Joe Slavens, the CEO of Northwest Bank & Trust in Iowa, has diversified to cope with weakening loan demand in the Quad Cities. He's got plans for dealing with higher taxes and other community bank challenges.

Sales of previously owned homes rose in October while the supply of homes for sale sank to its lowest in nearly a decade.

If you have a successful model that you believe in, it doesn't matter what the establishment says.

The event, hosted by the Federalist Society, was largely designed to focus on the CFPB. But former BB&T CEO John Allison used his time to openly argue for ending, or limiting, the Fed.

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WASHINGTON — State regulators in Georgia closed the $125 million-asset Hometown Community Bank in Braselton late Friday, stretching the industry's failure toll this year to 50.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau says it will delay the effective date of new disclosures about escrow accounts and other items as the agency crafts a broader overhaul of mortgage forms.

The Lansing, Mich., company has a confirmation hearing on Dec. 4. A delay could prove costly to Capitol's survival; the state regulator has threatened to seize the company's bank in New Mexico on Dec. 20.

Mendon Capital Advisors increased its holdings in several community banks in the third quarter, while reducing its exposure to JPMorgan Chase (JPM) and other large and midsize banks.

Southwest Bancorp in Stillwater, Okla., has recruited veteran executive from BancFirst Corp. in Oklahoma City to be its new chief financial officer.

The $1.1 billion-asset parent company of First Federal Savings Bank said late Thursday that First Security Bank of Owensboro has terminated a deal to buy four First Federal branches in Louisville.

If regulators continue to sting banks with overzealous enforcement actions and ill-conceived policies, they, like the scorpion in Aesop's fable, could find themselves up the creek without a frog or paddle.

Republic Bancorp (RBCAA) of Louisville, Ky., and FedFirst Financial Corp. (FFCO) of Monessen, Pa., are planning to return more of their capital to shareholders as the fiscal cliff looms.

The Senate late Thursday confirmed the top two senior officials to lead the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. following months of uncertainty.

First Niagara Financial Group (FNFG) is expanding its mortgage operations. The Buffalo, N.Y., company is scheduled to open a processing center next month in Syracuse and hire more than two dozen employees to staff it.

First Mariner Bancorp said it had called off plans to sell a minority stake in itself to Priam Capital Fund I after determining that it could improve its capital levels with retained earnings.

Crescent Financial's updated SEC filing removes previous discussion about how banking regulators "encouraged" its deal with VantageSouth.

The move should improve liquidity for the $1.3 billion-asset Chemung's shares, Ronald M. Bentley, Chemung's president and chief executive, said in a news release Wednesday.

Capitol Bancorp (CBCRQ) has been fighting for survival for a few years now, but the next month might prove to be its toughest battle.

Former Amcore president Donald Wilson will become the chairman of Community Financial in Illinois as part of a recapitalization plan.