Elizabeth Warren has spent much of the past year arguing the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is not as scary as banks think. But as she steps aside, will that really be the case?

Northern Trust Corp. in Chicago has promoted Chief Financial Officer William L. Morrison to president and chief operating officer and has hired Bank of America Merrill Lynch veteran Michael G. O'Grady to be the new CFO.

With loan demand still weak in most of its markets, Westamerica Bancorporation in San Rafael, Calif., said Tuesday that its second-quarter profit fell by nearly 10% from the same period last year, to $21.3 million.

Floating loans to movie producers and rock stars may not be the banking industry's cure-all. But for a pair of banks, the entertainment business has provided a well-timed safe harbor.

The early read on M&A this earnings season: A weak economy and job market are putting a damper on deals, even as lending and revenue tick up.

AmeriServ Financial Inc. in Johnstown, Pa., said that its second-quarter earnings increased by more than 300%, to $1.9 million, from the same period last year because it did not have to set aside any funds for loan losses.

Mercantile Bank reported second-quarter earnings of $2.4 million, compared to a reported loss of $700,000 a year earlier, driven largely by a reduction in credit costs.

Jones Bancshares LP agreed to serve as a source of strength to its $405.1 million-asset PrimeSouth Bank in Blackshear, which has been operating under a consent order from the Federal Deposit Insurancce Corp. since Jan. 31.

First Financial Holdings Inc. in Charleston, S.C., is looking to unload $155 million of mostly troubled real estate loans by the end of 2011.

First BanCorp in San Juan, P.R., has increased the maximum amount of its planned capital raise from $550 million to more than $562 million.

Bank of Hawaii in Honolulu has agreed to pay $9 million to settle a class-action lawsuit in which it was accused of improperly charging overdraft fees on debit card transactions.

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Fear, uncertainty and doubt prevent most U.S. banks from daring to replace their aged core systems today. But Vancouver-based North Shore Credit Union experienced few hiccups and overall happiness with a new core from Temenos.

The Los Angeles company is now telling investors it may scale back its ambitions and raise only what it needs to complete its acquisition of rival Center Financial Corp.

A trio of Colorado congressmen — Ed Perlmutter, Mike Coffman and Scott Tipton — are sponsoring the Capital Access for Main Street Act.

Eagle Bancorp Inc. in Bethesda, Md., said last week that it has received a $56.6 million investment from Treasury and that it will use about $23.2 million of that to repay the remaining balance on a loan it received from the Troubled Asset Relief Program.

Driven by improved asset quality and a widening net interest margin, PacWest Bancorp in Los Angeles reported a profit of $12.8 million in the second quarter, nearly five times what it earned in the same period last year.

Another Friday night of failures brought down four banks in regions that have been all too familiar with closures.

Independent Bank Corp., reported second-quarter earnings of $11.1 million, a 38.5% increase over the year-ago period.

Arrow Financial Corp. reported second-quarter profit of $5.8 million, a 2.4% increase over the same period last year.