Late last year, several ailing banks landed new equity and several hit the ground running in 2011. Still, analysts caution that some recaps could hit the wall in 2012.

A panel of Wall Street banking experts met recently to discuss how community banks can best navigate through an uncertain year ahead.

BankUnited Inc. in Miami Lakes, Fla., opened three new branches on both Florida coasts Monday and now has opened a dozen branches in its home state since Nov. 7.

Wells Fargo & Co. will expand its asset-based lending business into the United Kingdom by acquiring a lending arm of the Bank of Ireland.

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — The National Credit Union Administration announced this morning it liquidated Birmingham Financial FCU, a $1.3 million community development credit union it has run under conservatorship since October and assigned the remnants of the year's 15th credit union failure to $113 million eCO Credit Union of Birmingham.

Analysts believe that private equity has become more skittish about quick returns from banking.

The Federal Reserve Board on Friday approved the sale of EuroBank in Coral Gables, Fla., to a pair of Brazilian buyers.

Consolidation in the market has prompted Bridge to seek capital fast to fight back, the CEO says.

Under CEO John Thain, CIT Group is focusing on lending to private equity groups, selling troubled assets and making other changes. It is also on the prowl for deals.

Former radio DJ Steve Streit has shepherded prepaid marketer Green Dot from its early days to its hard-won Fed blessing to buy a bank.

Shareholders for Parkvale Financial Corp. in Monroeville, Pa., have approved the company's sale to F.N.B. Corp.

Wells Fargo & Co. has signed a deal to acquire the investment boutique, EverKey Global Partners.

Fast-growing Webster First FCU, which entered the Bay State's north shore earlier this year with a deal for Saugus FCU, has agreed to acquire Winthrop FCU, its third merger of 2011, giving it a presence in the Boston market.

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — NCUA announced this afternoon it awarded CO-OP Financial Services, the credit union-owned payments company, the right to acquire the assets of U.S. Central's Corporate Network eCom, the failed corporate’s online and mobile payments services.

PNC and Amex are said to be among the prospective buyers for part of the insurance company's home loan operations, but why they or others would pay up for something they could build on their own is unclear.

Citigroup Inc., having recommitted to the retailer credit card business it tried in vain to sell, has signed a new deal with Ford Motor Co.

Little noticed was the fact that the recent ViewPoint agreement to buy Highlands Bancshares was one of the pricier deals in months. However, it's probably an exception to the rule.

Park National Corp. in Newark, Ohio, warned in a regulatory filing Wednesday that its 2011 loan-loss provision will be higher than anticipated after regulators said its Vision Bank unit improperly accounted for guarantor-support loans.

Someday there may no longer be such a thing as an alternative payment.This year, there have been several acquisitions or product changes that take alternatives and combined them with a company or product that handles payments in person.

The Buffalo bank completed three debt and equity offerings as part of its revised plan to pay for nearly 200 HSBC branches.