Prosperity Bancshares closes one M&A deal, gets thumbs-up for another

January 9, 2026 4:00 PM

In this week's banking news roundup: Prosperity Bancshares finalized its purchase of American Bank Holding Corp. and secured regulatory approval to aquire Southwest Bancshares; PNC closed its acquisition of FirstBank Holding Company; BrightBridge Credit Union completed its merger with Arrha Credit Union; and more.

Texas bank closes one M&A deal, gets thumbs-up for another

Prosperity Bancshares, which last year announced two bank acquisitions in three months, has closed one and secured regulatory approval on the other.

On Jan. 1, the Houston-based parent company of Prosperity Bank finalized its $322 million purchase of American Bank Holding Corp. in Corpus Christi, Texas. This week, it received regulatory approval from the Federal Reserve Board to acquire San Antonio-based Southwest Bancshares, the parent company of Texas Partners Bank.

Both all-stock transactions will serve to bolster Prosperity's footprint in its home state. The acquisition of the $2.5 billion-asset American Bank, which was announced in mid-July, adds 18 branches and two loan production offices in Central and South Texas.

The pending purchase of the $2.4 billion-asset Southwest, announced in early October, is expected to add 11 branches in Central Texas. It is expected to close by the end of March.

Prosperity has about $38.4 billion of assets. In addition to Texas, it has locations in Oklahoma. After it acquires Southwest, its assets are expected to total $43.4 billion. —Allissa Kline

PNC closes acquisition of Colorado-based FirstBank

PNC Financial Services Group officially closed its acquisition of FirstBank Holding Company in Colorado, just under four months after announcing the merger agreement, the bank announced Monday.

The deal, which had been valued at $4.1 billion, dramatically scales the Pittsburgh-based company's presence in Colorado and Arizona.

"Today's legal close is more than a milestone, it's the beginning of a partnership built on shared values and a vision for growth," said PNC CEO Bill Demchak in a prepared statement.

PNC's purchase of the $26.8 billion asset FirstBank marks its first deal since 2021, when it bought BBVA USA in an effort to expand its footprint across the South and Southeast.

The $559 billion asset bank hasn't been shy about its ambitious growth goals. In November, PNC said it was once again boosting its organic growth strategy, with plans to spend $2 billion to add 300 new branches in major markets, largely across the South and Southeast. —Catherine Leffert

BrightBridge finalizes merger with Arrha

BrightBridge Credit Union has officially finalized its merger with Arrha Credit Union, the firms announced in a Jan. 5 press release. BrightBridge President and CEO John J. Howard will continue as president and CEO of the combined credit union, which will expand BrightBridge's footprint with 23 retail branches, combined assets of nearly $2.4 billion and approximately 125,000 members.

"This partnership brings together two strong, mission-driven credit unions that share a deep commitment to helping our members, our team and our communities thrive," Howard said in the release.

Mike Ostrowski, president and CEO of Arrha said the merger will strengthen "what we can offer our members today while positioning us to deliver even greater benefits for generations to come."

For the next eight months, Arrha's name will be Arrha Credit Union, a division of BrightBridge Credit Union. It is expected that Arrha will officially adopt the BrightBridge name and the branches will be rebranded to BrightBridge following a systems conversion in August 2026. —Editorial Staff

NAST announces new president and leadership for 2026

The National Association of State Treasurers welcomed its new leadership for 2026. Effective Jan. 1, Michigan Treasurer Rachael Eubanks, previously NAST's senior vice president, is the organization's new president. Indiana Treasurer Daniel Elliott is now senior vice president and Connecticut Treasurer Erick Russell is serving as secretary-treasurer.

"President Eubanks, Treasurer Elliott, and Treasurer Russell each bring outstanding experience, a strong record of service, and a deep commitment to bipartisan collaboration," Shaun Snyder, CEO of NAST, stated in a Tuesday press release.

The following treasurers are serving one-year terms on NAST's board of directors: Pennsylvania Treasurer Stacy Garrity will serve as Eastern vice president; Kansas State President Steven Johnson will serve as Midwestern vice president; Virginia Treasurer David Richardson will serve as Southern vice president; and New Mexico Treasurer Laura Montoya will serve as Western vice president.

NAST serves as the nation's foremost authority for responsible state treasury programs and related financial practices, policies and education.

JPMorgan wins gender pay gap dispute against London analyst

JPMorganChase won a London gender pay gap dispute lawsuit against one of its female analysts after a tribunal judge dismissed all claims against the investment bank.

Saidya Najeeb, who joined JPMorgan in March 2022, alleged that she was paid less than a male colleague doing the same job and faced retaliation when she raised the issue with management.

In a one-page judgment made public on Wednesday, the judge said that Najeeb's claims of unequal pay, direct sex discrimination and victimization were not "well-founded." No more details of the judge's reasoning were published.

The bank's lawyers previously denied the allegations and said that the difference in pay was due to industry background, skills and experience. A spokesperson for JPMorgan didn't immediately comment. Contact details for Najeeb, who represented herself at a November hearing, couldn't be found.

The average woman working in the U.K. financial sector earned about a fifth less than their male colleagues in 2024, according to a Bloomberg News analysis of government data. —Harry Black, Bloomberg News

BMO hires Trahan as new investment strategist after Belski departure

Bank of Montreal's capital markets unit has hired François Trahan as chief investment strategist, according to a person familiar with the matter.

Trahan replaces research veteran Brian Belski, who departed BMO Capital Markets last year to launch his own advisory firm, Humilis Investment Strategies.

Trahan holds over 25 years of experience in macroeconomic and equity research, with senior roles at firms including UBS and Cornerstone Macro, according to his LinkedIn profile. He's the founder of his own boutique firm, Trahan Macro Research, as well as The Macro Institute, a learning program for financial professionals.

BMO has expanded its global research platform over the past year, adding senior equity research analyst Brennan Hawken from UBS to cover brokers and asset managers, Sean Dodge from Royal Bank of Canada to cover health care technology and services, and Andrew Bauch from Wells Fargo to cover payments firms and fintech. —Stephanie Hughes, Bloomberg News

Wells Fargo hires credit-trading veteran McCarthy for key unit

Wells Fargo hired Danny McCarthy to oversee the credit franchise in its capital-markets business, bringing in an industry veteran to lead a key part of the largest revenue driver on its trading desk.

In his new position, McCarthy will oversee operations across investment-grade and high-yield cash bonds, institutional loans, credit derivatives and distressed credit, according to a memo from co-heads of Wells Fargo's markets business, Mike Riley and Dan Thomas. The credit business is part of the fixed-income, currencies and commodities unit, which accounted for more than 75% of the bank's markets business in the third quarter.

McCarthy will replace Thad Sharrett, who held the same role and retired in mid-December. McCarthy most recently oversaw sales, trading and strategy at Credit Suisse, where he managed teams across the U.S. and Europe and led platforms with substantial revenue and risk under management, according to the memo. —Yizhu Wang, Bloomberg News

Cerberus hires Deutsche Bank for Spain rental homes portfolio

Cerberus Capital Management has hired Deutsche Bank to broker the sale of a portfolio of rental homes in Spain, according to people familiar with the matter.

Bids are expected as soon as next month and the assets could be valued at about €600 million ($701 million) to €800 million, according to the people, who asked not to be named discussing the information because it's private. The U.S. investment firm is looking to sell some 3,300 homes through Project Gloria, as the deal is being called, according to marketing documents seen by Bloomberg.

Representatives for Cerberus and Deutsche Bank declined to comment.

About 77% of the homes are in Madrid, 16% in Valencia, and the rest are spread across Alicante, Málaga and Seville, according to the documents. The assets offer a "unique opportunity to invest in a residential rental portfolio concentrated in Madrid, hand-selected on a one-by-one basis in neighborhoods with strong demographics," according to the documents. —Jorge Zuloaga, Bloomberg News