Local bank branches involved in merger announced Wednesday

Source: The Star, Shelby, N.self storageC.Aug. 28--Customers of another local bank will soon see a few changes to their branches due to a merger agreement between financial companies.On Wednesday, First-Citizens Bank & Trust Company, known as First Citizens Bank, and 1st Financial Services Corporation, which provides commercial banking services through subsidiary Mountain 1st Bank & Trust Company, announced a merger agreement.The Hendersonville-based 1st Financial Services Corp. and Mountain 1st Bank will merge into the Raleigh-based First Citizens Bank, according to a news release from the companies.The agreement was approved by the board of directors of all companies involved. The deal is expected to be final by the first quarter of 2014, pending approval by regulators and 1st Financial Services Corp. shareholders.Mountain 1st Bank operates Shelby and Forest City branches, as well as 10 others in western North Carolina."We welcome the opportunity to merge into First Citizens," said Michael G. Mayer, CEO of 1st Financial and Mountain 1st. "Our companies have a shared commitment to providing outstanding service and building strong relationships in the communities we serve. Customers will benefit from First Citizens' century-long dedication to safety and stability, a more robust line of products and a greater overall capacity to serve their financial needs. It is an attractive agreement for our company and our constituents."First Citizens operates branches in Forest City and Henrietta in Rutherford County."This agreement is a significant opportunity for us to expand our presence in our home state of North Carolina," said Frank B. Holding Jr., chairman and CEO of First Citizens. "We currently have a vibrant branch network and customer base throughout western North Carolina, and we look forward to the prospects of building on this foundation in迷你倉an important market for us."We've provided financial services in North Carolina for 115 years," Holding said. "Customers value our personal service, our dedication to soundness and the full range of products and services we offer. We expect to enhance our footprint in western N.C., establish new relationships and create an even stronger bank for those we serve."The deal announced Wednesday comes on the heels of another bank merger involving local branches.First National Bank's branches in Cleveland and surrounding counties became part of Arkansas-based Bank of the Ozarks as of Aug. 1.First Citizens Bank* Subsidiary of First Citizens BancShares Inc.* Operates on Nasdaq market under symbol "FCNCA"* First Citizens BancShares has $21 billion in assets* Operates branch offices, telephone banking, mobile banking, online banking* Headquartered in Raleigh* Operates 402 offices in 17 states* firstcitizens.com1st Financial Services Corp., Mountain 1st Bank* Traded on the OTC Bulletin Board under the symbol "FFIS"* Mountain 1st Bank chartered April 30, 2004* Headquartered in Hendersonville* Mountain 1st has 12 branches in nine western N.C. counties* $692 million in assets, $669 million in deposits, $363 million in loans* mountain1st.comMore about the deal* Per the terms of the merger agreement, cash consideration of $10 million will be split between the U.S. Treasury, which will receive $8 million of the cash consideration in order for 1st Financial Services Corp. to exit from the federal TARP program, and common shareholders of 1st Financial Services Corp., who will receive $2 million.* Shareholders of the companies can obtain more information on the deal by visiting .sec.gov or .mountain1st.com.Copyright: ___ (c)2013 The Star (Shelby, N.C.) Visit The Star (Shelby, N.C.) at .shelbystar.com Distributed by MCT Information Services文件倉