Simmons Bank to sell 4 St. Louis-area branches to CEFCU

Citizens Equity First Credit Union in Peoria, Ill., has agreed to buy four branches from Simmons Bank.

The $6.9 billion-asset CEFCU said in a press release Monday that the branches are in the Metro East area of southern Illinois, near St. Louis. The credit union will also pick up select loan and deposit accounts, along with nondeposit product relationships in the deal.

CEFCU expects the transaction to close in the first quarter of 2021. Simmons Bank, based in Pine Bluff, Ark., holds $21.4 billion in assets and completed its acquisition of Columbia, Mo.-based Landmark bank and its parent company in October. The bank has more than 200 branches across seven states in the Midwest and the South.

The four additional offices bring the credit union to a total of 31 branches throughout 14 counties in Illinois and three counties in California. CEFCU gained a foothold in the Golden State more than a decade ago after acquiring Valley CU in a merger.

“CEFCU has a longstanding history of success and growth through improving the financial well-being of members and the communities we serve,” President and CEO Mark Spenny said in the release.

Michael Bell, an attorney with Honigman who advised CEFCU on the deal, said the transaction is part of an ongoing trend as banks rethink their branch footprints in the wake of the pandemic and economic downturn. “And credit unions are strategically growing, so it’s a win for both sides,” he added, suggesting more dozens more deals could be in the cards “if the sellers and buyers can come together.”

Mercer Capital also advised CEFCU on the deal.

The credit union reported net income of $58.1 million for the first three quarters of 2020, a 9.6% decline from first nine months last year, driven in part by an uptick in noninterest expenses and small decreases in interest and noninterest revenue streams.