U.S. regulators closed Saddleback National Bank.

The Laguna Hills bank, which has been plagued by high operating costs and bad loans since it opened three years ago, was declared insolvent, and its insured deposits and some assets were transferred to La Habra-based Landmark Bank, which plans to reopen the bank as one of its branches at about noon today. Saddleback had $12.9 million in deposits, $140,000 of which was uninsured because it was in accounts exceeding the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.’s $100,000 limit. FDIC officials said the agency would pay 65% of the uninsured deposits. The bank is the 44th in the nation and the third in the state to fail this year.