32
Wisconsin Community Banker
November/December 2014
CHANGING SCENE
Wintrust to Acquire
Delavan Bancshares
LAKE FOREST, Ill.—Wintrust
Financial plans to acquire Delavan
Bancshares Inc. Wintrust is the parent
company of Hartland-based Town
Bank and other Wisconsin com-
munity banks including 11 branches
of Talmer Bank and Trust, as well as
The National Bank’s Pewaukee office,
which it folded into Town Bank.
Formed in 1996, Delavan Banc-
shares now has $208 million in assets,
$167 million in deposits, and four
branches in Delavan, Sharon, Lake
Geneva, and Clinton.
The $38 million deal is expected to
close during the first quarter of 2015
pending regulatory approval.
Anchor to Sell Branch
MADISON—AnchorBank is selling
one of its branches to The Peoples
Community Bank of Mazomanie.
The Madison bank’s Richland Center
branch will be sold pending regulatory
approval.
Peoples approached Anchor to pur-
chase the branch and will assume $19
million in deposits, as well as loans
and other assets.
“With the growth that our loan
office in Richland Center was expe-
riencing we needed a full-service
location in which to more effectively
serve the needs of our customers,” said
Gary Harrop, president of The Peoples
Community Bank. “We look forward
to making permanent our commit-
ment to the Richland Center area.”
Peoples will retain AnchorBank
employees in Richland Center.
Minnesota Banks Expand
LA CROSSE— Merchants Bank of
Winona has purchased a branch in
Eau Claire in addition to locations in
Rushford and Lanesboro, Minn. And
it’s not the only Minnesota bank seek-
ing to expand into Wisconsin.
Bremer Bank, St. Paul, Minn.,
opened a new branch last year in
Onalaska and is constructing its 85th
branch in Eau Claire.
“One reason we see opportunity
is larger banks are concentrating on
larger markets like Minneapolis and
Chicago, drawing resources out of
smaller markets,” Dale Walter, presi-
dent of Bremer Bank in Onalaska,
told the La Crosse Tribune on Nov. 7.
“Bremer and other regional banks can
fill that void.”
Walter noted that Bremer is target-
ing regional hubs with colleges and
strong economic growth.
The bank, which is co-owned by
employees and the Otto Bremer Foun-
dation, builds a team of bankers from
the new communities they enter.
Ohio Bank Makes
Inroads
AKRON, Ohio—Another out-of-state
bank is making inroads in Wiscon-
sin. FirstMerit Bank plans to open
both its regional headquarters and
first Milwaukee branch in downtown
Cathedral Square. The bank opened its
first Wisconsin branches in 2013 when
it acquired the Flint, Mich.-based
Citizens’ Republic Bancorp.
The downtown Milwaukee branch,
located at 535 E. Wells St., will offer
banking services and an ATM. First
Merit will open its regional headquar-
ters in December at 555 E. Wells St.,
relocating staffers from temporary
offices.
Wisconsin Bank & Trust
to Merge
DUBUQUE, Iowa—In what appears
to be a sign of the times, Wisconsin
Bank & Trust (WB&T) will acquire
Sheboygan-based Community Bank &
Trust pending regulatory approval.
Wisconsin Bank & Trust is a sub-
CBW Legal & Compliance Consortium
Community Bankers of Wisconsin offers its Legal and Compliance Services Consortium to provide
CBWmembers with fast, easy access to compliance and legal services at a flat annual fee.
Godfrey & Kahn renders written or oral legal advice that can be maintained in bank records and provided to regulators.
Consortiummembers become clients of Godfrey & Kahn.
As a member of the CBW/Godfrey & Kahn Legal Consortium, we recently were provided with
unsolicited documents from Godfrey & Kahn addressing three hot topic issues: A “Loan Officer
Compensation Policy” as required under new Reg Z rules; A Guidance document that addresses
new “CFPB Mortgage Servicing Rules”; and a combination of a “Social Media Policy” and
a “Social Media Risk Assessment.” These are rules that 260 Wisconsin community banks are
trying to get their arms around and implement prior to their next exams. The Legal Consortium
continues to provide our bank a great value when we are provided this level of service.
— Jerry L. O’Connor, President & CEO, The National Bank of Waupun
Consortium members can rest assured that they have specialized legal advice
backing up their unique compliance questions and concerns.
For more information, contact Jami Erickson at
