-
Little guys are getting a rare chance to feast at a big guy's expense. Small banks nationwide are eagerly buying dozens of branches from B of A, which must slim down. However, the buyers are at risk of gorging themselves.
December 28 -
Arvest Bank, the nation's third-largest privately held bank, agreed to buy 29 branches from Bank of America (BAC).
December 17 -
The bank has little choice but to shrink itself through asset sales and layoffs, but the process is slow, demoralizing and no answer to future growth.
October 18
First Financial Corp. (THFF) of Terre Haute, Ind., is buying seven branches and two drive-up locations in Illinois from Bank of America (BAC).
The $2.9 billion-asset bank said it would acquire $252 million in deposits and $2.3 million in small business loans from B of A. The sale excludes credit card and brokerage accounts, as well as loans in the branches' mortgage and trust portfolios.
The nine locations are in southern and central Illinois. The companies, which expect the deal to close in the third quarter, withheld the sales price.
"This opportunity made sense for us because it supports our long-term strategy of expanding into areas that we already know well," Donald Smith, First Financial's chairman, said in a press release. "The new locations are a natural extension of First Financial Bank's existing footprint and will allow us to strengthen our regional presence in Illinois."
First Financial, which was founded in 1834,says it is the fifth-oldest bank in the U.S. It has 30 branches in Illinois and 36 branches in Indiana.
The deal is part of an effort by B of A to
