The future is bright for mortgage servicers, but his PE firm agreed to sell Homeward Residential to Ocwen because it had held the investment long enough — and owning stock in a bigger servicer will pay off, billionaire Wilbur Ross said.

Small-bank executives sound call for stronger firewalls between financial activities, but many say a straight return to the Depression-era law could have unintended consequences, including to their own business.

Farmers & Merchants Bank in Timberville, Va., is expanding its footprint in the Shenandoah region.

More community banks are paying vendors for online courses that teach workers about the raft of new regulations, how to be a manager and other topics. The new way is cheaper and faster, but has drawbacks.

Frost Bank in San Antonio and the Baker Group, a securities firm in Oklahoma City, have agreed to share their bank clients with each other.

The Federal Reserve Board has terminated an enforcement action against West Concord Bancshares in Minnesota.

The privately held investment firm, based in Birmingham, Ala., is buying FBC Mortgage of Orlando, Fla., a unit of Florida Bank of Commerce, for undisclosed terms, the companies said Tuesday.

Ocwen Financial in Atlanta has agreed to buy Homeward Residential Holdings from WL Ross & Co. for $750 million in cash and stock.

Serving the unbanked requires a worldview that most industry insiders don't have, but truly need in order to innovate responsibly on behalf these consumers. Here are insights some companies have gleaned from spending a day as the underserved.

Regulators are barring an Alabama bank holding company from paying shareholders or incurring debt until it takes steps to improve its practices.

It's been my experience that the closing of in-store branches generates more chatter than the fact that another bank often immediately opens and prospers in those exact spaces.

Three years to the day he joined the struggling company, Joseph Campanelli handed the reins to Michael Tierney. Flagstar reported its first profit since 2008 in the second quarter, but credit issues linger.

Banks with less than $10 billion in assets are exempt from clearing and exchange trading requirements, but as derivative users they will have to post margin, keep records and amend documents.

The $15 billion-asset company said Monday it has completed its purchase of the business property lending unit of General Electric's (GE) GE Capital for $2.4 billion in cash.

Bank deals priced at or below tangible book value grew steadily in the first three quarters of 2012, and more are said to be coming as struggling banks start to turn the corner and attract buyers.

Don't focus solely on cost savings. Instead, articulate that you're willing to look at new ideas and projects to help improve margins. This will inspire managers to tap into a fresh wave of thinking.

Banks with at least $10 billion of assets saw their share of deposits increase to 74.4% at midyear from 72.4% a year earlier, the FDIC said Tuesday in its annual Summary of Deposits. Also, the number of U.S. branches and thrifts shrunk.

Matt Williams, incoming chairman of the American Bankers Association, says banks can rebound by drawing on lessons from past crises, updating business models and hiring a new generation of bankers.

David Zalman of Prosperity Bancshares has struck five deals in a little over a year. And he say he sees more opportunities than ever.

Park Sterling Corporation (PSTB) in Charlotte, N.C., said Monday it has completed its purchase of Citizens South Banking Corp. in Gastonia, N.C., for $83 million, the same day Capital Bank Financial of Coral Gables, Fla., announced the completion of its acquisition of Southern Community Financial in Winston-Salem, N.C., for $47 million.