On top of running a bank’s day-to-day operations, chief operating officers particularly at smaller banks play the additional role of CEO-in-waiting.

In an industry of more and more specialists, the chief operating officer is a jack-of-all-trades. But the title has different meanings for different banks. Some COOs help craft strategy, others just implement strategy. Some are CEOs-in-waiting, others stay in the background. We asked COOs about their role, M&A's effects on job security, and how they interact with CEOs.

The $101 billion-asset Key said in a press release Friday that it had finalized the $4.1 billion purchase of the $40 billion-asset First Niagara.

The private equity firm GTCR is interested in fintech companies looking to disrupt the status quo, so long as they have proved themselves and are paired with managers who have a long track record of success.

Carver Bancorp in New York is dealing with a new set of challenges just months after being released from a longstanding enforcement order. The company’s woes highlight the challenges for banks with narrowly constrained business models.

CCB, the parent of the $1.3 billion-asset Country Club Bank, recently announced that it had absorbed Capital Corp. in Lenexa, Kan. CCB did not disclose the price.

Stonegate Bank in Pompano Beach, Fla., could be getting close to announcing another acquisition.

Green Bancorp in Houston has resolved $37 million in energy loans since deciding to get out of that business.

Middleburg Financial in Virginia, which recently faced criticism from its biggest investor, has a new chairman.

Regional banks need all the growth opportunities they can get, and Fifth Third says it has found one in catering to European businesses that need to expand in North America to escape domestic economic issues.

The popular German digital startup Fidor Bank has agreed to be acquired by Groupe BPCE, the second-largest French bank.

Multiple acquisitions weighed down quarterly profit at TowneBank in Suffolk, Va.

The $1.8 billion-asset Sunflower expects to combine with the $2.2 billion-asset Strategic Growth to create a company with $3 billion in loans and 60 branches in Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, New Mexico and Texas.

Middlefield Banc Corp. in Ohio has agreed to buy Liberty Bank in Beachwood, Ohio.

The former C1 Financial chief, expected to play a critical role at Bank of the Ozarks, resigned just a week after his company's sale. Thanks to a lengthy noncompete, it could take years to determine his next move.

Some midsize banks found ways to widen margins, and Texas lenders said weakness in the energy sector has had little effect on the broader Texas economy. But can those trends hold up?

First Citizens BancShares in Raleigh, N.C., reported higher quarterly profit that reflected a couple of one-time gains.

New York Community Bancorp on Wednesday reported higher profits as the company hovers below the $50 billion-asset mark and seeks to complete its acquisition of Astoria Financial.

United Community Banks in Blairsville, Ga., reported higher quarterly gains spurred by fee revenue.

Suffolk Bancorp in New York, which recently agreed to be sold to People's United Financial, discouraged several suitors from bidding due to concerns about concentrations of commercial real estate loans at those banks. The disclosures highlight the challenges that banks with heavy CRE exposure could face — as buyers or sellers — if they want to do deals.