After receiving reports from the country's largest mortgage servicers on their foreclosure procedures, regulators are teaming up to double-check the findings.

The Office of Thrift Supervision has put a halt to Meta Financial Group Inc.'s tax-refund-anticipation loans.

Webster Financial Corp. in Waterbury, Conn., Friday announced that it posted earnings of $22.7 million in the third quarter, compared with a loss of $19.25 million a year earlier.

Neighboring community banks recently have been making deals with local competitors before out-of-market buyers get interested.

Neighboring community banks recently have been making deals with local competitors before out-of-market buyers get interested. Though the pace of open-bank deals among community banks has picked up generally, analysts have noticed a shift back to unions between in-market or neighboring bank companies.

Commerce Bancshares Inc. in Kansas City, Mo., said Thursday that its third-quarter net income rose 8.3% from a year earlier, to $55.9 million, showing signs of improving credit quality.

Sierra Bancorp in Porterville, Calif., said Thursday that it would raise $22 million in capital through several institutional investors.

A handful of law firms said they were investigating the board of First Franklin Corp. of Cincinnati for potentially breaching fiduciary duties related to the bank's proposed sale, announced Wednesday, to Cheviot Financial Corp. of Cincinnati.

Like many community banks, First Bancshares in Mississippi quite reluctantly took Tarp funds, accepting only half what it qualified for. Yet the $500 million-asset company is now going back for seconds.

A double dip in real estate could create a $13 billion capital hole according to an IMF stress test.

In a move unthinkable just two years ago, the NCUA began a fire sale this week of corporate credit union assets.

Cheviot Financial Corp. in Cincinnati said Wednesday that it has agreed to buy First Franklin Corp., also of Cincinnati, for about $24.4 million.

Though plenty of community bank companies are raising capital, only a small number have fully subscribed their stock offerings without discounting shares.

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The National Credit Union Administration said Wednesday that May's failure of St. Paul Croatian Federal Credit Union in Cleveland was caused by fraud and will cost the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund as much as $170 million, one of the biggest losses ever incurred by a noncorporate credit union.

Intervest Bancshares Corp. in New York reported a $661,000 net loss for the third quarter, compared with net income of $342,000 a year earlier.

Century Bancorp Inc. of Medford, Mass., said its third-quarter net income rose 2.7% year over year, to nearly $3.3 million.

Under the agreement, Cheviot will buy First Franklin shares for $14.50 apiece — an 85% premium to Tuesday's closing price. The stock was last at the offer price three years ago.

Union First Market Bankshares said Tuesday that it has completed the integration of two affiliate banks, making it the largest community bank in Virginia.