Continuing a wave of consolidation among California community banks, AltaPacific Bancorp in Santa Rosa said late Wednesday that it is buying Stellar Business Bank in Covina for $17.4 million in stock.

A class action lawsuit filed by Weisberg & Meyers LLC in the U.S. District Court in the Southern District of New York will move forward after a joint motion to dismiss filed by defendants Cohen & Slamowitz LLP, Encore Capital Group, MRC Receivables Corp. and Midland Credit Management Inc. was denied by Judge P. Kevin Castel for three out of four alleged violations of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA).

S&T Bancorp in Indiana, Pa., announced late Wednesday that it is buying Mainline Bancorp Inc. in Ebensburg, Pa., for roughly $21.5 million in cash and stock.

The board of the payments technology vendor Fundtech plans to halt its intended merger with S1 after receiving a separate offer from the private equity firm GTCR.

Led by energy, and bolstered by a diversifying economy, the Texas metropolis is drawing a wave of new banks to vie with the city's incumbents.

Capital One Financial Corp. Chairman and Chief Executive Richard Fairbank says he believes the credit card business is headed for significant consolidation and that his company intends to be one of the industry's "endgame players."

Massive consolidation is inevitable, say the pundits, but the heads of prospective buyers say they can wait out reluctant sellers and the uncertain economy.

John Koelmel, head of fast-growing First Niagara, found himself literally and figuratively in the middle of the jobs debate.

Simone Lagomarsino took the helm of Heritage Oaks in Paso Robles, Calif., on Monday. The veteran banker has a long track record of selling banks, but says she is here to build value.

Fiserv said Wednesday that it has completed its acquisition of the New York bank technology and payments vendor CashEdge.

In what would be its first whole-bank acquisition since 2008, Prosperity Bancshares Inc. in Houston has announced plans to buy the $72 million-asset Texas Bankers Inc. in Austin.

S1's board advised the company's shareholders not to accept the exchange offer ACI made in its hostile bid. ACI's offer, which would disrupt S1's planned merger with Fundtech, "is not in the best interests of S1 or its stockholders," S1 said.

Bank of America is expected to close 750 branch offices nationwide. Community banks covet B of A's prime real estate, including Umpqua and First Niagara.

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Bank of New York Mellon Corp. pulled the sale of its Alcentra unit, which manages $17 billion of loans and high-yield bonds, according to three people with knowledge of the plan.

After making five acquisitions in less than three years, People's United Financial Inc. in Bridgeport, Conn., is now turning its attention to slashing overhead and growing its balance sheet more organically.

Continuing its aggressive expansion in Southern California, upstart Grandpoint Capital Inc. in Los Angeles is planning to buy Regents Bancshares Inc. in La Jolla.

John Allison may have retired as BB&T's CEO in 2008 but he still has strong opinions about the economy and banking industry. In a wide-ranging interview, he projects five years of stagnant growth, mixed results for M&A and 5-10% job cuts in the banking industry.

The largest shareholder at HF Financial Corp. has nominated its own slate of directors to challenge the candidates being backed by the management of the Sioux Falls, S.D., thrift company.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency closed First National Bank of Florida, in Milton, on Friday.