A dissident investor has swapped out its candidate to join the board of First Financial Northwest (FFNW) in Renton, Wash.

More than six years after the onset of the worst U.S. real estate slump, Florida had the biggest increase in home seizures last year and the highest foreclosure rate, RealtyTrac said.

Bank of the Ozarks (OZRK) of Little Rock, Ark., posted a fourth-quarter profit gain despite sliding interest income, thanks in part to an acquisition that closed late in the year.

Suffolk Bancorp of Riverhead, N.Y., continues to reinvent its management team, this time hiring James Gay as its chief credit officer.

Scottrade Bank has hired a former executive at TCF Financial (TCB) to launch an equipment finance unit.

Commercial customers will remain hesitant to spend, and thus borrow, until lawmakers resolve the uncertainties over the budget and economy, Huntington CEO Stephen Steinour says in an outlook that juggles optimism and caution.

Citizens First in Bowling Green, Ky., reported higher quarterly results as improved lending offset higher expenses.

Pan Pacific Bank in Fremont, Calif., reported another profitable quarter. The $113.3 million-asset bank earned $330,000 in the fourth quarter, compared to a $544,000 loss a year earlier.

Republic Bancorp (RBCAA) in Louisville, Ky., posted higher quarterly earnings after booking gains tied to recent failed-bank acquisitions.

Virginia Commerce Bancorp in Arlington took a quarterly hit to earnings after exiting the Troubled Asset Relief Program.

Smith, who retired this month after seven years as CEO of Fulton Financial in Pennsylvania, gives the cold, hard truth about leadership and puts it in historical terms.

Bank of America (BAC) reported profit dropped 63 percent as costs mounted from faulty foreclosures and flawed home loans made as long as a decade ago.

BB&T in Winston-Salem, N.C., posted an increase in quarterly earnings on higher mortgage fees and loan growth.

Just a week after overhauling how mortgages are underwritten, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau was set Thursday to unleash an additional series of rules dictating extensive new requirements for mortgage servicing.

Pacific Continental (PCBK) in Eugene, Ore., took advantage of accelerated business lending and lower expenses to post another profitable quarter.

State and federal authorities are taking a hard look at how banks collect consumer debts. A multi-billion dollar market may be remade through tighter rules or enforcement actions.

MidFirst Bank in Oklahoma City has agreed to buy a specialty lender in Atlanta.

Goldman Sachs (GS) and Morgan Stanley (MS) will pay a combined $557 million to settle allegations they mishandled foreclosures that followed the housing crisis.

Cheviot Financial is planning a large share repurchase program nearly a year after converting to a fully public company.

Cost control will sharpen further in 2013, given continued pressure from low interest rates and loan competition, U.S. Bancorp says. Other banks will face similar challenges.