Berkshire Hills Bancorp, Inc., , announced
that its banking subsidiary, Berkshire
Bank, which has branches in Saratoga
County, has entered into a purchase and
assumption agreement to acquire 20 retail
bank branches from Bank of America.
The branches are located in New York
markets which are within or contiguous
to markets currently served by Berkshire,
including two in the Glens Falls region.
The acquired branches have approximately
$640 million in total deposits and
$5 million in loans. Both banks will be
working closely together to ensure a seamless
transition for customer accounts and
associates transferring to Berkshire Bank,
officials said.
Berkshire intends to offer continued employment to branch associates who are on staff when the acquisition is completed. This acquisition is subject to regulatory approval from the FDIC and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and the satisfaction of customary closing conditions. The acquisition is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2014.
The branches acquired include Glens Falls 14 La Rose St.; Queensbury at 183 Quaker Road; four in Utica, two in Rome, and branches in Amsterdam, Cairo, Chatham, Greenville, Hudson, Ilion, Johnstown, Little Falls, New Hartford, New Lebanon, West Winfield and Whitesboro.
The 20 branches will increase Berkshire’s total branch count to 94 branches in its footprint, and its New York branch count will more than double to 37 branches. Berkshire has $5.2 billion in assets and is one of the leading regional banks in its Northeastern markets.
Company officials said Berkshire Bank is well positioned to integrate the new branches into its existing operations and deliver the product depth and local responsiveness that have brought it success in all of its markets.
“We are pleased to welcome these new customers and communities to Berkshire Bank. We look forward to servicing their banking, insurance, and wealth management needs and to providing our full suite of personal and commercial deposit and loan products,” Berkshire CEO Michael Daly said.
“We believe that our existing customers and these new customers will value the enhanced convenience of our expanded New York branch network as well as our active community support and the additional resources provided through our New York regional headquarters.”
He said the company has “invested in technology systems and other infrastructure to position ourselves for future growth and this acquisition allows us to leverage those investments. We believe that this transaction will improve the quality and value of our franchise and it is consistent with the combination of acquisition and organic growth strategies that have supported our earnings growth in recent years.”
Jefferies LLC served as financial advisor to Berkshire and Luse Gorman Pomerenk & Schick, P.C. served as Berkshire’s outside legal counsel.