Publicly traded community banks and thrifts looking to go private to avoid regulatory headaches could find themselves butting heads with shareholders.

The Federal Reserve Board and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. announced a joint enforcement order Thursday against Charles Kushner, the owner of the $622 million-asset NorCrown Bank in Livingston, N.J.

Rep. Nydia Velazquez, D-N.Y., introduced an amendment Thursday at a House Small Business Committee hearing that would have restored the credit subsidy that used to fund loan losses incurred by the Small Business Administration's 7(a) program.

MIDWEST

Franklin Bank Corp. of Houston’s full-year earnings rose a whopping 624% from a year earlier, to $23.3 million.

TIB Financial Corp.’s recent growth in southwest Florida may reflect good planning, but Edward V. Lett, its president and chief executive officer, says luck helped.

WASHINGTON - The Treasury Department's community development programs may be on the chopping block as the Bush administration tries to reduce spending by cutting Clinton-era economic development efforts.

Beyond Brown Bags — a Guide to the Bank Lunchroom

Webster Financial Corp. of Waterbury, Conn., has agreed to sell the two Wisconsin branches it expects to acquire this quarter to National Exchange Bank and Trust of Fond du Lac, Wis.

Multibank holding companies usually tailor the branding of their subsidiaries to geography, but one based in northern California is using a different tack by making its banks' names reflect their target audience.

Commercial Capital Bancorp Inc. in Irvine, Calif., said Monday that it plans to buy Timcor Exchange Corp. in Los Angeles for $29.4 million.

Do-it-yourself workshops, a testament to American spunk and ingenuity, have helped millions build decks, retile bathrooms, and write screenplays.

Harrington West Financial Group Inc. in Solvang, Calif., is acquiring the Thousand Oaks branch of Western Federal Bank.

After issuing a series of optimistic forecasts about its recovery from the asset quality woes that have beset it since 2002, Financial Institutions Inc. of Warsaw, N.Y., has suffered some setbacks in recent weeks.

Susquehanna Bancshares Inc. makes wealth management a high priority and is looking for acquisitions like last week’s purchase of a Delaware retirement benefit plan specialist to broaden its capabilities and boost revenue, its CEO said in an interview Friday.

Reduced funding costs gave Capitol Federal Financial's bottom line a big boost in its fiscal first quarter, which ended Dec. 31.

Capital City Bank Group Inc. in Tallahassee, Fla., is buying First Alachua Banking Corp. for $58.2 million in stock.

North Central Bancshares Inc. in Fort Dodge, Iowa, announced fourth-quarter earnings Thursday of $1.31 million, down 0.75% from a year earlier.

AmericanWest Bancorp in Spokane said fourth-quarter earnings dropped 32% from a year earlier, to $9.5 million, because of bigger provisions for loan losses and writedowns on foreclosed assets.