Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Richard Cordray sought to allay lender fears Wednesday about the agency's new mortgage rules, pledging to be flexible with companies struggling to comply by the January deadline.

UMB Financial (UMBF) seeks to raise up to $242.2 million next week from a common stock offering that priced Tuesday.

Craig Spengeman, the president of Peapack-Gladstone Financial's (PGC) wealth management unit, is retiring.

Fidelity Southern Corp. (LION) in Atlanta has redeemed the entirety of the shares it issued to the Troubled Asset Relief Program along with about a third of trust-preferred securities.

Patriot National Bancorp in Stamford, Conn., has appointed Christina Maier as its new chief financial officer.

Community bankers at a mortgage conference in North Carolina admit that higher rates and new regulations trouble them, but they say they are customizing purchase products, returning to old-fashioned sales efforts and learning new business skills in response.

Carolina Bank Holdings in Greensboro, N.C., has bought back some of the preferred stock it issued through the Troubled Asset Relief Program.

A sharp rise in interest rates could cause customers to cash in CDs they have purchased only 30 to 60 days prior. It should not be easily cost effective to cash any CD prior to maturity.

Richard Carrión's loss is Popular's gain. He would have stepped down as CEO of the Puerto Rico bank had he won the presidency of the International Olympic Committee, but he lost to Germany's Thomas Bach.

Atlantic Coast Financial (ACFC) in Jacksonville, Fla., has picked a veteran of Fifth Third Bancorp (FITB) and the former Wachovia to be its new chief executive.

Evertec (EVTC), a payments business Popular started 25 years ago, filed a secondary offering with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Monday to sell 20 million shares, including 9 million shares currently held by the $37 billion-asset Popular.

CoBiz Financial in Denver has named new leadership at its banking franchise. Jonathan Lorenz has been named chairman of the board and Scott Page will replace Lorenz as chief executive at Colorado Business Bank and Arizona Business Bank.

Loan growth has become stagnant, if not declined, said most regional bank executives speaking at an industry conference this week. Many blamed continued caution by corporate borrowers.

The underwriters of Independent Bank Corp.'s (ICBP) recent offering plan to buy an additional $13.4 million worth of the company's stock.

F.N.B. Corp. in Hermitage, Pa., is setting up a regional headquarters in downtown Baltimore.

FirstMerit, M&T Bank and New York Community Bancorp are buyers in different stages of the acquisition process, and their executives together provided an insightful look into the full M&A experience this week.

The rate at which banks approved small-business loans rose in August, as large banks approved the highest percentage of loan applications since the financial crisis began.

The U.S. unit of Chinatrust Commercial Bank is changing its name to CTBC and offering more services to attract a broader range of customers. But it faces the same challenges other community banks are encountering as they try to expand beyond their traditional boundaries.

Jayme Fields, the chief financial officer of 1st Capital Bank (FISB) in Monterey, Calif., has resigned.

Remittances from the West are a lifeline for many people in the developing world, but anti-money laundering compliance requirements have made it hard for banks and money transmitters to service this market. Ellen Zimiles of Navigant Consulting discusses the delicate balance between regulatory and law enforcement concerns, on the one hand, and business and humanitarian goals on the other.