Banking

The Los Angeles companies said Tuesday that the Federal Reserve Board has approved the $2.3 billion deal.

A Pennsylvania man has been sentenced to nearly six years in prison and must pay $9.2 million for his role in mortgage and bank fraud schemes.

Wells Fargo is in succession-planning mode. CEO John Stumpf is moving CFO Tim Sloan, widely considered to be one of his potential heirs, over to run the wholesale banking business, and promoting securities head John Shrewsberry to replace Sloan.

Charles M. Williams, co-chief executive of CertusBank, has quit the Greenville, S.C., company amid allegations of gross mismanagement.

It's not all suits and pencil skirts in banking.

Hancock Holding (HBHC) in Gulfport, Miss., has agreed to sell its property and casualty and group benefits lines of business to AssuredPartners in Lake Mary, Fla.

First Federal and Bay View are combining similar sized institutions that have complementary infrastructure, earnings and products. Though small, the deal could serve as a model for mutuals interested in keeping their charter and culture.

Ten auto repossession companies will stop claiming vehicles on behalf of title-loan companies under agreements with New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman.

Rep. Maxine Waters' plan to overhaul the mortgage finance market may be dead-on-arrival in the House, but it is still likely to help determine the fate of a separate Senate bill seen as the leading congressional attempt to enact reform.

The future of the branch is anyone's guess, but one thing is for sure: RIP teller lines. The new teller-line free branch concepts require staff members to better deliver a brand experience that includes demoing new mobile app features to signing a customer up on a new product.

Green Bank has dropped a lawsuit against Target and security vendor Trustwave that stemmed from the retailer's 2013 data breach.

Eliminating payday lenders would create a void that banks, thrifts, and credit unions cannot or are reluctant to fill. With greater transparency, payday lenders can become a viable partner in the small-cash market.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau needs to improve the efficiency of its program for direct supervision of banks and non-banks, the inspector general at the Federal Reserve, which audits CFPB activities, said.

Tax provision would help distressed homeowners seeking workouts and short sales from being penalized by the IRS.

Wells Fargo (WFC) has reached a deal to issue private-label and co-branded credit cards with the department store chain Dillard's (DDS).

The Federal Home Loan Bank of Atlanta has appointed Bank of Georgetown Chairman Michael Fitzgerald to its board of directors.

Andera Inc., one of Bank Technology News' top ten tech companies to watch for 2013, will be acquired by Bottomline Technologies for about $44.5 million in cash and 102,000 shares of Bottomline stock.

Coconut Grove Bank in Miami has appointed Donald Putnam chief lending officer.

This "product" is weakened in the customers' mind when interacting with a living, breathing banker inevitably involves fending off sales pitches.

Charlie Shrem, a prominent evangelist for Bitcoin who is charged by the U.S. with conspiring to launder more than $1 million in the virtual currency tied to the illicit online bazaar Silk Road, is in plea talks, prosecutors said.