Retail & Commercial

Flagstar Bancorp in Troy, Mich., which has been under pressure from regulators in recent months, has hired a new chief financial officer.

The ousted founders of CertusBank in Greenville, S.C., have filed a new lawsuit against a hedge fund investor.

Two Native American tribes have dropped their federal lawsuit against the state of New York that claimed its' campaign against payday lenders violated their rights as sovereign tribes.

Trinity Capital in Los Alamos, N.M., will restate earnings for 2009 and has determined that its financial statements going back to 2006 can no longer be relied upon.

ConnectOne Bancorp in Englewood Cliffs, N.J., has appointed Mark Santasieri chief credit officer.

Freedom Bank of Virginia in Fairfax plans to raise $4 million by selling common stock.

Capital One plans to lay off 111 employees in Houston, as it looks to consolidate back-office jobs responsible for deposit processing.

Banks are hiring armies of lawyers, accountants, compliance consultants and IT vendors as they prepare to comply with the Volcker Rule. Ironically, their attempts to fortify themselves with outsourced knowledge could expose them to more operational risk.

Until U.S. authorities can prove they have a better idea about how to provide short-term, small-dollar loans and other alternative financial services to people in need, they should stop trying to drive from business the lawful companies working to serve this market.

Bitcoin merchant services provider BitPay added support for contactless Near Field Communication payments through its new Bitcoin Checkout App, eliminating several steps in its payment process.