Fulton Financial (FULT) has acquired a minority stake in Bryn Mawr Bank (BMTC), the result of Bryn Mawr's largest shareholder liquidating its holding.
Fulton, a $16.3 billion-asset multi-bank holding company based in Lancaster, Pa., has acquired a 7.3% stake – or about 970,000 shares – in Bryn Mawr, according to documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission Tuesday. The purchase price was not included in the filing, but Bryn Mawr's shares have been trading between $20 and $23 over the last two months.
Ted Peters, Bryn Mawr's chairman and chief executive of Bryn Mawr, said in a Wednesday interview that Fulton acquired the stake solely for "investment purposes" and that the deal should not be seen as a prelude to an outright acquisition.
"Fulton is a great bank," Peters said. "I've already met with [Fulton Chairman and Chief Executive] Scott Smith and he thinks we'll be a survivor."
A Fulton spokeswoman could not immediately be reached for comment.
Fulton's acquired the shares from the Radnor Blind Trust, which had owned about 14% of Bryn Mawr as of March 30. Wellington Management acquired the second-largest stake from Radnor. A third acquirer of the remainder of Radnor's shares in Bryn Mawr has not yet been identified, Peters said.
Fulton is the holding company for five separate banks, including the $6.5 billion-asset Fulton Bank and the $1.4 billion-asset Lafayette Ambassador Bank of Bethlehem, Pa. Bryn Mawr is based in the Philadelphia suburb of Bryn Mawr and has $1.8 billion of assets.
Griffin Financial Group of Reading, Pa., advised Radnor on the sale of its Bryn Mawr shares, Peters said.
Be the first to comment on this post using the section below.