Determining regulatory requirements based on banks’ activities rather than their size would liberate old-school institutions from unnecessary burdens without endangering the financial system.

Bear State Financial in Little Rock, Ark., has agreed to buy Metropolitan National Bank in Springfield, Mo.

Eagle Bancorp Montana in Helena has completed a $10 million private placement of subordinated bonds.

Two community banks that focus on underbanked and low-income populations, City First Bank of D.C. and Southern Bancorp in Arkadelphia, Ark., have joined an international group that promotes socially and environmentally responsible development.

A recap of the informed opinions (and the discussions they generated) on BankThink this week, including the need to hold bankers accountable for criminal deeds and whether the FDIC's proposed recordkeeping requirement is smart planning or pointless.

The NCUA is proposing changes that would allow credit unions to approve applications more expeditiously, eliminating an edge long held by banks. The agency is also ready to let members make more commercial development loans.

Austin Capital Bank, a $71.4 million-asset institution based in Texas, will originate loans for a new online consumer lending platform called Self Lender, the two companies announced.

Yadkin Financial in Raleigh, N.C., has agreed to sell two branches in North Carolina to Select Bancorp in Dunn, N.C.

American Banker readers share their views on the most pressing banking topics of the week. Comments are excerpted from reader response sections of AmericanBanker.com articles and from our social media platforms.

First Mid-Illinois Bancshares in Mattoon plans to sell about $29.3 million in common stock in a private placement.

Home Bancorp in Lafayette, La., has agreed to buy Louisiana Bancorp in Metairie for about $75 million, or $24.25 a share, in cash. The deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter.

The yield curve has steepened in recent weeks, but bankers caution that it could take months or years for any benefits — or risks — to become apparent in financial results.

Most banks that deploy voice authentication require a specific spoken passphrase. Eastern Bank customers can have a normal conversation with call center reps; software in the background compares their voice patterns to a recorded snippet.

Millennials are individuals first and millennials second. Demographers and sociologists may like to group consumers, but when bankers market to the average instead of the individual, it's a losing strategy.

A recent report from Keefe, Bruyette & Woods identified several "challenger banks" that are poised to take market share from the industry's biggest institutions by using niche-focused business models. Here is a sample of the banks singled out by KBW's analysts.

Pinnacle Financial Partners in Nashville, Tenn., has added the president of a Knoxville, Tenn., accounting firm to its board.

Home Bancshares in Conway, Ark., has agreed to buy Florida Business BancGroup in Tampa, Fla.

Members of St. James Federal Savings and Loan Association will meet Saturday to vote on whether to convert from a mutual to a stock-owned bank as a prelude to selling itself to Wells Financial. Some believe the vote could set a worrisome precedent.

First Republic Bank in San Francisco has agreed to purchase Constellation Wealth Advisors for about $115 million.

Glenn Moyer, the former banking commissioner of Pennsylvania, has joined a banking risk-management consulting firm.