Heritage Financial Group in Albany, Ga., has agreed to buy a branch in a northeast Atlanta suburb from PrivateBancorp.

Astoria Financial in Lake Success, N.Y., has hired former KeyCorp executive Hugh Donlon to be its chief lending officer.

The trade group said late Tuesday that Peter Gwaltney will succeed Thad Woodard on Jan. 2. Woodard is retiring after spending 37 years in various capacities at the association.

Dominik Mjartan, the new head of a bank-affiliated community development financial institution in Arkansas, identifies with his underbanked customers who want to realize the American Dream.

Small-business loan approvals from large banks reached a post-crisis high in September, according to a Biz2Credit study.

The institutionalization of peer lending is pulling banks into more competitive bidding for loans as originators expand into newer and untested asset classes, such as online real estate loans.

The banking associations in Virginia and West Virginia have, for now, called off discussion about creating a single trade group.

Deposits surged despite all the challenges in banking, according to the FDIC's latest Summary of Deposits. However, underneath that upbeat number are a lot banks and thrifts that are suffering and a few that are capitalizing on the chaos. Here is a slideshow with the highlights and lowlights.

For the first time since December, banks appear to be holding the line when negotiating rates on consumer and commercial loans. The tradeoff, however, has been decelerated loan growth.

A gradual improvement in consumers' financial situations has led to even lower delinquency rates in several consumer lending categories, the ABA said in its latest quarterly survey.

Supporters of a modern replacement for a century-old community swimming pool in the hometown of Belmont Savings Bank had a fundraising crisis, and they are hoping a matching grant from the bank will save the project.

Regulators consider bankers' timing needs when reviewing deals, but it certainly isn't their top concern, advisers say. H&R Block and BofI are learning that the hard way after being told that their bank deal will not be approved this year.

Several banks, such as Woodforest National, operate extensive branch networks inside Wal-Mart stores. There are concerns that the retailer's new GoBank checking account could gut in-store branches' current business.

How have community banks fared with retaining market share in their traditional strongholds of rural areas and small towns? The latest FDIC Summary of Deposits shows their leads in those areas may be slowly slipping away for a host of competitive reasons.

Madison Bank of Maryland in Forest Hill plans to convert from a mutual thrift to a stock-owned institution. The thrift plans to raise about $24 million as part of its conversion, using the proceeds to fund lending and increase capital levels, according to a regulatory filing.

Former "American Idol" star Clay Aiken will face incumbent Renee Ellmers in a congressional debate hosted by the North Carolina Bankers Association.

H&R Block, for the second time in a year, is finding it challenging to get out of banking.

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The $7.8 billion-asset company disclosed in a regulatory filing Friday that it had sold performing mortgages with outstanding balances of roughly $193 million to First BanCorp, also in San Juan.

Valley Community Bank's biggest shareholder has gone public with his objection to the Pleasanton, Calif., bank's sale to FNB Bancorp in San Francisco.