Smith, who retired this month after seven years as CEO of Fulton Financial in Pennsylvania, gives the cold, hard truth about leadership and puts it in historical terms.

Pacific Continental (PCBK) in Eugene, Ore., took advantage of accelerated business lending and lower expenses to post another profitable quarter.

MidFirst Bank in Oklahoma City has agreed to buy a specialty lender in Atlanta.

Cheviot Financial is planning a large share repurchase program nearly a year after converting to a fully public company.

PacWest Bancorp (PACW) in Los Angeles posted strong quarterly earnings to end a year marked by aggressive acquisitions.

Heritage Bank & Trust in Columbia, Tenn., has hired a veteran Tennessee banker as its new president and chief lending officer.

Examiners are starting to ask community banks for explain how their technology and staffing are prepared to handle disaster recovery.

Comerica (CMA) beat fourth-quarter profit estimates, as its fee revenue increased and expenses from its 2011 acquisition of Sterling Bancshares diminished.

Community Trust Bancorp (CTBI) in Pikeville, Ky., posted higher quarterly profit after increased fee revenue offset shrinkage in its loan portfolio.

The $3.8 billion-asset bank said Wednesday that Robert O'Brien had previously worked at Landesbank Baden-Württemberg, where he led the German bank's public finance group.

If a regulator overreaches its stautory authority, fails to adequately weigh costs against benefits or tries to hold the bank to arbitrary or capricious standards, you've got a case.

United Community Financial in Youngstown, Ohio, has begun a $42 million capital raise.

Fulton Financial (FULT) in Lancaster, Pa., reported a bump up in profit in the fourth quarter despite declines in interest income.

Alvin Kang, CEO of BBCN, is said to have resigned after a disagreement with his board. His departure could clear the way for a deal for Hanmi Financial and raises the prospect of industrywide succession fights as banks consolidate.

Sandra Thompson, The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s supervision chief for the last seven years, is stepping down.

Community State Bank, of St. Charles, Mich., has agreed to open a loan office in Saginaw, Mich., to settle a Justice Department lawsuit alleging it discriminated against African-Americans.

The holding company for the $226 million-asset GulfShore Bank has so far pulled in $1.6 million from local investors in an offering that began on Dec. 31.

Regulatory changes to the 1099-B, 1099-K and 1042-S forms, intended to help reduce the $450 billion tax gap, will make it much more difficult to avoid penalties and tricky customer service issues.

The Consumer Bankers Association is warning banks that they will face challenges booking loans while also competing with nonbanks in areas such as prepaid cards.

Smaller institutions are following the lead of bigger banks, which is presenting buying opportunities for CEOs like Bristol County Savings Bank's Pat Murray.