It is premature to say whether criticism of cross-selling and calls to break up the big banks will lead to action, but there is one area where a spinoff could actually be in the banks' interest.

Home BancShares in Conway, Ark., has agreed to buy the parent of Landmark Bank in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

Carolina Financial in Charleston, S.C., has agreed to buy Greer Bancshares in South Carolina.

First United in Oakland, Md., is looking to raise up to $9.3 million through a rights offering.

The $408 million-asset company said in a press release that it completed a private placement of subordinated debt to accredited institutional investors.

Prosperity Bancshares is hopeful it will be able to announce its next bank deal in the near future. Such chatter provides hope that Texas banks are moving past oil concerns and renewing merger talks.

There were some positive signs in the marketplace lender's quarterly results, but it continues to deal with the fallout from a scandal involving executives who falsified data about loans the company was selling to investors.

New York Community Bank in Westbury will have its name attached to the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, former home of the New York Islanders hockey team, when the renovated arena reopens next spring.

Gulf Coast Community Bank in Florida agreed to sell itself last month after spending six frustrating years trying to tackle credit issues and angling for a settlement tied to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

Customers Bancorp in Wyomissing, Pa., is raising another $52.5 million from the latest in a series of public offerings this year.

Revelations from the last several weeks once again underscore the need for effective reputational risk management.

Nicolet Bankshares in Green Bay, Wis., has agreed to buy First Menasha Bancshares in Neenah, Wis.

Seacoast Banking Corp. of Florida in Stuart has agreed to buy GulfShore Bancshares in Tampa, Fla.

Regulators have pressed banks to watch out for rising concentrations of commercial real estate loans. Some banks have paid heed, but others are skyrocketing past recommended thresholds.

Two top executives said the scandal-plagued bank has managed to minimize the financial damage and can continue to grow amid some reforms. Yet they acknowledged that the full toll has yet to be realized, and the company announced it had significantly raised its estimated legal exposure.

The intense focus on sales cultures can be frustrating, but it also presents an opportunity for everyone within a bank to get on the same page about what the institution stands for and is trying to accomplish.

Bay Banks of Virginia in Kilmarnock has agreed to buy Virginia BanCorp in Petersburg.

The U.S. is the only industrialized nation without mandated paid parental leave, but innovative leave policies are an opportunity to attract and retain employees in a highly competitive industry.

Heartland Financial in Dubuque, Iowa, is looking to raise $53.5 million through a public offering.

Consumer compliance was already an important issue for regulators who vet bank deals, but it is expected to move up on their priority list after Wells' phony-account saga. Banks that seek M&A approvals should make sure their cross-sale and incentives policies — along with those of their targets — are bulletproof.