First Ohio changing name to FirstMerit Corp.

AKRON -- First Bancorporation of Ohio said Thursday it will change its corporate name to FirstMerit Corp. in the first quarter of 1995, pending shareholder approval.

The move signals that the bank intends to make further acquisitions outside the state of Ohio, particularly in the Midwest, said Dixie Vinez, the bank's advertising manager.

Earlier this year, First Ohio purchased a savings bank with $46 million of deposits in Clearwater, Fla., from the Resolution Trust Corp.

The bank also has a trust company in Florida, with offices in Fort Meyers and Naples, which it established in 1990. The bank'S new Nasdaq stock symbol will be FMER. It has assets of $4.8 billion.

-- Jacqueline S. Gold

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