Elkhorn-based community bank Peoples Bank has been acquired by Parchment, Michigan-based Advia Credit Union. The transaction closed Friday for an undisclosed price.
Peoples Bank customers will now have more branch options, at Advia’s 25 branches in Wisconsin, Illinois and Michigan. Peoples Bank had four locations: two in Elkhorn and one each in Silver Lake and Burlington. The bank had about $230 million in assets and 60 employees. All of its employees and locations are being retained in the transaction.
Advia has five Wisconsin locations, in Waukesha, Williams Bay, Janesville and two in Beloit, plus a loan processing office in Madison. The institution will now accept members from all nine counties in southeastern Wisconsin, and Peoples Bank customers will have access to more commercial financial services, competitive deposit options, lending and digital banking.
“We know that this means great things for those served by Peoples Bank, including competitive returns and opportunities for our customers, employees and communities,” said Tom Oehler, president and chief executive officer of the former Peoples Bank. “Growth and long-term sustainability for those we serve was our goal in this acquisition, and Advia is very well positioned to provide that. The names on our buildings have changed, but those of the team committed to serving our communities have not. We feel that aspect is important to continued service to our clients and communities,” stated Oehler.
Advia now has more than 140,000 members, 400 employees and about $1.5 billion in assets. It is ranked among the top 3 percent of credit unions in the country, and also participates in shared branching networks. It offers access to 30,000 surcharge-free ATMs through CO-OP Network.
“This is such an exciting day for Advia Credit Union as our team joins forces with those of Peoples Bank. Our goal is to complement each other’s areas of expertise in serving area families and businesses,” says Cheryl DeBoer, Advia’s president and CEO. “For all members we serve, we want their experience to be easy and simple with access to financial tools that save them time and money. This growth for our credit union into southeastern Wisconsin is a wonderful example of how we’re working to reach our goal and live to our mission of providing financial advantages.”
The signage at Peoples Bank was changed to Advia on Sept. 1, and the systems conversion is expected to take place in March, which is when Peoples Bank customers should see most changes, said Nancy Loftis, vice president of marketing and communications at Advia.
“We are continually looking for new opportunities for branch growth in that market, and also I imagine that we will be looking at hours of operation and making sure that they are as competitive as possible, as well as savings rates and loan rates available to the communities,” Loftis said.
