Simmons First (SFNC) in Pine Bluff, Ark., has submitted a bid in bankruptcy court in an effort to buy Metropolitan National Bank in Little Rock, Ark.

SP Bancorp in Plano, Texas, has applied for a state bank charter. The $300 million-asset company's SharePlus Bank is currently chartered as a federal thrift.

The $1.1 billion-asset company said in a press release Wednesday that its bank had been released from a memorandum of understanding with the Federal Reserve Board.

Clifton Savings Bancorp said Paul Aguggia, 50, will take over as the $1 billion-asset company's chairman, CEO and president on Jan. 1.

The recent leadership shuffle at Banesco USA may have resulted from problems in its compliance with the Bank Secrecy Act, according to a report in the South Florida Business Journal.

Michael Kubacki plans to give up the CEO role at the $3 billion-asset company and its bank after its annual meeting in April 2014.

Four people in Wichita, Kan., have pleaded guilty to participating in a mortgage fraud that cost lenders more than $221,000.

Banks in general are paying departing executives less money. But some, including Sterling Bancorp in New York, are still approving multimillion-dollar parachutes.

Machias also agreed to acquire the assets at the six banks, including loans and real estate, and about $75 million of deposits, the companies said when they announced the sale in July.

The $2.6 billion-asset Community & Southern has agreed to pay $11.80 per common share of Verity, the companies announced Wednesday.

OmniAmerican Bancorp, the Texas lender whose stock has more than doubled since going public in 2010, is exploring a sale, two people with knowledge of the matter said.

Customers tend to "hire smilers." When otherwise comparable alternatives exist, people gravitate toward businesses that make them feel welcomed and appreciated.

John Stumpf, chairman and chief executive of Wells Fargo, wrote an impassioned column for American Banker last week emphasizing the importance of community banks to the national economy and calling for Washington to unburden them from a stifling regulatory regime. Editors discuss why big banks have so much riding on the survival of their smaller rivals.

Republic First Bancorp (FRBK) in Philadelphia has settled a lawsuit for $2 million, which may delay its ability to claim a large deferred-tax allowance.

A new outsourcing model breaks work up into tiny pieces and farms it out to large groups of freelancers, taking advantage of "cognitive surplus."

Mark Severson plans to resign from Chemung Financial in Elmira, N.Y., Sept. 13 to pursue another opportunity, the $1.3 billion-asset company said Tuesday in a regulatory filing. Chemung will begin a search for his successor immediately.

Checking account fees may help banks pad revenue, but a new survey suggests that ATM and overdraft charges can send customers running.

Republic Bancorp (RBCAA) in Louisville said it is highly unlikely that it will complete its purchase of H&R Block Bank by the end of this year.

Holly Schreiber will step down Wednesday as chief financial officer of 1st Financial Services in Hendersonville, N.C. She will remain as a consultant while its sale to First Citizens BancShares (FCNCA) is being completed.

Capital levels at SouthBank in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., have dropped below a minimum required by regulators.