ESSA Bancorp Inc. of Stroudsburg, Pa., has completed its second stock repurchase program, and announced another plan to buy back 5% more of its outstanding stock.

Banner Corp. of Walla Walla, Wash., has warned investors to be ready for a particularly large loss for the third quarter.

Mississippi's Cadence Financial Corp. and Trustmark Corp. seemed to be a near-perfect match. Both had competed in neighboring markets for more than a century, and their union would have created an $11 billion-asset Southeast powerhouse.

More must be done so that FIs of all sizes can compete. Those in a position to influence economic behavior should provide concrete assurances regarding the rules of engagement.

More than 550 people gathered at The Pierre to honor 2010's Most Powerful Women in Banking and Finance.

A subsidiary of the American Bankers Association is offering a prepaid MasterCard Inc. program for community banks that want to issue cards.

Old National Bancorp in Evansville, Ind., Wednesday announced a deal to acquire the $850 million-asset Monroe Bancorp for $83.5 million in a stock transaction.

Cadence Financial Corp. of Starkville, Miss., on Wednesday called off its deal with longtime competitor Trustmark Corp. and instead agreed to be acquired by an investment group in Texas.

National Penn Bancshares Inc. said Wednesday that the private-equity firm Warburg Pincus has agreed to invest $150 million for a 16.4% stake in the Boyertown, Pa., company.

After trying to expand the unit, MainSource Financial Group of Greensburg, Ind., has shrunk MainSource Insurance by selling its property and casualty and health insurance books.

If a bank's new account production is falling off, the institution might feel fine at the moment. Yet experienced bankers know that, without action, serious problems are imminent.

Two years on, it is clear the Troubled Asset Relief Program put the nation's largest financial firms on sounder footing. But for community banks the program's legacy is far more mixed.

The repeal of Regulation Q, which prohibited banks from paying interest on business checking balances, would allow banks to offer their customers fairer value for their deposits.

Early government data indicates that overall portfolios contracted apace in the third quarter, but that C&I lending came close to a turnaround.

Warburg Pincus has agreed to invest $150 million in National Penn Bancshares, buying a 16% stake at a 5% discount to Tuesday's closing price.

With a new line of products, Flagstar Bancorp in Troy, Mich., is following through with a plan to increase its commercial business.

The $7.8 billion-asset company in Itasca, Ill., announced late Monday that the bank's president and chief executive, Thomas J. Schwartz, plans to step down from those positions at the end of the year.

Adding to the recent string of small-bank acquisitions, German American Bancorp Inc. in Jasper, Ind., is purchasing American Community Bancorp Inc.