NEW ENGLAND

PacWest Bancorp in San Diego has sold off a significant portion of its troubled loans at a steep discount in an attempt to refocus on growth.

Sterling Bancshares Inc. in Houston has hit speed bumps including a terminated branch deal, an earnings restatement and a sharp rise in nonperforming assets.

APPLE VALLEY, Calif. – Alaska USA FCU, which entered the California market with the acquisition of two failed credit unions last year, is opening a new branch here today.

BAKERSFIELD, Calif. – Kern Schools FCU said it plans to close four of its 14 branches and lay off 40 employees as part of a plan to trim its budget by $7 million.

Supporting the ideal of a bank on the corner that knows every customer is not merely some nostalgic notion of America. Rather, it is a necessity for the success of our local economy

Financial institutions need to move beyond brochures and classes if they are serious about improving their customers' financial capability, and they are well positioned to do so.

In less than two years, the financial world witnessed the collapse of some of the most trusted industry icons, mergers and acquisitions of many of the largest banks and government bailouts - namely TARP.

Naugatuck Valley Mutual has joined a growing list of companies planning second-step conversions, which would give its subsidiary capital to buy Southern Connecticut Bancorp.

Cascade Bancorp's largest shareholder, in affiliation with a PE firm, agreed to invest $65 million into the struggling bank — but only if it found capital elsewhere first.

An estimated 293 different collection agencies and creditors are named in 436 consumer statute lawsuits filed nationwide in the first half of February, according to data from U.S. District Court complaint dockets. The 15-day total trails the pace established in January. In that month, 712 collection agencies and creditors were named in 851 lawsuits.

Taylor Capital Group Inc. in Rosemont, Ill., announced it is selling its corporate trust business to Amalgamated Bank of Chicago.

Sonoma Valley Bancorp has been required to restate its third-quarter results after a recent regulatory exam.

Small banks face myriad and often frustrating obstacles to acquiring failed banks. But some smart strategies have separated the successful bidders from the rest, including raising excess capital well before a bid, targeting fewer and smaller banks, tracking enforcement actions of potential failures and bringing in well-seasoned management to see a deal through.

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The parent company of American Federal Savings Bank in Helena, Mont., has gotten regulatory approval to complete the second step of its conversion to a stock company.

Editor's Note: This is an updated version of a column published by Collections & Credit Risk last month.

Promontory Interfinancial Network, already known for providing coverage through its certificate of deposit network, is set to announce today that it plans a May launch for a product to protect a customer's liquid funds.

WASHINGTON — Four failures late Friday cost the government an additional $1 billion.Among the closings, which brought the year's total to 20, was that of $3.6 billion-asset La Jolla Bank in La Jolla, Calif. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. sold La Jolla's operations to OneWest Bank in Pasadena in the second recent deal for the buyers of the failed IndyMac Bank.

WASHINGTON — Four failures late Friday cost the government an additional $1 billion.Among the closings, which brought the year's total to 20, was that of $3.6 billion-asset La Jolla Bank in La Jolla, Calif. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. sold La Jolla's operations to OneWest Bank in Pasadena in the second recent deal for the buyers of the failed IndyMac Bank.