DALLAS -- In a closely watched move, NationsBank Corp. has agreed to put 15 branches in Albertson's grocery stores in the Dallas-Fort Worth area by 1996.
With nearly 700 stores in 19 states, Boise-based Albertson's is an attractive partner for a bank looking to expand into the West and Southeast.
Rick Parsons, an exechtive vice president with NationsBank in Texas, said the venture is being monitored by executives of the Charlotte-based parent.
"We are looking at this as one of the ways of distributing our products that we might want to employ nationwide," said Mr. Parsons. "I don't see us doing anything wholesale across the country until we watch this develop ."
While the agreement opens the door for more in-store branches in Albertson's stores outside Dallas-Fort Worth, this type of branch will likely supplement any nationwide expansion, said Moshe Orenbuch, a bank analyst with Sanford C. Bernstein in New York.
"Consumers like to have some grocery store bruches for the convenience, but I'm not sure they want to have their bank headquartered there," Mr. Orenbuch said.
The agreement is a first for NationsBank. The company inherited eight in-store branches in Houston, where growing loan demand sparked interest in new branches.
"We have begun to understand which ae the best markets for instore banking," said Mr. Pasons. "Over time. we think grocery stores may become more synonymous with banking in this market than in other parts of the country."
