In a letter to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce said the agency needed to guard against unclear and inefficient supervision, recommending several changes.

Charter Financial in West Point, Ga., has begun the stock offering for its second-step conversion.

Boosting regulatory oversight of Wall Street firms will better allocate examiner resources to the riskiest financial firms and help reduce unnecessary burdens on community banks.

An investor with a history of forming and selling banks has bought a large stake in Liberty Bell, a Philadelphia-area bank.

First BanCorp in San Juan, P.R., is attempting to improve its capital position by converting preferred shares into common stock.

Severn Bancorp (SVBI) in Maryland will restate earnings for the past three years to reflect a change in how it accounts for premiums on deposit insurance.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland has terminated an enforcement action against Rurban Financial (RBNF) in Defiance, Ohio, tied to its information-technology unit.

Changes to product offerings and pricing give the impression that the new bank does not have the customers' best interests at heart. Feeling undervalued is a key emotional reason they defect.

First Keystone (FKYS) in Berwick, Pa., has amended its bylaws to allow its board to select a vice chairman.

A number of regional and community banks — including PNC, Fifth Third and Huntington — are working with the Michigan Economic Development Corp. to provide $30 million in funding to small businesses.

Flagstar Bancorp (FBC) in Troy, Mich., has agreed to sell DocVelocity, its document-imaging business, to mortgage tech company Capsilon.

Congress is afraid to tackle this complicated and contentious issue, but the market badly needs positive signals from our lawmakers that provide certainty about the future of housing finance.

Big banks are ceding more of the consumer market to small banks, says John Romano, the new No. 2 executive at Amalgamated Bank in New York.

QCR will pay roughly $20.1 million in cash and stock for the $290 million-asset Community National. The consideration is 70% stock and 30% cash. The companies expect to complete the deal in the second quarter.

Minden Bancorp (MDNB) in Minden, La., is set to begin its third repurchase plan since becoming a public company two years ago.

WASHINGTON — Senate Banking Committee Chairman Tim Johnson and Sen. Mike Crapo, the top panel republican, wrote to regulators on Wednesday urging them to weigh concerns by community bankers on pending Basel III capital and liquidity rules.

Citizens First (CZFC) in Bowling Green, Ky., is nearly two-thirds of the way to exiting the Troubled Asset Relief Program.

Move over, Wintrust. MB is poised to end its three-year hiatus from dealmaking.

Scott Bauer was the North Carolina company's CEO from its creation to its sale last fall to Capital Bank Financial.

CEO John Kanas is letting rivals know in advance that he's coming to New York — and that he's targeting their employees.