

The Fort Lauderdale, Fla., company last week filed a registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission to raise up to $125 million of common equity this year. BankAtlantic did not disclose when it intends to launch an offering.

First Federal of Lakewood in Ohio has agreed to acquire a competitor, Century Bank in Parma, Ohio. First Federal, with $1.2 billion of assets, would gain five branches and $135 million of assets from Century Bank.

In the past, a bank making money with plenty of capital and not too many nonperforming loans would automatically get a high management grade. But regulators say that free ride is ending.

There are draconian potential consequences in Regulation Y if an FHC cannot return to well-capitalized and well-managed status within 180 days.

The former president of a payment processing company has agreed to settle charges brought by the Federal Trade Commission and seven states for his role in an operation that allegedly debited more than $200 million in bogus charges from consumers’ bank accounts.

HOUSTON – A new environmentally friendly branch opened by JSC FCU features solar power, light shelves that increase ambient light and water use reduction using low-flow faucets and dual flush toilets.

At a time when calculated retreats are becoming more common — and more accepted — Tidelands Bancshares Inc. is a new kind of leader.