NEW ENGLAND

The newly formed First Texas BHC Inc. in Fort Worth announced Wednesday that it has a deal acquire the $300 million-asset Southwest Bank of Fort Worth.

It has been a bruising 18 months for Yardville National Bancorp, but its stock price continues to hold up, because investors are betting it is only a matter of time before it sells itself.

ShoreBank Corp. in Chicago announced Tuesday that Bob J. Nash, its vice chairman, has resigned to become the deputy campaign manager of Sen. Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign.

CFS Bancorp Inc. in Munster, Ind., is planning to trim its work force by about 7.5%, a move that it said would reduce its salary and benefit expenses by about $1.3 million a year.

Bradford Bancorp Inc. in Baltimore announced yet another deal for a Baltimore-area bank Monday, saying it would buy the $247 million-asset Patapsco Bancorp. Inc. in Dundalk, Md., for $45.5 million in cash and stock.

Carver Bancorp Inc. of New York has agreed to offer investment services through Merrill Lynch & Co. Inc. in two of Carver's 10 branches.

For years, small-town bankers have lamented the impact of depopulation on their communities — and their banks.

Center Bancorp Inc. in Union, N.J., said Friday that it has a deal to buy Beacon Trust Co. in Madison, N.J., for $10.3 million in cash and stock.

WASHINGTON — House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank expressed support for a national catastrophic reinsurance fund to help stabilize insurance markets after natural disasters.

William Isaac is selling Secura Group LLC of Vienna, Va., to the Emeryville, Calif., consulting firm LECG Corp.

NEW ENGLAND

Umpqua Holdings Corp.'s chief executive, Raymond P. Davis, has always considered himself a retailer and a marketer, not a banker.

Fox Chase Bank in Hatboro, Pa., had been a traditional thrift making mostly mortgages for well over a century before it began ramping up its commercial real estate and construction lending in 2002.

The top executive at CenterState Bank West Florida in Zephyrhills has abruptly resigned, the bank's parent company said Wednesday in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

FC Holdings Inc. chief executive Nigel Harrison’s stated goal is to aggressively expand his Houston company through acquisitions and sell it for what he hopes will be top dollar in seven to 10 years.

Iberiabank Corp.'s entry into Arkansas with two February acquisitions and its commitment to rebuilding New Orleans should help the Louisiana company reach its 2007 earnings goals, an analyst says.

Capitol Bancorp Ltd., which owns majority stakes in more than 50 small banks in 14 states, announced Tuesday the opening of its newest one, in Palm Desert, Calif.