First Charter Corp. in Charlotte has always had ties to churches, providing them with building loans and other types of financing.

Fidelity Southern Corp. in Atlanta said in a regulatory filing Wednesday that it would consider a merger or acquisition in the near future.

Iberiabank Corp. in Lafayette, La., reported a third-quarter loss of $1.3 million after it substantially boosted its loan-loss provision to cover expected defaults from customers affected by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

Chittenden Corp. of Burlington, Vt., reported a 10% increase in third-quarter net income, to $21.7 million, as well as an increased net interest margin, continued low chargeoffs, and its lowest efficiency ratio in five years.

For years after its founding in 1977, County Bank of Merced, Calif., hummed along as a tiny community bank, serving farmers and mom-and-pop businesses in and around the small San Joaquin Valley town.

Provident Bankshares Corp. in Baltimore announced Thursday third-quarter earnings rose 11% from a year earlier, to a record $20 million.

Five weeks after opening its first branch in Lynchburg, Va., American National Bankshares Inc. has agreed to buy a community bank that is headquartered there.

Amalgamated Bank in New York appointed its outside counsel, Derrick Cephas, to be its president and chief executive Wednesday, succeeding the retiring Gabriel Caprio.

Under normal circumstances, Gulf Coast Bank and Trust Co. in New Orleans would not temporarily finance a small company's payroll or allow a business customer to defer loan payments for several months.

Gold Banc Corp. in Leawood, Kan., will pay the Internal Revenue Service nearly $3.5 million of taxes on interest it received on multifamily revenue bonds purchased in 2001 and 2002.

CNB Financial Corp. of Clearfield, Pa., plans to expand into Erie next year by creating a separately branded unit of its $750 million-asset County National Bank.

National Penn Bancshares Inc. in Boyertown, Pa., announced that its third-quarter income rose 7.8% from the same quarter a year earlier, to a record $14.8 million.

LSB Bancshares Inc. in Lexington, N.C., reported Monday that its third-quarter earnings rose 40% from the same period last year, to $2.5 million.

F. Weller Meyer, America's Community Bankers' incoming chairman, is one of the most active members of the Washington trade group.

Two Rhode Island thrifts, Newport Federal Savings Bank and Westerly Savings Bank, said Monday that they have merged to form a thrift with five branches and $263 million of assets.

Corus Bankshares Inc. reported that its third-quarter earnings rose 41% from the same period last year, to $39.8 million, powered by soaring demand for its construction and development loans.

Texas Regional Bancshares Inc.'s chairman and chief executive said it is continuing to defer bonuses for senior executives; he does not expect to pay any this year and will not authorize any until nonperforming assets drop by about 50%.

Until Hurricane Katrina flattened much of the Gulf Coast, the $5.4 billion-asset Hancock Holding Co. was on pace to report record third-quarter earnings.

UCBH Holdings Inc. of San Francisco had been expanding in New York by opening a few branches at a time, but it abruptly changed course last week with a $103.6 million deal to buy Great Eastern Bank.

The $1.6 billion-asset ShoreBank in Chicago is widely considered a model community development financial institution, but its 11-year-old Cleveland unit never made the grade.