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Premier Financial Bancorp Inc. in Huntington, W.Va., announced Tuesday that it plans to buy the $106 million-asset Traders Bankshares Inc. in Spencer, W.Va., for about $18.1 million in cash and stock.

Franklin Bank Corp. of Houston more than doubled its allowance for credit losses, adding $20 million to bring the allowance to $36 million.

In a series of presentations at a Boston conference this month, bankers told analysts that, despite the recent rise in troubled loans at their institutions, they expect credit quality to begin to improve by next quarter.

Harleysville National Bank in Pennsylvania has entered into a definitive agreement to sell 16 properties to American Realty Capital LLC in a sale-leaseback transaction.

Yadkin Valley Financial Corp. in Elkin, N.C., said its purchase of the $193 million-asset Cardinal State Bank has been delayed until the first quarter of 2008 as Cardinal decides how to handle its unrecorded liability for post-retirement health-care benefits.

Putnam County Bank in Hurricane, W.Va., is free of a four-year-old regulatory agreement that required it to strengthen its anti-money-laundering procedures.

Ozaukee Bank in Cedarburg, Wis., disclosed Wednesday that it had turned down a higher offer this summer before accepting a buyout bid from Bank of Montreal.

Banking trade groups are arguing "no" in a court case that they hope will overturn a National Credit Union Administration ruling letting Members 1st Federal Credit Union in Mechanicsburg, Pa., extend its membership field to cover the more than 1.1 million residents of a 3,400-square-mile, six-county area.

Despite pressure to sell from one of its largest shareholders, Cape Fear Bank Corp. insists it has studied its options and decided to remain independent.

Carver Bancorp Inc. of New York said Tuesday that it swung to a profit of $800,000 for its fiscal 2008 second quarter that ended Sept. 30, from a loss of $900,000 a year earlier.

WSB Financial Group Inc. in Bremerton, Wash., said Tuesday that it expects to add $7 million to $9 million to its reserves to cover possible losses from a portfolio of 146 mortgage loans made by one or two former lenders.

Bankers in parts of California hurt most by the housing slowdown said they worry about the potential for a ripple effect in their commercial real estate portfolios, so they are working to minimize their risk.

Two small Pittsburgh-area banking companies have announced plans to merge.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. is expected to release its third-quarter report on the health of the banking industry on Nov. 28.

Michigan's ailing economy is testing banks there, but its wealthiest county is still attracting new institutions.

The Chicago investment bank Howe Barnes Hoefer & Arnett has created an investment vehicle aimed at raising the profile of small-bank stocks that have gotten scant notice from institutional investors.

New Century Bancorp in Dunn, N.C., is merging its two subsidiary banks into one to improve efficiency and profits.

First Community Bancshares in Overland Park, Kan., is expanding in Missouri by buying the $34.6 million-asset NKC Bancshares Inc. in North Kansas City, Mo.