Republic First Bancorp in Philadelphia is delaying plans to raise more capital. Executives of the $5.6 billion-asset company made the disclosure during a Thursday conference call to discuss fourth-quarter results. “As the quarter progressed, we made the decision that it would be in the best interest of not only the bank but our shareholders to do that raise at a time that would be most optable from a stock price perspective,” Frank

H&R Block in Kansas City, Mo., has created a challenger bank. The tax preparation company said in a press release Thursday that it had launched Spruce, a mobile banking platform that will include a spending account with a debit card. Meta Financial’s MetaBank is providing the banking products for Spruce, which will look to address the needs of underserved markets. “Spruce is a financial technology platform that combines the best features of leading

Sterling Bancorp in Southfield, Mich., has implemented numerous governance measures to resolve a shareholder demand for change. The $3.1 billion-asset company said in a press release Friday that the settlement of the July 2020 shareholder action will also include payment of the shareholder’s attorneys’ fees and expenses in exchange for the release of all defendants from all alleged claims.Sterling noted that it had appointed three independent directors since July 28, adding

Blue Ridge Bankshares in Charlottesville, Va., and FVCBankcorp in Fairfax, Va., no longer plan to merge.The $3.2 billion-asset Blue Ridge and the $2 billion-asset FVCB said in a press release Thursday that they had agreed to terminate the all-stock deal. Each company will bear its own costs and expenses in connection with the terminated transaction. No termination fees will be paid. “Our boards of directors mutually concluded after careful consideration that it

Farmers and Merchants Bancshares in Hampstead, Md., is looking for its next CEO. The $716 million-asset company said in a press release Thursday that James Bosley Jr. will also retire as president and the end of this year. Bosley, 60, joined the bank in 1983 and has been its president and CEO since 1995.Bosley will remain on the board until his term ends in 2024. Bosley “has helped to build the company

Synovus Financial in Columbus, Ga., said it feels comfortable with its ability to achieve the $175 million in expense cuts and added revenue from its current efficiency effort. The $57 billion-asset company said in a press release Thursday that the Synovus Forward program reduced annual expenses by $55 million and added $55 million in revenue in 2021. The progress puts Synovus on pace to meet its overall goal by the end of

Fifth Third Bancorp in Cincinnati is making a move in point-of-sale lending with an agreement to buy Dividend Finance in San Francisco. The $211 billion-asset Fifth Third said in a press release Wednesday that it expects to acquire the home-improvement fintech in the second quarter. The price was not disclosed. Dividend Finance, founded in 2013 and majority owned by LL Funds, focuses on sustainable energy solutions. About 80% of its originations are

Bank First in Manitowoc, Wis., has agreed to buy Denmark Bancshares in Denmark, Wis. The $2.9 billion-asset Bank First said in a press release Wednesday that it will pay $119.5 million in cash and stock for the $688 million-asset parent of Denmark State Bank. The deal, which is expected to close in the third quarter, priced Denmark as 175% of its tangible book value. Denmark has seven branches, $479.4 million of