For the third consecutive month, the Credit Manager's Index is signaling that the recession is over and the economy is expanding, according to a report by the National Association of Credit Management (NACM).

Sun American Bank has failed to submit an acceptable capital plan to regulators, the Federal Reserve disclosed Monday.

Like a lot of companies, TLCM Holdings LLC in Richardson, Texas, was shopping for a failing bank. Its plan: transform the target's business model to provide a secondary market for bank loans.

SALT LAKE CITY – Utah First FCU said it is moving its headquarters into a building it recently acquired in the downtown area here.

SAN ANTONIO – Security Service FCU has signed with Stripes LLC to provide its members with access to ATMs at 500 Stripes and Town & Country convenience stores in Texas, Oklahoma and New Mexico.

Four Oaks Fincorp Inc., the holding company for Four Oaks Bank and Trust Co. of Four Oaks, N.C., announced Monday that it completed the acquisition of Nuestro Banco on Dec. 31.

Webster Financial Corp. announced Monday that it plans to expand its business banking portfolio by $400 million in the coming year.

First Community Bank Corp. of America is aiming to raise capital to immediately boost capital levels at its thrift and amass cash for further capital needs.

Seventy-six percent of more than 6,100 consumers polled by the National Foundation for Credit Counseling (NFCC) picked "decrease debt" as a top financial resolution for 2010. But while the collection industry looks favorably at that goal, NFCC officials are concerned about where other consumer priorities ranked.

TLCM Holdings LLC, a new holding company in Richardson, Texas, has agreed to acquire EJ Financial Corp. in Dallas. TLCM and EJ Financial announced the deal late Wednesday, without disclosing the price.

Members of the Community Bankers Council of the American Bankers Association in unison blasted legislative plans to toughen regulation of banks and offered alternative fixes to overdraft programs.

An Illinois banking company has agreed to submit a plan designed to improve the condition of the lender, the Federal Reserve said Wednesday.

Following a regulatory exam, Preferred Bank in Los Angeles announced Wednesday that it will restate its third-quarter earnings, bringing its loss for the quarter to as much as $5 a share, according to one analyst's estimate.

With little competition, Horizon Bancorp in Michigan City, Ind., was able to create its own playbook for a deal announced late Tuesday in which the company agreed to buy pieces of the $122 million-asset American Trust and Savings Bank in Whiting, Ind.

NEW ENGLAND

Home prices are leveling out after an unexpected rebound in the spring and summer while consumers are feeling a little better about the overall economy, according to two closely watched reports released on Tuesday.

The board of directors of United Community Banks Inc. in Blairsville, Ga., said Tuesday that it was temporarily suspending its quarterly dividend to avoid further dilution of its shares and improve its liquidity.

REDLANDS, Calif.–Arrowhead Credit Union has installed an Ice Bear unit to provide demand-reducing air conditioned cooling for its branch here, and is projecting it will be able to reduce the air conditioning peak demand by more than 20% at the 5,500 square foot facility.

Sometimes the best deal is the one that doesn't happen. That appears to be the case for Sterling Bancshares in Houston, which announced this week that it had called off its 19-branch deal with First Banks Inc. The sale was set to close by Dec. 31.