Western Alliance Bancorp. relishes niches with thin competition and high rewards. Its deal for Bridge Capital is no different: The seller serves small tech companies that provide high liquidity and ample fee revenue.

Reliance Bancshares is also talking to Tim Hortons about anchoring some of its branches, in hopes that coffee traffic will bring more business into its underutilized offices.

First Bancorp in Puerto Rico revised its fourth-quarter earnings to reflect an adjustment tied to a reversal in its deferred-tax asset.

Glen Rock Savings Bank in Glen Rock, N.J., has agreed to buy Llewellyn-Edison Savings Bank in West Orange, N.J.

American Banker readers share their views on the most pressing banking topics of the week. Comments are excerpted from reader response sections of AmericanBanker.com articles and from our social media platforms.

Hencorp Becstone Capital in Miami has agreed to pay $3.8 million to settle allegations that it provided inaccurate statements and claims to the Export-Import Bank.

The Justice Department handed down its third bank settlement under Operation Choke Point Thursday, bringing a civil complaint against Plaza Bank of Irvine, Calif., for failing to report a payment processor's relationship with fraudulent merchants.

Charles "Stormy" Greef, a partner with Hunton & Williams' financial institutions team, died March 10. He was 66.

Smaller banks need to develop detailed marketing plans to reach out to cardholders, while also working with their processors to prepare for the transition to EMV cards.

FirstBank Holding Company is appealing to young, outdoorsy and wired customers with soft marketing, including a smartphone-guided treasure hunt for free snowboards and skis at a Colorado resort.

A recovering economy has all but stopped talk about loan growth. Instead, bankers are now getting grilled about deposit gathering, dealmaking and, in some instances, how they are dealing with slumping energy prices.

Community banking groups have recently struck referral deals with marketplace lenders that could add revenue in the short run, but they might be giving away potentially valuable data and customers in the process.

Foresight Financial Group in Rockford, Ill., has agreed to buy State Bank of Herscher in Herscher, Ill.

HomeBancorp in Tampa, Fla., has raised $16.5 million in capital.

Small-business lending will be crucial to the future of the American economy. But community banks' ability to make loans to friends and neighbors they know depends in part on a supportive regulatory environment.

McKenzie Banking in McKenzie, Tenn., has agreed to buy Farmers Bank in Woodland Mills, Tenn.

The Department of Justice announced a $4.9 million settlement Tuesday with CommerceWest Bank of Irvine, Calif., over charges that the bank knowingly worked with a third-party processor making illegal withdrawals from consumer bank accounts.

Telecommuting isn't new for front-office loan officers, but in an increasingly competitive hiring environment, some mortgage lenders now let their underwriters work from home, too.