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Old National is taking advantage of low interest rates by buying more than a dozen branches in solid real estate markets. An expected accounting rule change could encourage more banks to do the same.
October 23 -
Citigroup plans to shed 60 branches as part of its ongoing restructuring, a number of which are said to be in California. It shopped some of the California branches last year, and it may again try to sell some of them.
January 15 -
Webster Financial in Waterbury, Conn., has promoted its head of commercial banking to president of Webster Bank and its holding company.
October 29
Webster Financial has agreed to take over the leases of 14 Citigroup branches in the Boston area, which would more than triple its retail presence there.
The $24 billion-asset Webster will rebrand them as Webster Bank branches in mid-January, pending regulatory approval. Citigroup in September announced its
Financial terms of Webster's acquisition of the leasehold agreements were not disclosed. Webster will not acquire deposits or loans as part of the agreements. Webster expects the transaction to be modestly accretive to earnings next year, to break even in 2017 and to be accretive thereafter.
Webster will lease six branches in the city of Boston, two in Cambridge, and one each in Lexington, Newton, Burlington, Brookline, Needham and Wellesley.
Webster currently operates one branch in the city of Boston and four branches in the Boston suburbs. Webster opened its Boston office in 2009, in a building formerly occupied by the Boston Stock Exchange. The office held $548 million in deposits as of June 30, according to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.
