Bank Mutual (BKMU) in Brown Deer, Wis., reported higher earnings due mostly to improved credit quality.

Simmons First National (SFNC) in Pine Bluff, Ark., plans to close 27 branches, according to regulatory filings.

PrivateBancorp (PVTB) in Chicago posted higher quarterly earnings because of improved credit quality and lower expenses.

MB Financial (MBFI) in Chicago reported a minor dip in quarterly earnings as net interest income fell.

Flagstar Bancorp (FBC) in Troy, Mich., announced Thursday it is laying off approximately 600 employees as part of a cost cutting measure.

Soo Bong Min, the president and chief executive of BBCN Bank in Los Angeles, has stepped down after less than a year on the job.

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. (PNC) posted fourth-quarter profit that beat analysts' estimates as the lender set aside less money for soured loans.

Coconut Grove Bank in Miami has appointed a new chief financial officer: Samuel Milne, the former CFO of the struggling U.S. Century Bank.

Malvern Bancorp (MLVF) in suburban Philadelphia announced Wednesday the resignation of president and chief executive Ronald Anderson.

Community Bank-Wheaton/Glen Ellyn in Illinois has been released from a cease-and-desist order from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and state regulators.

WASHINGTON — Changes in overall loan balances were muted in the last six weeks of 2013, with bankers in some regions reporting minor growth and those in other parts of the country seeing volume remain stagnant, the Federal Reserve Board said Wednesday.

Customers Bancorp and CMS called off their merger and are fighting over whether Customers owes a $1 million breakup fee. Emotions run high in these cases, but bank execs need to learn to avoid such distractions to protect long-term growth strategies, experts warn.

The American Bankers Association announced Wednesday that it will drop its request for emergency relief in pending litigation over the Volcker Rule, but declined to stop the suit entirely.

The company paid out billions to settle mortgage issue, cut jobs and shed a noncore business. Investors hope those moves will position SunTrust for a solid 2014.

RBS Citizens Financial Group in Providence, R.I., has appointed Tony Di lorio, a former chief financial officer for Deutsche Bank, to its board of directors.

President Barack Obama plans to nominate Maria Contreras-Sweet, founder of a Latino-owned community bank in Los Angeles, as the next head of the Small Business Administration, according to multiple news reports.

Fidelity Homestead Savings Bank in New Orleans has acquired regional mortgage lender NOLA Lending.

The chief risk officer of EverBank Financial (EVER) in Jacksonville, Fla., is stepping down.

With no more lines and far more banks to choose from, I want the one I select to handle my exceptional transactions exceptionally. I want to leave my bank knowing that my visit was and always will be worthwhile.

Great Southern Bancorp (GSBC) in Springfield, Mo., has agreed to buy two branches from Boulevard Bank in Neosho, Mo.