Big banks have been among the most vocal supporters of gay rights in the workplace. Many LGBT bankers laud the progress but say diversity efforts still sometimes fall short.

NexTier Bank in Butler has agreed to acquire Farmers & Merchants Bank of Western Pennsylvania in Kittanning.

Citizens Community Bank in South Hill, Va., has hired a new chief financial officer.

First National Bank Alaska in Anchorage has picked a 39-year veteran of the bank as its new president.

FNB Bancorp in South San Francisco, Calif., has partially repaid the funds it received under the Treasury Department's Small Business Lending Fund.

Shareholders of First Citizens Bancshares (FCNCA) rejected a proposal that would have limited the control of the family that has run the Raleigh, N.C., company for generations.

Other banks say small acquisitions take too much work, but Sterling Financial says a good, small deal is better than a risky, big one.

Bibb Lamar opted to join ServisFirst rather than stay at Trustmark, which acquired BancTrust in February. His team will help ServisFirst expand in Mobile, Ala.

The Independent BankersBank in Dallas has hired a correspondent-relations officer to serve community banks in Michigan and Indiana.

The CEO of UMB Financial believes the time has come to rethink branch technology, to speed service and cut costs.

Vincent Delie recently mentioned Maryland, Pittsburgh and Cleveland as target markets, though he expressed lukewarm interest in Philadelphia.

Astoria Federal Savings in Lake Success, N.Y., has hired an HSBC executive to lead its retail division.

Shareholders and regulators are on the warpath against executive compensation they regard as excessive or poorly structured. Senior bankers and directors, like their colleagues elsewhere in the corporate world, are struggling to design pay plans that encourage managers to innovate while discouraging excessive risk-taking. Further complicating the task are the sometimes competing agendas of investors and rule-makers, as well as the uncertainty surrounding the many Dodd-Frank pay rules yet to be written. Following is a look at some of hot-button items shaping executive compensation during the current proxy season.

HomeTrust Bancshares in Asheville, N.C., has agreed to buy BankGreenville Financial in South Carolina.

CoBank in Denver reported a decrease in quarterly profit as loan yields fell and provision for loan losses increased.

Experts say the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau backed away from stiffer requirements after two powerful consumer groups raised fears that they would drive small banks and credit unions out of the remittance business.

The longer yields stay low, "the bigger the problem becomes for banks," UMB CEO Mariner Kemper says. A low cost of funds helps UMB resist temptations presented by cutthroat competition and looser loan terms, Kemper adds.

The Texas Bankers Association has selected Ignacio Urrabazo, the chief executive of Commerce Bank in Laredo, to become its new chairman.

Community banks that expanded student lending to improve earnings are discovering why their larger brethren have backed off from the business: servicing and compliance challenges abound.