M&A

The Buffalo, N.Y., bank has been freed from an enforcement order that required an upgrade of its anti-money-laundering compliance systems. The Fed had ordered the upgrade as a condition for approval of its acquisition of Hudson City Bancorp.

Southwest Bancorp, frustrated with a lethargic stock price, opted to find a buyer last summer. It was holding talks with Simmons First when the post-election run-up in bank stocks gave its shares an unexpected lift. Did it do the right thing by proceeding?

The Blairsville, Ga., bank is in growth mode with strong second-quarter lending performances and two deals in the works, but its provision for loan losses was described as too low in one research note.

First Financial in Ohio is buying MainSource in Indiana — with a twist. MainSource's leader will become CEO.

The acquisition would be Valley's third in the Sunshine State since 2014 and would give the New Jersey company its first branches in Alabama.

The Michigan company's profit benefited from a larger balance sheet and a reduction in merger-related expenses.

The company agreed to buy MainSource Financial in Indiana for $1 billion, creating a Midwestern bank that will have more than 200 branches and $13 billion in assets.

The New York company, which is preparing to buy Astoria Financial, reported year-over-year increases in commercial-and-industrial and commercial real estate loans.

Union Bankshares in Virginia lost several key lending officers after it bought StellarOne. Management as a result has made changes to minimize employee flight from its latest M&A target, Xenith Bankshares.

WashingtonFirst had a sudden window of opportunity to sell itself in the latter half of 2016, but it had been preparing for a possible sale for more than two years before that, and perhaps as a result it received one of the most valuable buyout offers this year.