George Washington is a great role model for kids and might have had second thoughts about today's financial forms, says Frank Keating, the CEO of the American Bankers Association and author of a kids book about the first president.

Citigroup, Bank of America and Wells Fargo hauled in the most medals in Corporate Insight's annual comparison of banks' websites, but smaller players such as KeyBank and Ally Bank also made an impression.

Will the Financial Stability Oversight Council be successful at spotting threats before they cause a financial crisis or will it instead create "regulatory hazard" in the form of a false sense of security?

Monarch Financial (MNRK) in Chesapeake, Va., is getting rid of preferred stock it issued in 2009.

Broadway Financial in Los Angeles has unloaded a package of loans in an effort to boost its asset quality.

Financial Institutions (FISI) has ended its months-long search for a new chief executive with the promotion of an insider.

The founder and chief executive of Bankers' Bank Northeast in Glastonbury, Conn., is retiring.

A regulatory plan that changes how banks must account for holdings on their books is stirring anxiety in the financial services industry that it may force banks to make a premature decision about what they intend to do with an asset.

Two large community banks merging in South Carolina could create the next Southeast regional player and acquirer of choice.

Less than a year after stepping down as chairman of Atlantic Coast Financial (ACFC) in Jacksonville, Fla., Jay Sidhu is seeking to oust three members of the company's board and replace them with a new slate of directors.

More regional and community banks have selling noncumulative perpetual preferred stock to bolster Tier 1 capital and fund expansion.

First Financial Bankshares (FFIN) in Abilene, Texas, has agreed to buy Orange Savings Bank in Orange, Texas.

Securant Bank in Menomonee Falls, Wis., has agreed to sell its trust business to an Illinois bank.

PremierWest Bancorp's campaign to persuade shareholders to approve a merger with AmericanWest Bank has not yet reached its goal. The deal is on hold for one more month as the companies wait for proxy votes to come in.

Even as the financial crisis gives way to a recovery, everyone from Sen. Elizabeth Warren to comedian Stephen Colbert are demanding Washington get tough on banks and bankers. The question is what sort of action-if any-will follow.

Solera National Bancorp in Lakewood, Colo., is revisiting a deal that regulators blocked three years ago, with a few modifications.

Huntington Bancshares is adding to its presence in West Virginia.

SCBT Financial in Columbia has agreed to buy First Financial Holdings in Charleston in a deal between South Carolina banks.

Elliott Management, a firm controlled by hedge fund manager Paul Singer, bought roughly 3.8 million shares of National Bank Holdings' stock during the fourth quarter, according to an SEC filing.

Gold Coast Bank in Islandia, N.Y., is beginning its second round of financing after announcing that its fourth-quarter profit more than doubled.