Flagstar Bancorp Inc. in Troy, Mich., said it would take an $8.7 million pretax charge in the fourth quarter because it lost a lawsuit over insurance coverage.

Cathay General Bancorp in Los Angeles, which won a bidding battle this year for a New York bank that caters to Chinese-Americans, has now made a deal for a New Jersey bank with the same focus.

New England Bancshares Inc. in Enfield, Conn., said it had agreed to buy First Valley Bancorp Inc. in Bristol, Conn., for $25.9 million in stock and cash.

Mercantile Bancorp Inc.'s incoming chief executive sees variety as the key for the Quincy, Ill., company as it tries to double its assets over the next five years.

Stifel Financial Corp., a St. Louis investment banking company, has agreed to buy First Service Financial Co., a St. Louis commercial banking company, for $38 million in cash.

ShoreBank Corp. in Chicago is considering going public in the future so it can raise more money now.

WASHINGTON - America's Community Bankers is partnering with Independent BankersBank in Irving, Tex., on a program that would let many of the group's member banks offer credit cards to consumers and business owners.

Capital Bank Corp. in Raleigh has donated $10,000 toward the purchase of new computer equipment for a Greensboro-area high school that was destroyed by fire Nov. 1, according to local news reports last week.

Woodforest National Bank in Houston has opened more than 100 branches in Wal-Mart Inc. stores in the past 20 months and has no plans to slow the pace.

WASHINGTON - Roughly 300 small banks affected by last year's Gulf Coast hurricanes would get an infusion of corporate deposits through a five-year program being unveiled in New Orleans today.

Sun American Bancorp in Miami said Friday that it had agreed to buy the $131 million-asset Independent Community Bank in Tequesta, Fla., for $41 million in cash and stock.

Charter Financial Corp. in West Point, Ga., announced plans Friday to delist its stock and become a privately held company.

Middlefield Banc Corp. in Middlefield, Ohio, has agreed to acquire Emerald Bank of Dublin for $7.3 million in cash and stock.

TIB Financial Corp. in Naples, Fla., has agreed to purchase Bank of Venice for $16 million of cash and stock.

Nearly half of community banks use credit scoring to evaluate small-business loans, but most still give more weight to other criteria, such as cash flow and collateral.

Members of Lafayette Federal Credit Union in Kensington, Md., angry over a decision to convert the credit union to a mutual savings bank, are circulating a petition aimed at ousting the nine-member board.

CenterState Banks of Florida Inc. in Winter Haven has a deal to buy the $157 million-asset Valrico Bancorp Inc. for $40.4 million of cash and stock.

A report the National Credit Union Administration released Wednesday found that 44% of all federal credit union members earn less than the median family income for their metropolitan statistical area.

Frank Mercardante's task of improving Placer Sierra Bancshares' lackluster earnings has gotten a bit harder now that the Sacramento company is about to lose a large chunk of its core deposits.

MIDWEST