A western Pennsylvania banking company seeking to expand in Ohio is buying 13 FirstMerit branches in Stark and Ashtabula counties.
First Commonwealth Financial Corp., headquartered in Indiana, Pa., will buy all of the branches FirstMerit must divest from ahead of its upcoming purchase by Huntington Bancshares Inc.
The acquisitions will make First Commonwealth Bank the largest community bank in the Canton area based on deposits and the third largest overall in that market behind the combined Huntington/FirstMerit and second-place JPMorgan.
The 13 FirstMerit branches have $735 million in total deposits and $115 million in total loans as of May 31, FirstMerit and Huntington said in a prepared statement Wednesday. Eleven of the branches are in Stark County, with two in Ashtabula County.
“It does fit into our Ohio strategy very well,” said Jim Reske, chief financial officer for First Commonwealth. “Ohio markets are very similar to Pennsylvania markets. It’s a very natural extension for us.”
First Commonwealth has been doing business for several years in Ohio, said Jane Grebenc, president of First Commonwealth Bank. She is an Ohio native and previously worked for National City in Cleveland.
“We like these markets,” Grebenc said. “We think we understand Ohio pretty well.”
First Commonwealth’s strategy is to grow through acquisitions rather than focusing building branches in new markets, she said.
First Commonwealth has a corporate banking center in the Cleveland area and mortgage offices in Stow and in Dublin, outside Columbus.
First Commonwealth intends to retain all of the approximately 80 employees at the FirstMerit branches it is buying, Grebenc said. She said her bank will offer customers a more personal experience than their larger competitors.
First Commonwealth has $6.7 billion in total assets and 109 banking offices in 17 counties in western and central Pennsylvania and also central Ohio. In Ohio, First Commonwealth will have 107 employees, $680 million in loans, $827 million in deposits in Ohio and 17 branches once the FirstMerit acquisitions close. First Commonwealth last year also bought First Community Bank in Columbus.
Akron-based FirstMerit must sell the branches under an agreement reached with the U.S. Department of Justice prior to being bought by Columbus-based Huntington.
FirstMerit and First Commonwealth will provide additional information to customers of the branches slated for sale. Branch conversions likely will be completed the last three months of this year.
Beacon Journal business writer Katie Byard contributed to this story. Jim Mackinnon can be reached at 330-996-3544 or jmackinnon@thebeaconjournal.com. Follow him @JimMackinnonABJ on Twitter or www.facebook.com/JimMackinnonABJ