Sunwest Bank had some explaining to do after it pulled away from construction lending about five years ago. Now the Tustin, Calif., company's patience is paying off.

The parent company of Cleveland's AmTrust Bank, filed for bankruptcy protection Monday, casting doubt on the future of the bank's more than 60 branches.

American River Bankshares in Sacramento announced Monday that it has begun a stock offering to raise up to $25.3 million.

Though it is weighed down by bad construction loans and short on capital, Baytree National Bank and Trust in Lake Forest, Ill., is engineering a rescue.

The Federal Reserve has announced enforcement actions against two banking companies in Washington State and one in Kansas.

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Nearly two years ago the FDIC set out to examine whether banks could make money by offering small loans to cash-strapped consumers, and with the pilot program scheduled to end in February, the answer seems clear: not in the short term.

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B of I Holding Inc. in San Diego has filed a shelf registration to raise up to $125 million of capital.

The significantly undercapitalized Charter Bank in Sante Fe, N.M., must come up with a plan to sell itself if it cannot boost its capital ratios by yearend.

Lynn Tilton, the founder and chief executive of the private-equity firm, Patriach Partners, was eager to talk about an undertaking that will probably constrain her sleep time even further: buying or starting a bank that would lend to midmarket companies.

Shares of Severn Bancorp Inc. fell Tuesday after the Annapolis, Md., company announced that it has come under more regulatory scrutiny.

Mercantile Bancorp Inc. is shedding half its banks in a series of deals that illustrates the financial contortions some companies need to survive the recession.

Washington Banking Co. started a public offering of at least $30 million of its common stock as the small northwest Washington company looks to boost its capital levels.

People's United Financial Inc. in Bridgeport, Conn., has been fanning expectations of a bank acquisition for years. Monday's deal, however, wasn't it.

The National Credit Union Administration assigned Kent Buckham — who was moved aside as chief corporate credit union examiner amid last year's implosion of two such institutions — to be the first director of its Office of Consumer Protection.

People's United Financial Inc. agreed to acquire Financial Federal Corp. in a stock and cash deal valued at about $738 million, increasing its presence in the equipment-finance sector.

Regulators closed Commerce Bank of Southwest Florida Friday, the Sunshine State's third failure in a week.

With its bank unit low on capital, PremierWest Bancorp in Medford, Ore., is planning to raise up to $36 million in a rights offering.

Bank of Florida in Naples, which is under regulatory pressure to raise capital, has postponed a $135 million stock offering, saying market conditions have deteriorated.