Citizens Bank

The $12 million takeover of Citizens Bank of Costa Mesa by wealthy Australian industrialist Richard Pratt should be completed sometime in January, as long as state and federal regulators give their approval, bank and Pratt spokesmen said Wednesday.

Ninety-two U.S. banks and thrifts failed in 2011, down from 157 in 2010 and 140 in 2009. In a report this week, SNL Financial generated a series of charts that showed the number of failures were far greater during the savings-and-loan meltdown that began in the 1980s and extended into the early '90s. The assets of failed banks peaked in 2008, however. No surprise there: Among the institutions seized by regulators was Seattle's Washington Mutual Bank, the largest savings and loan in the nation with $307 billion in assets and the biggest bank ever to fail . WaMu is now part of JPMorgan Chase & Co. Another big failure that year was Southern California's IndyMac Bank, another savings and loan, which had $32 billion in assets.

First Citizens Bank, a single-office bank in Sherman Oaks, said its first-quarter profit more than doubled from a year earlier, to $92,443 from $35,176. The higher profit came as First Citizens' total assets climbed 23%, to $40.2 million as of March 31 from $32.6 million a year earlier.

Maybe you had to be there. Or not have a sunny, 70-degree day beckoning through open patio doors. But as viewed through NBC's cameras the NHL's Winter Classic, which matched the New York Rangers and Philadelphia Flyers on Monday at Philadelphia's Citizens Bank Park, lacked the charm and us-against-the-elements appeal the league needs for this annual game to be more than a made-for-TV contrivance. The dramatic finish of the Rangers' 3-2 victory saved it competitively, though Rangers Coach John Tortorella called the officiating "disgusting" and hinted at a conspiracy after the Flyers were awarded a penalty shot with 19.6 seconds left.

Citizens Bank of Costa Mesa said Tuesday that it is considering selling its three-office institution to an undisclosed buyer for approximately $12 million. Paige Simpson, Citizen's president, said that he was approached about a month ago by a buyer who offered to pay cash for the 13-year-old institution. "We feel it's a sincere offer and one that would benefit the (495) shareholders," said Simpson, who owns 70,000 shares or about 7% of the company's stock.

First Citizens Bank, a fast-growing bank in Sherman Oaks, said it earned $130,470 in the first quarter ended March 31, up 189% from a year earlier. Total assets on March 31 were $28.8 million, up 22% from a year earlier.

An Orange Coast College student and hairstylist was arrested Friday in his apartment complex on suspicion of armed robbery when he was found with $5,600 apparently stolen from a nearby bank, police said. A bandit entered the Citizens Bank on 2970 Harbor Blvd. at about 3:30 p.m. and demanded money from a teller, saying he had a gun, Costa Mesa Police Sgt. Loren Wyrick said. Witnesses saw the man running toward the Villa Martinique apartments in the 2800 block of Pinecreek Drive, police said.

Paige V. Simpson, known to his peers as the dean of Orange County banking, said Friday that he will step down from the presidency of Citizens Bank of Costa Mesa after 17 years but will remain as chairman of the financial institution. Simpson, 70, said he will be replaced by Richard Helstrom, former executive vice president of Community Bank in Los Angeles. "I'm approaching retirement age, so we're bringing in a younger man," Simpson said.

After months of hiding the identity of their latest suitor, directors of Citizens Bank of Costa Mesa disclosed Thursday that they have approved a $12-million cash offer from Australian industrialist Richard Pratt. Pratt, whose Pratt Group is the largest manufacturer of corrugated boxes in Australia, would create a new bank holding company to purchase all 1.1 million outstanding shares of Citizens common stock for about $11 a share, according to Citizens' President Paige Simpson.

The UCLA men's basketball team's road show will start with what amounts to a home game for Tyler Lamb . The sophomore guard spent two years at Colony High in Ontario and still has friends and family near Citizens Business Bank Arena, where the Bruins will play an exhibition game against Cal State San Bernardino at 2 p.m. on Sunday. "It will be a good chance for everybody to finally get to watch me play again," Lamb said. "They haven't watched me play since high school. " They didn't miss much during Lamb's first year in Westwood.

Ice dancing will be the main attraction at Skate America in Ontario this weekend. The days when Tonya Harding and Nancy Kerrigan drew American eyes to figure skating for a rivalry turned ugly, or when Michelle Kwan, Tara Lipinski and Sarah Hughes did it by winning Olympic and world championship gold medals, those days seem long gone. Meryl Davis and Charlie White are the only reigning American figure skating world champions, and the ice dancing couple is the headline act for Skate America, which kicks off the Grand Prix season Friday at Citizens Business Bank Arena.

The director of a senior citizens food bank in Pasadena said demand for groceries has almost doubled over the last three years. On the first Friday of each month, more than 570 residents 65 or older wait in line for free groceries at the Pasadena Senior Center at Memorial Park, according to executive director Akila Gibbs. An additional 100 with limited mobility have groceries delivered through the program. In 2008, approximately 350 sought regular help with food, she said. In 2004, only about 50 used the program, a partnership with the Los Angeles Food Bank that is designed to serve San Gabriel Valley seniors with an annual income of $10,000 or less.

A roundup of entertainment headlines for Friday: Ashton Kutcher is the new Charlie Sheen? On "Two and a Half Men," anyway. ( Los Angeles Times ) "American Idol" is almost over, but poor James Durbin won't be there to see it. ( Los Angeles Times ) The National Jukebox has logged 1 million page views and 250,000 streams in 48 hours. ( Los Angeles Times ) "The Dark Knight Rises" is the closest thing Hollywood can get to a sure thing, so maybe that's why Warner Bros.

Brothers Jose and Daniel Roman from Riverside are big boxing fans, but until Citizens Business Bank Arena in Ontario was constructed last year, their options to watch a match were restricted to hotel ballrooms, casino parking lots or a lengthy drive to a pricey seat at Staples Center. "One hundred bucks on the floor here, I'm mingling with fighters," Jose Roman, 27, said. "There's a strong base of fans like me in this area who want this." The Romans aren't alone, and arena executives and boxing promoters have noticed, as evidenced by Saturday night's show headlined by heavyweight title contender Cris Arreola, which drew more than 6,000 fans to the 10,000-capacity facility.

Amid growing fears of a real estate bubble, Chinese officials moved Friday to restrain bank lending and put a lid on incipient inflation, a surprise action that shook financial markets around the world on concern that the leading engine of the global economic recovery could be slowing. China's action will require banks to set aside more reserves with the nation's central bank, instead of lending the money to businesses and consumers. It was the second such step in a little more than a month and is aimed at curbing excessive borrowing, which has stoked government worries that China's economic gains could be undone by an overheated real estate market.

First Regional Bank of Century City on Friday became the first California bank this year to be shut down by regulators, a victim of real estate loans that went bad. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. immediately sold First Regional's eight branches and nearly all of its $2.2 billion in assets to First-Citizens Bank & Trust Co. of Raleigh, N.C., which agreed to assume the failed institution's deposits. The FDIC agreed to shoulder most of the losses on First Regional's loans, and estimated the failure would cost the bank deposit insurance fund $825.