First Community Bancshares Inc. in Batesville, Ark., would expand into Missouri with its recently announced deal to buy Goodman State Bank there.

Daniel P. Myers, the president and chief executive officer of Bridge Capital Holdings, says he is not rattled by the economic trouble hurting so many others in the industry these days.

Royal Bank of Scotland Group PLC, the United Kingdom's second-largest banking company, said its full-year profits jumped 18% from a year earlier, to $14.5 billion, as it offset slow growth in its U.S. business and mortgage-related writedowns with asset sales.

Passumpsic Bancorp in St. Johnsbury, Vt., has announced a deal to buy Lancaster National Bank in New Hampshire for $12.8 million in cash.

In filing a long-delayed revision of its third-quarter earnings Thursday, Bank of Granite Corp. in Granite Falls, N.C., reported a net loss of $22 million, compared with a $4.6 million profit the year earlier.

To the Editor:

SunTrust Banks Inc. has agreed to sell First Mercantile Trust Co., a Memphis provider of retirement plan record-keeping and investment management services, to Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Co.

MIDDLE ATLANTIC

MainSource Financial Group Inc. in Greensburg, Ind., said Wednesday that it has a deal to buy 1st Independence Financial Group Inc. in Louisville, Ky., for $37 million in cash and stock.

Provident Bankshares Corp. warned Wednesday that it expects to write down as much as $47.7 million this quarter because of a significant drop in the value of its investment securities.

Umpqua Holdings Corp. in Portland, Ore., has restructured its retail banking division and created six "super regions" for its Oregon, Washington, and California markets.

PrivateBank has expanded into the Minneapolis market after adding three executives from LaSalle Bank Corp.

Meta Financial Group Inc. has been notified that Nasdaq Stock Market Inc. might delist its stock because it did not file a quarterly earnings report with the Securities and Exchange Commission on time.

Many young people like to participate in improvisational comedy skits — even if they are about saving money.

A proxy fight is brewing at Vineyard National Bancorp — and the antagonist is the Corona, Calif., company's former chief executive officer.

After Hurricane Katrina slammed into New Orleans in August 2005, the future for Liberty Bank and Trust Co. appeared uncertain.