There is optimism that the Small Business Administration will be allowed to approve a larger volume of SBA loans in fiscal year 2015 compared to previous years. Bankers are especially supportive of plans to continue waiving fees for smaller 7(a) loans.

Royal Bancshares of Pennsylvania (RBPAA) in Narbeth has agreed to sell nearly $14 million in stock through private placements.

Bank lending to small businesses reached post-recession record highs in February, according to the latest Biz2Credit Small Business Lending Index.

Meridian Interstate Bancorp (EBSB) in East Boston, Mass., is planning a second-step conversion.

FBC Mortgage, a unit of the investment bank Sterne Agee Group, is seeking loan referral partnerships with community banks. In a recent deal it also hired HomeBanc's mortgage personnel.

Berkshire Hills Bancorp (BHLB) in Pittsfield, Mass., has terminated all of its interest rate swaps associated with Federal Home Loan Bank advances through the end of last year.

Ameris Bancorp (ABCB) in Moultrie, Ga., has agreed to buy Coastal Bankshares in Savannah, Ga.

Chemical Financial (CHFC) in Midland, Mich., has agreed to buy Northwest Bancorp in Traverse City, Mich.

The Charlotte, N.C., bank offers a model for other community banks that have expanded quickly in recent years but face a pricier M&A market: focus on smaller deals that provide additional liquidity and plug geographic holes.

Four private-equity investors have sold their remaining stakes in BankUnited (BKU) in Miami Lakes, Fla., for almost $393 million.

Joseph Stilwell said in recent regulatory filings that he wants Fairmount Bancorp in Baltimore and Harvard Illinois Bancorp to find buyers. He also filed a document backing Jefferson Bancshares' planned sale to HomeTrust.

AIG's United Guaranty Corp. has again elected to go off on its own and will not join the new trade group being formed by the other private mortgage insurers.

BOK Financial Corp. (BOKF) in Tulsa, Okla., has agreed to buy MBM Advisors, a wealth management firm based in Houston.

The rising generation of young Americans not only have little loyalty to banks, according to a three-year survey of 10,000 people born between 1981 and 2000 — many also believe that traditional financial institutions are on their way to irrelevance.

Record profits at agriculture-focused rural banks could be coming to an end. Farm revenue is expected to decline sharply this year, and ag lenders are watching warily to see if this is a one-year blip or the start of a downturn.

A spike in consolidation is expected to provide growth-minded banks with more opportunities to lure executives and commercial lenders.

OTC Markets Group, an operator of financial marketplaces for 10,000 U.S. and global securities, is preparing to launch a public trading marketplace for community and regional banks, according to a company release.

Royal Financial (RYFL) in Chicago has received permission from the Federal Reserve to withdraw an April 2010 board resolution that banned the company from paying dividends, increasing debt or redeeming stock without regulatory approval.

First Bancshares (FBMS) in Hattiesburg, Miss., has agreed to buy BCB Holding in Mobile, Ala.

Scott Tomlinson at Flint Community Bank used a meeting with the agency's deputy director to speak his mind on the shortcomings of mortgage regulation.