An activist investor has recruited a banking veteran to aid in his quest for board seats at AmeriServ Financial in Johnstown, Pa. Driver Management, run by Abbott Cooper, said in a regulatory filing that it will nominate Keith Mestrich, retired CEO of Amalgamated Financial in New York, to stand for election to the $1.4 billion-asset AmeriServ’s board. Cooper, whose firm owns about 2.5% of AmeriServ’s outstanding shares, also plans to

Riverview Bancorp in Vancouver, Wash., agreed to pay a salary to its former president and CEO over the next year. The $1.6 billion-asset company disclosed in a regulatory filing that it will pay Kevin Lycklama his $410,000 monthly salary for the next 12 months – or roughly $4.9 million. Lycklama, in exchange, agreed to certain waiver and release of claims, as well as post-employment covenants with respect to confidential data

PNC Financial Services Group in Pittsburgh has acquired a portfolio of capital commitments facilities from Signature Bridge Bank. The $554 billion-asset PNC said in a press release that the transaction was facilitated by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., which took over Signature Bank when it failed in March. The portfolio includes $16.6 billion of total commitments, including $9 billion of funded loans. PNC said the all-cash transaction should be immediately accretive to its earnings,

Discover Financial Services in Riverwood, Ill., disclosed that its bank agreed to a consent order with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. The company said in a regulatory filing that the Sept. 25 order requires Discover Bank to address compliance shortcomings with consumer protection laws. Discover Bank agreed to improve its consumer compliance management system and enhance related corporate governance and enterprise risk management practices. It will also increase board oversight

The Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation has a new leader. The agency said in a press release that Gov. JB Pritzker had appointed Susana Soriano to serve as director of banking. Her appointment still needs to be confirmed by the Illinois Senate. Soriano has served as deputy director of banking since joining the agency in October 2020. She worked at JPMorgan Chase from 2005 to 2013 before becoming a

MidFirst Bank in Oklahoma City is expanding in southern California after hiring nearly two dozen bankers who worked at the failed First Republic Bank. The $36.5 billion-asset MidFirst said in a press release that its 1st Century Bank division hired 22 bankers to enter San Diego, the South Bay and Santa Barbara. "Southern California is a strategic growth region for MidFirst Bank, and our continued expansion in this market with experienced new

A former executive at U.S. Bancorp has joined the board at 1895 Bancorp of Wisconsin in Greenfield. The $553.4 million-asset company said in a press release that Clarence Harris also joined the board of its PyraMax Bank. He will serve on the company’s audit committee, compensation committee and the nomination and governance committee. Harris retired in 2019 as division manager of international sales at U.S. Bank. Harris’ “deep experience in

A Charlotte, N.C., startup focused on artificial intelligence has raised about $1.7 million in early stage funding.   Rivet Solutions disclosed the offering for Vectari in a regulatory filing, listing 13 investors. Vectari, on its website, plans to offer AI that can assist with regulatory language, scam detection and prevention and policy insights for financial institutions.   Christopher Hart, former co-founder and CEO of Levvel, is Vectari’s CEO, while Alexandra