JPMorgan Chase (JPM) has agreed to pay $5.1 billion in settlements to the Federal Housing Finance Agency, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, federal officials said Friday.

News of the government's $13 billion settlement with JPMorgan Chase prompted emotional arguments for and against the bank, as well as satire of all the outrage.

The stock exchange has accepted the $136 million-asset company's plan to recapitalize itself and will allow it to remain listed, OptimumBank said Friday.

Heritage Oaks Bancorp in Paso Robles, Calif., is a lesson in seizing the moment. It went on the M&A offensive just weeks after being freed from a regulatory order, is poised to become No. 2 in market share in San Luis Obispo County and sees major cost-cutting opportunities.

Highlands Bancorp (HSBK) in Vernon, N.J., has agreed to buy Secured Lending Solutions, a mortgage banking company in Glen Rock, N.J.

The payments industry is facing pressure from outside companies that are toppling many preconceptions about how payments should work. But industry veterans are fighting back, and they shared their strategies at SourceMedia's 2013 ATM, Debit & Prepaid Forum.

Philadelphia's City Council has approved a bill that lawmakers hope will lead the city into selling tax liens to private collection agencies.

The $102 billion-asset Union Bank said Friday that it plans to open two student-run branches at Crenshaw High School and Abraham Lincoln High School in partnership with the Los Angeles Unified School District Board of Education.

Provident Financial Services (PFS) in Iselin, N.J., reported nearly flat quarterly earnings after taking a tax charge associated with its 2003 initial public offering.

Refer credit-challenged mom-and-pops to nonbank lenders and eventually those small businesses will be viable enough to qualify for bank loans, industry experts say.

MBT Financial Corp. (MBTF) in Monroe, Mich., is planning to raise up to $20 million in a common stock offering.

Analysts are concerned that a number of banks have been reluctant to cut costs. In some instances, banks are still hiring in hopes of boosting income.

First Scottsdale Bank (FSB) in Scottsdale, Ariz., and CBOA Financial (CBOF) in Tucson, Ariz., have terminated plans to merge.

Southside Bancshares (SBSI) in Tyler, Texas, posted a dip in third-quarter earnings because of a big decline in gains from the sale of securities.

With Chairman Hensarling's plan to overhaul the mortgage finance market stuck in limbo, several Democrats have begun work on alternative proposals that could further divide support for the GOP bill.

National Penn Bancshares (NPBC) in Boyertown, Pa., reported a slightly lower quarterly profit as its mortgage fees fell, but it still met Wall Street's earnings forecasts.

TCF Financial Corp. (TCB) in Wayzata, Minn., met Wall Street's quarterly earnings estimates as lower charges related to bad assets made up for a decline in revenue.

SouthCrest Financial Group (SCSG) in Peachtree City, Ga., has raised nearly $18 million and plans to merge its banks.

Hancock Holding (HBHC) in Gulfport, Miss., reported lower quarterly earnings after taking a charge tied to branch closures and other expense reductions.

Citigroup Inc., the third-biggest U.S. bank, is selling mortgage-servicing rights on $63 billion of loans, or about 21 percent of its total contracts at midyear, according to two people briefed on the matter, who asked not to be identified because the sale is private.