State and federal banking regulators encouraged the merger deal between Crescent State Bank and VantageSouth for safety and soundness and other reasons, a proxy filing says.

Companies that are proactive about intentionally harvesting as many diverse viewpoints as possible can inherently derive innovation out of inclusion.

Great Southern Bancorp in Springfield, Mo., is bucking an industry trend toward fee-based lines of business in agreeing to sell its insurance and travel units.

First York Ban Corp in York, Neb., has agreed to acquire Glenvil Cooperative Credit Union, in a rare acquisition of a credit union by a bank.

CIT Group (CIT) in Livingston, N.J., has launched a unit that will originate and underwrite financing for seafaring vessels.

United Community Financial's (UCFC) third-quarter loss tripled from last year after a $33 million charge related to a bulk loan sale. The Youngstown, Ohio, company reported a loss of $26.9 million, compared with an $8.9 million loss a year earlier.

Internal governance policies should define for shareholders, employees and the public how the bank plans to effectively manage the stated risk appetite.

Some banks bucked the trend and others buckled under it. Overall, about two-thirds of publicly listed banks posted quarter-over-quarter declines in margins during the most recent round of earnings reports.

IMGCAP(1)]

The hurricane's effects have been "really tough for small-business owners," says Ginger Siegel, a longtime business banker and senior executive at PNC.

The old concept of real interest rate return is virtually nonexistent. Banks face temptation to reach for extra yield by taking more risk.

Polonia Bancorp in Huntingdon Valley, Pa., has finished its stock offering and second-step conversion to a stock-owned company.

Privately owned banks do not report to the SEC, but they can face challenges if they need capital. This list looks at banks with a physical retail presence and stock that cannot be readily traded on a stock exchange.

Investors Bancorp (ISBC) will cut 31 jobs at Marathon National Bank of New York, about a month after it completed its acquisition of the formerly Greek-owned bank.

Sun Bancorp in Vineland, N.J., has lured a veteran financial executive from Customers Bancorp in Wyomissing, Pa., hiring Thomas R. Brugger as the CFO of its Sun National Bank subsidiary.

Fred Rowden, the chief executive of 1st Capital Bank in Monterey, Calif., has died.

Comparable store growth is the core of any great retailer. If you cannot grow your existing stores, you do not deserve to expand.

Banks shouldn't go to extremes to make up for declining earnings, Comptroller of the Currency Thomas Curry said Friday.

The board of 1st Mariner Bancorp has withdrawn from a long delayed securities purchase agreement with a New York investment firm that would have injected badly needed capital into the Baltimore company.

First Citizens BancShares (FCNCA) in Raleigh, N.C., postedlower third-quarter profit from the same period last yearafter recording a gain from an acquisition.