Pacific Capital Bancorp has renewed its focus on serving middle-market customers and high-net-worth individuals, and it is shedding its equipment leasing and indirect auto financing businesses, because they do not jibe with that strategy.

PrivateBancorp Inc. of Chicago announced Thursday that it expects its nonperforming loans to rise this quarter because of the softening real estate market.

Mercantile Bancorp Inc. of Quincy, Ill., said it has improved its internal financial reporting and strengthened its management controls by using an online service to extract information from the data processing systems of its bank units.

Like many other small financial institutions, Gloucester County Federal Savings Bank has had its growth plans hampered by fierce deposit competition, both from other local banks and from online ones.

AUSTIN — Start-up capital appears to be drying up in some markets, but it is still flowing freely in Texas and is starting to trickle into the state's second-tier cities.

Mercantile Bancorp Inc. in Quincy, Ill., has bought a $1.1 million stake in a Denver-area start-up bank.

NEW ENGLAND

Franklin Bank Corp. of Houston announced Wednesday that it had received commitments to sell $23.3 million of common stock to a group of insiders.

Danversbank in Massachusetts plans to convert from a mutual to a stock holding company.

Blue River Bancshares Inc. of Shelbyville, Ind., said late Monday that it has amended its agreement to sell the charter of one of its subsidiaries to FirstAtlantic Financial Holdings Inc. of Jacksonville, Fla.

Flush with capital from its recent public offering, Porter Bancorp Inc. in Louisville appears ready to put that money to work in acquisitions.

Amegy Bank of Texas, a Houston subsidiary of Zions Bancorp. of Salt Lake City, said Tuesday that it would acquire Intercontinental National Bank, jump-starting Amegy's efforts to establish itself in San Antonio.

Flushing Financial Corp. in Lake Success, N.Y., announced Monday that it has formed a limited-purpose commercial bank for the purpose of soliciting deposits from state and local governments.

Willow Financial Bancorp Inc. of Wayne, Pa., said Monday that it had pared back its exposure to bad loans through the sale of a loan and real estate worth $6.5 million.

The National Credit Union Administration said it has taken control of Peoples First Choice Federal Credit Union in Glen Rock, N.J.

Candace Franks became the first woman commissioner of the Arkansas State Bank Department last week.

Community banks have left the remittance business mostly to large banks and money-services businesses, but a Washington consumer finance company that largely targets Hispanics is trying to change that.

Community Banks Inc. in Harrisburg, Pa., said Monday that it would lower previously reported first-quarter earnings by 31% because it has determined that it had misapplied a new accounting rule.

The hits keep coming for the struggling Coast Financial Holdings Inc.