Brookfield-based North Shore Bank has agreed to acquire West Allis-based Layton Park Financial Group Inc., parent company of Layton State Bank.
The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter, pending regulatory and shareholder approvals. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Layton State Bank has $123 million in assets and $108 million in deposits as of May 31. It has about 34 employees at four branches, located in West Allis, Greendale, New Berlin and Milwaukee. Layton State Bank reported a $34,000 net loss in the first quarter, compared with net income of $21,000 in the first quarter of 2015, according to FDIC records.
North Shore Bank has assets of more than $1.8 billion and deposits of $1.5 billion as of March 31. Net income was $873,000 in the first quarter, down from $1.3 million in the first quarter of 2015. North Shore Bank has about 445 full-time employees at 45 branches in eastern Wisconsin and northern Illinois.
“It’s just a great opportunity to partner two very strong community banks,” said Jay McKenna, president and chief operating officer of North Shore Bank. “For us, it allows us to grow our presence in southeast Wisconsin with great customers, a great franchise and some great employees.”
Layton State Bank will have access to additional products, services and resources as part of the larger North Shore network, McKenna said.
“There’s a lot of regulatory pressures on our business, especially smaller community banks, and we certainly have the resources and the scale to help deal with a lot of those,” he said. “It is making it harder and harder for smaller community banks to thrive and survive.”
“(The acquisition) will leverage North Shore Bank’s infrastructure and resources, while providing our customers a broader network of branches, products and ATMs,” said Carla Breunig, president and chief executive officer of Layton State Bank. “North Shore Bank has always set very high standards for personalized customer service and will provide additional opportunities for our staff. It’s a very positive transaction for everyone involved.”
It’s too soon to say whether the integration would lead to any branch closures, McKenna said.
“We evaluate our offices on a regular basis to make sure that we’re properly serving our customers,” he said. “In due course, we will bring the Layton offices into that process, as well.”
