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NBT Bancorp's agreement to buy Alliance Financial in upstate New York is an M&A rarity — a deal worth more than $200 million that involves a healthy seller. More deals like this are expected and would kick-start bank dealmaking.

In a video interview with American Banker, former FDIC Chairman Sheila Bair said that TAG should be extended, but phased out gradually over a two year timeframe.

Former FDIC Chairman Sheila Bair finally offers an opinion on whether to extend TAG, worrying that it's abrupt end would only help too big to fail banks and the money market mutual fund industry.

Bankers who are poised to report third-quarter earnings in coming weeks will likely face tough questions about how they will grow in an environment where net interest margins are sinking to unprecedented lows.

More than 600 credit unions have taken advantage of the regulatory change, but new data suggests that banks' fears of increased competition for business loans may be overblown.

Banks who received funding through the Small Business Lending Fund have increased small business lending by $6.7 billion, or 27.4%, over baseline levels, the Treasury Department said Tuesday.

First Citizens Bank in Raleigh, N.C., is adding a service for clients in the healthcare industry.

Levels climbed 30% from the prior month, though they remain well below precrisis norms. Meanwhile, the SBA reported near-record volume in the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30.

Swipe fees jumped at an annual rate of 40% in the second quarter among a group of institutions subject to the new debit card price caps. Interactive data on interchange revenue at 900 companies.

American Bank & Trust of Wessington Springs, S.D., has agreed to buy Mansfield State Bank.

American Founders Bancorp in Lexington, Ky., announced Monday that it plans to close one of its Lexington branches by the end of October, leaving it with three branches in its hometown.

Trustmark in Jackson, Miss., does not expect to get regulators to OK its takeover of BancTrust in Mobile, Ala., until late this year or early next year.

Financial institutions can avoid negative headlines by monitoring feedback via social media, continually educating staff on how to talk to customers and making reputation risk a major part of their enterprise risk management program.

NBT Bancorp (NBTB) will acquire Alliance Financial (ALNC) in a deal valued at $233 million.

SI Financial Group (SIFI) in Willimantic, Conn., said it will report a third-quarter loss of up to $750,000 because of a rise in its loan-loss provision.

The embattled Lansing, Mich., company announced earlier this week that it had entered into agreements with two units of ValStone Partners, a private-equity firm in Birmingham, Mich.

Roy Dowdy Jr., the CEO of Citizens Bank in Geneva, Ala., expects more healthy small town banks to sell as margins thin and costs rise. His bank decided to sell to Bank of the Ozarks earlier this week.

Economic pressures will force more small banks to sell, and midsize banks will feast on them while regulatory limits trap big banks on the sidelines of M&A, says John Roddy, a Macquarie Group investment banker.