Freedom Bank of Virginia Establishing M&A Advisory Unit

The Freedom Bank of Virginia is planning to cash in on the anticipated consolidation of government contractors.

The Fairfax, Va., bank intends to form a new unit, FBV Advisors, that will specialize on advising local government contractors on mergers and acquisitions, the Washington Business Journal reported Tuesday. The bank plans to submit its broker-dealer application to the Financial Institutions Regulatory Authority this month, and expects the approval process to take four months, according to the report.

"Now we can handle government contractors from cradle to grave. We can help them launch and help them when they want to cash out," Freedom Bank President and Chief Executive Craig Underhill told the Business Journal.

Federal budget cuts are expected to spur consolidation among government contractors.

The M&A arm of the $238 million-asset Freedom Bank will target local government contractors with annual revenue between $10 million and $40 million. Rob Rubin will be president of the new FBV Advisors. Rubin has over 30 years' experience as an investment banker, most recently with JPB Partners in Columbia, Md.