Retail & Commercial

A federal court judge in Florida has banned the defendants behind an alleged credit card interest rate reduction scam from selling debt-relief service and telemarketing any services.

Craig Spengeman, the president of Peapack-Gladstone Financial's (PGC) wealth management unit, is retiring.

Fidelity Southern Corp. (LION) in Atlanta has redeemed the entirety of the shares it issued to the Troubled Asset Relief Program along with about a third of trust-preferred securities.

Patriot National Bancorp in Stamford, Conn., has appointed Christina Maier as its new chief financial officer.

American Express (AXP) is selling its high-end glossies to Time Inc. in order to comply with federal regulations.

Ten Federal Housing Administration lenders could be facing hefty penalties from the government following an investigation into their underwriting practices, according to the Department of Housing and Urban Development's inspector general.

Wilmington Trust, a unit of M&T Bank, was sued by heirs to Mennen Co., maker of Speed Stick deodorant, seeking more than $100 million in damages for investment losses.

Some mortgage experts are criticizing a recent rule change by the Federal Housing Administration that would allow borrowers who lost their homes to foreclosure or a short sale to qualify for a new mortgage in as little as a year.

Community bankers at a mortgage conference in North Carolina admit that higher rates and new regulations trouble them, but they say they are customizing purchase products, returning to old-fashioned sales efforts and learning new business skills in response.

Citigroup, the fifth-biggest U.S. mortgage originator last year, shut an office and is eliminating jobs as rising mortgage rates cut off loan refinancings and volumes slow.