Clara City, Minn.-based Citizens Alliance Bank is acquiring Butte, Mont.-based Granite Mountain Bank. The acquisition includes Granite Mountain branches in Philipsburg and Drummond, Mont. Citizens Alliance already has three Montana branches, in Great Falls, Seeley Lake and Lincoln. A press release states that the merger will allow Granite Mountain Bank customers to have direct access … Read more
Consumer sentiment is slowly improving but remains below the historical average, according to the University of Michigan’s January Surveys of Consumers report. [Continue]
Customers are prioritizing convenience and ease-of-use in choosing payment options, according to a survey from Primax. [Continue]
Traverse City, Mich.-based 4Front Credit Union is acquiring Michigan-based Old Mission Bank in the first CU-bank deal of 2023. [Continue]
Small businesses’ optimism fell in December as owners continued to view inflation as the top threat to their operations, according to the National Federation of Independent Business. The index for small business optimism fell 2.1 points last month to 89.8, the 12th straight month that it has fallen below the 49-year average of 98. Owners … Read more
Nearly all community bankers believe that a recession has already started, according to the fourth quarter 2022 Community Bank Sentiment Index released by the Conference of State Bank Supervisors. The index, released Jan. 10, fell six points to 85 as community bankers continued expressing concerns over regulations, monetary policy, cyberattacks, and the broader economic outlook. … Read more
Omaha-based First National of Nebraska is acquiring Minneapolis-based Northland Capital Holdings and its subsidiary Northland Securities, Inc. The deal is expected to close in the first quarter of this year. Once the sale closes, Northland Securities will operate as a subsidiary of First National. A prominent underwriter of tax-exempt bonds in the Midwest, Northland Securities … Read more
Hannibal, Mo.-based HNB National Bank is acquiring Louisiana, Mo.-based Mercantile Bank. The merger was announced in a Jan. 5 press release in the Hannibal Courier Post. The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. The merger is expected to close during the second quarter of this year. By acquiring the $134 million Mercantile Bank, … Read more
The Independent Community Bankers of America is pushing back against the Small Business Administration’s proposal to expand its signature lending program to nonbanks. A Jan. 5 letter written by ICBA First Vice President James Kendrick comes as the SBA considers lifting its 41-year moratorium of licenses for new small business lending companies from 14 and … Read more
Champaign, Ill.-based CIB Marine Bancshares announced Jan. 3 that it plans to hire approximately 30 mortgage loan officers as it expands its mortgage lending department into Arizona, Connecticut, Florida, Massachusetts, New York and Rhode Island. The parent company of the $754 million CIBM Bank hired Frank Binetti as director of mortgage operations. Binetti, a 35-year … Read more