Retail & Commercial

Nobody has told banks in the northwestern U.S. that bank M&A is in the doldrums. Two deals were announced and another terminated there after the markets closed Wednesday, and that will put pressure on banks in the region to keep buying each other.

Sterling Financial (STSA) in Spokane, Wash., reported lower quarterly earnings after suffering a decline in mortgage banking revenue.

WesBanco (WSBC) in Wheeling, W.Va., has hired a Fifth Third (FITB) executive to be its chief operating officer, and plans to promote him to chief executive next year.

Fourty-four percent of American consumers have chosen not to sign the back of their payments cards, instead writing “see ID” or leaving it blank, according to a study sponsored by Jumio and conducted online by Harris Interactive.

Edward DeMarco, acting director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, said Thursday that the agency has no immediate plans to lower the size of the loans the government-sponsored enterprises can buy, though he left the door open for future reductions.

State Bank Financial (STBZ) in Atlanta reported higher quarterly earnings tied to loans it obtained from buying failed banks.

Pioneer Credit Recovery has been ranked No. 1 by the U.S. Department of the Treasury Bureau of the Fiscal Service for the third quarter ended Sept. 30 on a contract to recover past-due accounts owed to government agencies.

Quarterly profit slid at First Merchants Corp (FRME) in Muncie, Ind., as interest income and revenue from loan sales fell.

Customers Bancorp (CUBI) in Wyomissing, Pa., compensated for reduced income from its warehouse mortgage business with growth in other lending categories last quarter.