Racial disparity in small-business loans remains glaring, despite some improvement. Lenders' unfamiliarity with African-American communities is part of the problem, but so is the need for financial education among prospective borrowers.

Loan demand, which bankers say remained weak well after the recession, is picking up, and the industry is adjusting business models to meet it. But banks may want to act fast.

IMGCAP(1)]

Georgia state regulators on Friday closed the $272 million-asset Capitol City Bank & Trust Co., in Atlanta, the third institution to fail this year.

Athens Federal Community Bank has applied for a national bank charter as it broadens its focus beyond residential mortgage lending.

A recap of the informed opinions (and the discussions they generated) on BankThink this week.

A recent research paper found that community banks' assets, along with market share in most types of commercial lending, have fallen since the Dodd-Frank Act was passed. The report is giving advocates of smaller institutions more data to rally around.

H&R Block in Kansas City, Mo., and BofI Holding in San Diego have pushed back the closing date for transferring ownership of H&R Block Bank.

Gary Patton Hall Jr. hid underperforming and at-risk loans from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and the bank's loan committee, the Federal Bureau of Investigation said in its indictment Thursday.

Banks nationwide are finding ways to make mobile deposit capture available to more people and faster without taking on more fraud risk.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren said community banks have continued to be profitable despite new rules under the Dodd-Frank Act while raising fresh warnings about unnecessary changes to the financial reform law in the guise of regulatory relief.

Elected officials in Santa Fe and Seattle are considering plans to form municipal banks to promote affordable housing and reach out to the underbanked. Bankers are wary since such institutions could present competition.

ApplePie Capital, a new marketplace lender that specializes in lending to franchises, has officially opened for business.

First Green Bancorp in Mount Dora, Fla., has raised nearly $14 million through a private placement.

Bank of the Ozarks in Little Rock, Ark., and WesBanco in Wheeling, W.Va., each completed acquisitions this week.

No one can agree on what the Fed will do with interest rates. In the meantime, the banking industry's more-conservative players are devoting more resources toward hoarding low-cost deposits and purging shorter-term borrowings.

United Community Banks in Blairsville, Ga., has solidified Lynn Harton's hold as the eventual successor to Chief Executive Jimmy Tallent.

Metro Bancorp, which has been fielding calls to sell itself for nearly a year, disclosed that CEO Gary Nalbandian will take a medical leave to undergo bypass surgery. Metro's executive team will be tasked with an ongoing effort to improve performance and remain independent.

Big banks and institutional investors picked up the pace of loan approvals for small businesses in January, while small banks and alternative lenders continued to see their approval rates decline, according to a monthly lending index.

From regulatory settlements to data breaches, bankers need to handle negative press with finesse and care. Here are several ways executives can effectively communicate with stakeholders and restore investor and customer confidence.