North Shore Bank in Peabody, Mass., has agreed to merge with Merrimac Savings Bank in Massachusetts.

Community Bank System and Oneida Financial, both of western New York state, have delayed the closing of their merger after settling a shareholder lawsuit that challenged the deal.

The mortgage lender Nationstar Mortgage Holdings is pouring a lot of energy into a digital and mobile homebuying platform called Xome. The strategy could attract tech-savvy millennials but carries plenty of risks including whether consumers would be improperly steered to its products.

New Buffalo Savings Bank in Michigan has filed plans to convert from a mutual thrift to a stock-owned institution.

Young Americans Bank, a niche institution in Denver focused on children, has a mission to create good future banking customers, but CEO Richard Martinez says kids today are cautious about credit after watching their parents struggle through the downturn.

HomeStreet in Seattle has hired Melba Bartels as chief financial officer, filling a position that has been vacant since March 2012.

The company, once in the crosshairs of a community group for how it complied with the Community Reinvestment Act, is aiming to raise $200 million with other banks for a fund that will work with local leaders to identify the best way to invest in low-income and underserved neighborhoods.

Piper Jaffray has hired several more executives from Sterne Agee Group, as it expands its financial institutions group.

James Sills, who runs a 107-year-old bank in North Carolina, believes the key to the survival of minority-owned institutions is their ability to adapt and reach more customers. M&F Bancorp, for instance, is changing the name of its bank and recently added its first nonblack director.

The Motor City's heyday as a financial center has long since passed, though echoes of Detroit's fiscal prominence remain in the shape of its skyline. And there is hope for revival as Ally Financial and Fifth Third make major moves downtown. Here is a look at the city's financial powerhouses over the years.

Community bank CEOs truly stand out from the crowd when they possess a contagious enthusiasm that motivates sales teams, a discerning approach to hiring and an insatiable desire to innovate.

Coastal Banking in Beaufort, S.C., has promoted the head of its mortgage banking division to president of CBC National Bank.

Farmers Capital Bank in Frankfort, Ky., has completed the redemption of its Troubled Asset Relief program preferred shares for about $10.1 million.

The harsh capital treatment of Trups holdings under Basel III undoes the regulatory relief already extended to community banks that had invested in the securities.

Hanmi Financial in Los Angeles has hired a former executive at Opus Bank to fill a newly created strategy post.

Four Oaks Fincorp in Four Oaks, N.C., will soon have a new chief executive.

Choice Financial Holdings in Fargo, N.D., has agreed to purchase Northland Financial in Steele, N.D.

Community Investment Corp. has raised $200 million from about three-dozen banks to acquire and rehabilitate thousands of affordable rental-housing units in the Chicago area.

The Louisiana Real Estate Appraisers Board said Coester Appraisal Management Group did not violate state law for failing to pay appraisers "customary and reasonable" fees, and that its executive director "misspoke" about a stipulation and order with the AMC.

Boston Private Financial Holdings has given its president, Mark Thompson, the additional title of chief executive for its Boston Private Wealth division.