Scituate Federal Savings Bank and Weymouth-based S-Bank announced today that the two banks will merge in a transaction that’s being billed as a merger of equals and is slated to close in the fourth quarter.
The combined bank will have almost $500 million in assets and nine locations in East Bridgewater, Green Harbor, Hanover, Hingham, Marshfield, Norwell, Quincy, Scituate and Weymouth, as well as an executive center in Marshfield.
“We believe that by combining resources, experience and expertise, and by relying on the value of local leadership across the entire franchise, our combined institution can preserve a true community banking model in our market area,” Donald Gill, president and CEO of S-Bank, said in a statement announcing the merger.
Speaking to Banker & Tradesman this afternoon, Joseph Hayes, chairman of Scituate Federal, said the merger would result in no branch closings or job losses.
“There won’t be any savings relative to employees, and we’ll be keeping all branches open,” he said. “Other costs, such as marketing, core processing, compliance costs, we’ll be able to consolidate some of those and add some savings.”
Hayes said the two banks will complement each others’ businesses, as well. While Scituate Federal does engage in some commercial lending, he said the $290 million bank mainly focuses on residential lending, while S-Bank, which has more than $195 million in assets, has a greater concentration in commercial lending.
Scituate Federal President and CEO Richard L. Rowe Jr. will become CEO of the new institution, while Gill will serve as president and chief operating officer.
The banks have not yet decided on the name of the combined entity and are currently in the process of a naming and branding study to better answer that question, Hayes said. The merger is still subject to relevant regulatory approvals.
Luse Gorman PC is serving as legal counsel to Scituate Federal in the merger, and Sandler O’Neill + Partners L.P. served as financial advisor to Scituate Federal. Partridge Snow & Hahn LLP is serving as legal counsel to S-Bank in the merger.
“We ended up with each other because we are a perfect fit for each other. Culturally we’re the same, our locations fit in very nicely and we both have the same commitment to community banking and our customers,” he said. “We’re all very, very excited.”
