Delaware poised to have new bank commissioner
Lisa Collison has been nominated to become Delaware’s next State Bank Commissioner. Collison has served in a wide range of regulatory and supervisory roles during three decades at the Delaware Office of the State Bank Commissioner, including bank examiner, chief bank examiner, review examiner and senior deputy bank commissioner. “Delaware’s financial strength depends on strong, […]
Capital One to increases payments push with $5B Brex acquisition
Capital One Financial in McLean, Va., has agreed to buy Brex. The $476 billion-asset Capital One, fresh off its purchase of Discover, said in a press release that it will pay nearly $5.2 billion in cash and stock for the San Francisco payments fintech. The deal is expected to close in mid-2026. Brex is an […]
FDIC signs off on ILC applications for Ford, General Motors
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. gave conditional approval to deposit insurance applications submitted by Ford Motor Co. and General Motors, clearing the way for the establishment of the proposed Ford Credit Bank and GM Financial Bank as Utah-chartered industrial banks. The approvals mark a significant milestone for the auto giants, allowing their captive finance arms to […]
BV Financial in Baltimore discloses departure of co-CEO
BV Financial in Baltimore streamlined its top position. The company disclosed in a regulatory filing that David Flair resigned as co-president and co-CEO on Jan. 22. BV Financial will pay Flair about $2.1 million in a lump sum. Flair will also receive his 2025 bonus. Flair agreed to a consulting agreement that will end on […]
First Resource to buy First State Bank of Wyoming in Minnesota
First Resource Bank in Lino Lakes, Minn., has agreed to buy First State Bank of Wyoming in Wyoming, Minn. The $750 million-asset First Resource expects to buy the $240 million-asset First State in the second quarter. The price wasn’t disclosed. Barack Ferrazzano Kirschbaum & Nagelberg and CLA advised First Resource. Winthrop & Weinstine and Eide […]
Fintech DeepSee.ai raises $18.6M in Series A round
DeepSee.ai, a fintech that mines unstructured data and “operationalizes AI-powered insights,” has raised $18.6 million in its Series A round. The fintech said in an announcement that the round was led by BankTech Ventures, EJF Ventures, Raido Capital and Broadridge. The Salt Lake City company was founded in 2019.
Bank CMG to buy Farmers State in merger of Wisconsin banks
Bank CMG in Madison, Wis., has agreed to buy Farmers State Bank in Mineral Point, Wis. The $900 million-asset Bank CMG said in a press release that it expects to buy the $450 million-asset Farmers State by mid-2026. The price wasn’t disclosed. “This acquisition reflects our commitment to growth and innovation within the state of […]
Bennington State in Kansas to buy Flint Hills Bank
Berco in Salina, Kan., has agreed to buy Flint Hills Bank in Eskridge, Kan. The parent of the $1.3 billion-asset Bennington State Bank said in a press release that it plans to buy the $154 million-asset Flint Hills in the second quarter. The price wasn’t disclosed. Flint Hills operates under its primary charter name while […]
WaFd in Seattle successfully appeals CRA rating
WaFd Bank in Seattle successfully appealed its Community Reinvestment Act rating. The bank received a “needs to improve” rating from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. in late 2024 for the period covering June 2020 to March 2024. After the bank filed an appeal with the FDIC’s Supervision Appeals Review Committee, the rating was raised to […]
First Bancorp in N.C. sold underperforming securities in fourth quarter
First Bancorp in Southern Pines, N.C., said its quarterly profit took a hit after it cleaned up its securities portfolio. The company said in a press release that it earned $15.7 million in the fourth quarter. The results included a $43.7 million pretax securities loss. The company sold $342 million of securities, using the proceeds […]
First Capital in South Carolina raises $13M via private placement
First Capital Bancshares in Charleston, S.C., raised $13.2 million. The $811 million-asset company said in a press release that it completed a private placement of common stock sold to accredited individual and institutional investors. First Capital said it plans to use the proceeds to support the continued growth of its franchise, invest in the bank […]
BCB in N.J. to record writedown tied to cannabis relationship
BCB Bancorp in Bayonne, N.J., will take some credit-related hits in the first quarter. The company disclosed in a regulatory filing that it will take a $15.1 million pretax writedown tied to an “isolated” cannabis-related real estate owned property. After charging off $12.7 million in the third quarter tied to the relationships, BCB determined that […]
Community State Bank in Pa. lines up next CEO
Community State Bank in Orbisonia, Pa., has finalized its CEO succession. The $400 million-asset bank said in a press release that Nicole Wilson will succeed Michael Bibak as president on Feb. 2. She will then become CEO when Bibak retires at the end of the year. Wilson is the bank’s chief financial officer. “Though Mike’s […]
High Plains Banking to buy First National Bank of Hugo in Colorado
High Plains Banking Group in Flagler, Colo., has agreed to buy First National Bank of Hugo in Colorado. The parent of the $446 million-asset High Plains Bank expects to buy the $146.3 million-asset First National in the first or second quarter, according to an announcement by Olsen Palmer, which represented High Plains. The price wasn’t […]
Cashmere Valley in Wash. to buy back $15M of stock via tender offer
Cashmere Valley Bank in Cashmere, Wash., will buy back $15 million worth of stock under a tender offer. The bank said in a press release that it expects to repurchase about 200,000 shares of common stock at $75 each. The shares represent about 5.1% of the bank’s outstanding stock. The purchase price represents a roughly […]
Community Financial System to buy death care industry specialist ClearPoint
Community Financial System in Syracuse, N.Y., has agreed to buy ClearPoint Federal Bank & Trust in Batesville, Ind. The $16 billion-asset Community Financial System said in a press release that it will pay $40 million in cash for the $131.5 million-asset ClearPoint. The deal is expected to close in the second quarter. ClearPoint is a […]
Checkout.com gets conditional approval for special Georgia charter
Checkout.com is the latest payments company to receive a special-purpose banking charter in Georgia. The payments processor said in a press release that it was approved for a merchant acquirer limited purpose bank charter. Conditional approval includes certain stipulations that must first be met. “Securing the charter allows Checkout.com to accelerate plans to operate as its […]
Metamore State Bank in Ohio rebrands as Bank419
Metamora State Bank in Toledo, Ohio, has rebranded. The $98 million-asset community bank said in a Facebook video that it is now Bank419. The name reflects the market’s area code. “We needed a name to reflect our commitment to all of northwest Ohio and southeast Michigan, not just one town,” Kathleen Fischer, the bank’s CEO, said […]
United Roosevelt in N.J. to convert to stock-owned company
United Roosevelt MHC in Carteret, N.J., is planning to convert from a mutual organization to a stock-owned company. The $352.6 million-asset mutual said in regulatory filings that it plans to form United Roosevelt Bancorp. Janney Montgomery Scott will help the company market its common stock. The company plans to sell 1.5 million to 2 million […]
Old Glory, SPAC to merge and form crypto-focused company
Old Glory Bank in Elmore City, Okla., and Digital Asset Acquisition Corp., a special purpose acquisition company, have agreed to merge to form a crypto-focused financial institution. The bank, created when a group tied to Ben Carson bought and rebranded First State Bank in 2023, and the SPAC plan to form OGB Financial, a Texas […]
U.S. Bancorp to buy advisory firm BTIG for up to $1 billion
U.S. Bancorp in Minneapolis has agreed to buy BTIG, a financial services firm specializing in investment banking, institutional sales and trading, research and prime brokerage. U.S. Bancorp said it will pay up to $725 million in cash and stock for BTIG, with up to $275 million in cash incentives in play over three years. The […]
First County in Connecticut hires Berkshire CEO as its new leader
First County Bank in Stamford, Conn., has hired Nitin Mhatre as its CEO. The $2.2 billion-asset bank said in a press release that Mhatre will succeed Robert Granata. Mhatre will become CEO on April 15, while Granata will remain chairman until July. Mhatre had been the CEO of Berkshire Bancorp in Boston since January 2021. […]
Proposed Echelon Bank in Florida receives conditional FDIC approval
Organizers of the proposed Echelon Bank in Clearwater, Fla., have received conditional approval from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. The group, which applied in July, must raise $23 million before opening the bank. Their plans include three branches and a loan production office in the first three years of operation. Echelon “will be a full-service, […]
Greenfield Savings in Massachusetts selects new CEO
Greenfield Savings Bank in Greenfield, Mass., has a new CEO. The bank said in a press release that Peter Albero had also become its president. Albero, who was chief financial officer and treasurer, succeeded Thomas Meshako, who retired. “Peter’s leadership and financial acumen make him the ideal choice to guide Greenfield Savings Bank into the […]
AI-focused fintech Onsetto raises $2.2 million in new funding round
Onsetto, a Minneapolis fintech that helps financial institutions activate and establish primary operating relationships, raised $2.2 million in funding. The AI-focused fintech said in a press release that the funding round was led by EJF Ventures, with participation from Idea Fund of La Crosse, The Perch Fund, and angel investors Daren Cotter and Bobby Astrup. The […]