-
Level One Bancorp in Farmington Hills, Mich., is applying its experience working on failed banks to buy and integrate one that is merely struggling. Patrick Fehring, the company's CEO, says that experience integrating failed banks has prepared Level One to buy the struggling Oxford Bank.
September 14 -
After two weeks without any failures, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. seized two small banks on Friday. The banks, with $365.3 million in combined assets, are expected to cost the Deposit Insurance Fund $113.1 million.
December 10
Oxford Bank in Michigan has terminated its planned sale to Level One Bancorp due to regulatory delays and an improvement in Oxford's financial condition.
Oxford's board voted to terminate the agreement on May 14, the $266 million-asset company disclosed. Under the merger agreement, either side had the right to cancel the deal if it had not closed by May 13. The $519 million-asset Level One in Farmington Hills, Mich.,
Oxford said that the uncertainty resulting from regulatory delays and restrictions in the merger agreement let directors to terminate the sale. The agreement "tied our hands to do the normal things we needed to do," James Bess, Oxford's chief executive,
Oxford also said that its improved financial performance prompted the termination. Oxford has not been well-capitalized since 2008 and had a Tier 1 capital ratio of 5.43% at March 31, but it earned $500,000 in the first quarter and $2.8 million last year.
Oxford would have been the third acquisition and first open-bank deal for Level One. The six-year-old bank has
Neither Level One nor Oxford Bank immediately responded to requests from American Banker for comment.
