First Citizens Buying 138 Branches In National Push
By Chris Burritt, Business North Carolina
First Citizens Bank plans to acquire 138 branches in 11 states in pursuit of national expansion while adding deposits that will help finance strategic moves.
The Raleigh-based bank said today it will assume approximately $5.7 billion in deposit liabilities and acquire about $1.1 billion in loans from Chicago’s BMO Bank, a Bank of Montreal subsidiary. Slated to close mid next year, the transaction adds to 19 acquisitions by First Citizens over the past decade.
The largest U.S. family-controlled bank is taking over locations in new and existing markets, adding to its network of more than 500 branches, with the most in North Carolina, South Carolina and California. Spanning the Midwest, Great Plains and the West, the BMO branches stretch from North Dakota to the north, Oklahoma to the south, Illinois to the east and Oregon to the west.
“This deposit franchise is solid,” First Citizens CEO Frank Holding Jr. said in the statement. The new deposits are “expected to enable us to further enhance our liquidity position and provide additional flexibility to support our strategic initiatives.”
The bank’s strategic efforts revolve around bolstering customer service, attracting, retaining and developing staff, improving operations and data infrastructure, and managing the balance sheet to improve liquidity, according to a securities filing.
First Citizens has made a habit of buying distressed banks since the real estate depression caused hundreds of bank failures 15 years ago. In 2023, First Citizens acquired the assets and liabilities of Silicon Valley Bank after it was seized by regulators following a run on the California bank.
First Citizens dates to 1898 when a group formed a bank in Smithfield in Johnston County. It took its current name in 1929, then acquired more than 20 N.C. banks and thrifts in the 1970s, ’80s and ’90s. Robert Holding, grandfather of the current CEO, joined the company in 1918.
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