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Brockton-based HarborOne Bank announced today that it will acquire Merrimack Mortgage Co. Inc. of Manchester, N.H., marking its first major acquisition since its 2013 conversion to a bank charter. Terms of the deal, which is expected to close in July, are undisclosed.
“We completed the conversion [to a bank] back in 2013 because we needed to do it to grow and expand our footprint. We wanted to do that in the commercial space, which we’ve made good progress on, and we were looking for supplemental fee-based business. Mortgage was the logical choice,” said Pete Makowiecki, senior vice president of residential lending at HarborOne Bank. “Merrimack [is] so New England-centric – 50 percent of its business is Massachusetts-based – it really gave us a good foothold in the market where we’re looking to grow.”
Merrimack, a privately held home loan originator, operates branches in New Hampshire, Maine, Massachusetts and Connecticut and is licensed in Rhode Island, Vermont and six other states. It averages more than $1 billion in annual business throughout New England.
Merrimack will maintain its separate name, Makowiecki said, noting the company’s strong name and brand in the region, and will operate as a wholly owned subsidiary of HarborOne Bank.
Looking ahead, Makowiecki said he does not foresee the bank making another major acquisition in the mortgage arena in the “near future.”
“This is a pretty big bite out of the apple for us right now. There’s over 200 employees that we’re picking up. The bank right now is at 350. We’re going to digest this one,” Makowiecki said.
Merrimack principals Dan McKenney and Timothy Boyle will assume the respective roles of president and CEO and executive vice president and chief financial officer of the subsidiary mortgage unit. Employees at both HarborOne Bank and Merrimack Mortgage Co. will not be affected by the merger, Makowiecki said.
“This will have absolutely no impact on current staffing levels at either bank,” Makowiecki said. “This is not a consolidation play; it’s a growth play.”
