Pueblo Bancorp. to buy Ark Valley in Colorado bank merger
Pueblo Bancorp. in Pueblo, Colo., has agreed to buy Ark Valley Bankshares in La Junta, Colo. The parent of the $647.4 million-asset Pueblo Bank and Trust should complete its purchase of the $137.2 million-asset Ark Valley in the first quarter, according to an announcement by Olsen Palmer. The price wasn’t disclosed. Olsen Palmer advised Ark […]
ServBanc Holdco to buy IF Bancorp in Illinois in cash transaction
ServBanc Holdco in Oswego, Ill., has agreed to buy IF Bancorp in Watseka, Ill. The holding company for the $932.3 million-asset ServBank said in a press release that it will pay $89.8 million in cash for the parent of the $887.7 million-asset Iroquois Federal Savings and Loan Association. The deal is expected to close in […]
First Mid in Ill. to buy Two Rivers Financial in Iowa
First Mid Bancshares in Mattoon, Ill., has agreed to buy Two Rivers Financial in Burlington, Iowa. The $7.8 billion-asset First Mid said in a press release that it will pay $94.1 million in stock for the $1.1 billion-asset Two Rivers. The deal, which is expected to close in the first quarter, priced Two Rivers at […]
Barclays U.S. unit to buy fintech Best Egg for $800 million
Barclays Bank Delaware has agreed to buy direct-to-consumer lending fintech Best Egg. The U.S. unit of the British bank will pay $800 million for Best Egg in a deal expected to close in the second quarter. Best Egg, formed in 2013, has facilitated more than $40 billion in personal loans to more than two million […]
Community State Bank of Orbisonia in Pa. lines up next leader
Community State Bank of Orbisonia in Pennsylvania is finalizing its leadership succession. The $453 million-asset bank said in a press release that Nicole Wilson will become its president on Feb. 2 and CEO at the end of next year. Wilson, the bank’s chief financial officer, will succeed Michael Bibak, who is retiring. “Though Mike’s tenure […]
Hilltop Bank to buy Cheyenne State Bank in Wyoming bank merger
Hilltop Bank in Casper, Wyo., has agreed to buy Cheyenne State Bank in Wyoming. The $1 billion-asset Hilltop did not disclose how much it will pay for the $30.2 million-asset Cheyenne State. The deal is expected to close in the first quarter. “We are thrilled about the opportunity to expand our service in Cheyenne through […]
Bank-focused tech firms UFS, BankOnIt merge
Banking-focused technology firms UFS and BankOnIT have merged. UFS, which specializes in core banking solutions, managed IT services and cybersecurity, and BankOnIt, a cloud infrastructure provider, announced the merger in a press release. Financial terms were not disclosed. The deal gives UFS clients access to a broader suite of managed IT services and real-time security solutions, […]
FirstSun Capital to buy First Foundation in Texas
FirstSun Capital Bancorp in Denver has found a new fixer-upper, agreeing to buy First Foundation in Irving, Texas. The $8.5 billion-asset FirstSun, which was unable to buy HomeStreet last year, said in a press release that it will pay $785 million in stock for the $12.6 billion-asset First Foundation. The deal, which is expected to […]
Park National in Ohio to enter Tennessee with First Citizens deal
Park National in Newark, Ohio, has agreed to buy First Citizens Bancshares in Dyersburg, Tenn. The $9.9 billion-asset Park said in a press release that it will pay $317.3 million in stock for the $2.6 billion-asset First Citizens. The deal, which is expected to close in the first quarter, priced First Citizens at 168% of […]
Huntington in Ohio to buy Cadence Bank for $7.4 billion
Huntington Bancshares in Columbus, Ohio, is already back in the M&A game, agreeing to buy Cadence Bank in Tupelo, Miss. The $210 billion-asset Huntington, which just closed its purchase of Veritex Holdings in Dallas, said in a press release that it will pay $7.4 billion in stock for the $53 billion-asset Cadence. The deal, which […]
Merchants & Marine in Mississippi to buy FM Bank in Louisiana
Merchants & Marine Bancorp in Pascagoula, Miss., has agreed to buy Farmers-Merchants Bank & Trust in Breaux Bridge, La. Merchants & Marine said in a press release that it will pay cash for the $450 million-asset FM Bank in a deal expected to close in the second quarter. The price wasn’t disclosed. Fred Mills, FM […]
Crypto.com is latest digital assets firm to pursue national trust bank charter
Crypto.com is the latest digital assets company to apply for a national trust bank charter with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. Crypto.com said in a press release that it is pursuing the charter to advance its custody technology and related customer offerings, including custody and staking of assets across blockchains and digital […]
Evolve Bank in Arkansas fires CEO after arrest
Evolve Bank & Trust in West Memphis, Ark., fired CEO Bob Hartheimer after he was arrested on two child pornography-related charges. The bank said in a statement that Mark Mosteller, its president and chief financial officer, and Joelle Weltzin, its general counsel, will oversee operations and strategic direction. They had those roles before Hartheimer was […]
Paulson Capital buys community banking specialist JWTT
Paulson Capital Holding in Portland, Ore., bought JWTT, an investment bank and broker-dealer that specializes in the community banking sector. JWTT has more than $470 million in customer assets. The price wasn’t disclosed. “We are pleased to announce the acquisition of JWTT … and look forward to committing resources to building on the expertise of […]
Avidbank, CB Financial, 1st Source purge underwater securities
A trio of banking companies disclosed securities sales. Avidbank Holdings in San Jose, Calif., said that a securities sale contributed to its $37.7 million third-quarter loss. The $2.4 billion-asset company sold $274.7 million of securities at a $62.4 million loss. The company purchased $163.2 million in higher-yielding securities and paid off short-term borrowings using proceeds from […]
Metropolitan in N.Y. dealing with out-of-market multifamily loan
Metropolitan Bank Holding in New York reported lower quarterly profit that reflected costs tied to an out-of-market commercial real estate loan. The $8.2 billion-asset company said in a press release that its third-quarter profit fell by 42% from a year earlier, to $7.1 million. The quarter included a $23.9 million loan-loss provision that included $18.7 […]
Origin in La. reports lower profit due to TriColor exposure
Origin Bancorp in Ruston, La., reported significantly lower quarterly earnings due to its exposure to TriColor Holdings. The $9.8 billion-asset company said in a press release that its third-quarter profit fell 54% from a year earlier, to $8.6 milli0n. The quarter included a $36.8 million loan-loss provision that “was primarily related to the suspected borrower […]
Nicolet to buy MidWestOne in Iowa for $864 million
Nicolet Bankshares in Green Bay, Wis., has agreed to buy MidWestOne Financial Group in Iowa City. The $9.5 billion-asset Nicolet said in a press release that it will pay $864 million in stock for the $6.2 billion-asset MidWestOne. The deal, which is expected to close in the first half of next year, priced MidWestOne at […]
Community First Credit Union in Fla. invests in AI-focused CUSO
Community First Credit Union of Florida in Jacksonville has invested in Digital Assets Service Organization, Frement, Calif., credit union service organization. The $2.8 billion-asset credit union did not disclose the size of its investment. The CUSO plans to use the proceeds to enhance its credit union automation platform to an agentic platform. “By partnering with […]
BankIn Minnesota taps veteran banker as new leader
BankIn Minnesota in Bloomington, Minn., has a new leader. The association said in a press release that Rich Jones had become its president and CEO. Jones, who was president and CEO of Randall State Bank, succeeded Jim Amundson, who become president and CEO of United Bankers’ Bank. Randall State is selling to Security State Agency in […]
Third Coast to buy Keystone Bancshares in Texas
Third Coast Bancshares in Houston has agreed to buy Keystone Bancshares in Austin, Texas. The $5.2 billion-asset Third Coast said in a press release that it will pay $123 million in cash and stock for the $1.1 billion-asset Keystone. The deal, which is expected to close in the first quarter, priced Keystone at 123% of […]
Citigroup consolidates CEO, chair roles
Jane Fraser is now the chair of CItigroup in New York. The company said in a press release that Fraser, who has been CEO since 2021, had succeeded John Dugan, who had been chair since 2019. Dugan is now the lead independent director. The board granted Fraser a one-time equity award, consisting of restricted stock […]
SmartFinancial in Tenn. uses agency sale to offset securities losses
SmartFinancial in Knoxville, Tenn., reported higher quarterly profit after selling its insurance business and purging underwater securities. The $5.8 billion-asset company said in a press release that its third-quarter earnings rose by 51% from a year earlier, to $13.7 million. SmartFinancial recorded a $4 million pretax gain tied to selling SBK Insurance. That gain offset […]
Farmers National to buy Middlefield Banc Corp. in Ohio
Farmers National Banc Corp. in Canfield, Ohio, has agreed to buy Middlefield Banc Corp. in Middlefield, Ohio. The $5.4 billion-asset Farmers said in a press release that it will pay $299 million in stock for the $2 billion-asset Middlefield. The deal, which is expected to close in the first quarter, priced Middlefield at 163.5% of […]
Bank of Burlington in Vermont rebrands as The Business Bank
Bank of Burlington in Vermont has rebranded as The Business Bank. The bank said the new name “reflects the success” of its business model and a “clear focus to serve business customers, while continuing to grow across Vermont and expanding into New Hampshire and Massachusetts.” “Change is crucial and inevitable,” Geoffrey Hesslink, the bank’s chairman […]