Associated Banc-Corp. of Green Bay, Wis., is wasting little time in bulking itself up to be one of the largest independent banks in the state.
Last week the $3.7 billion-asset bank company signed two deals to acquire institutions in south central Wisconsin. Associated now has three deals pending in the area, having signed a letter of intent with another bank late last year.
The three acquisitions would boost Associated's assets by 14%, to $4.2 billion, solidifying its position as the third-largest Wisconsin-based bank. The deals are expected to be closed in the first half of 1996.
"We identified the greater Madison area as a solid and attractive area, and one where we decided we'd like to be stronger," said Brian R. Bodager, general counsel for Associated. "So we placed some focus on opportunities there."
Associated's strongest presence is in its home area, northeastern Wisconsin, but it also has offices in Chicago, Madison, and Milwaukee.
The two recent targets are $145 million-asset F&M Bancshares of Reedsburg Inc., parent of Farmers and Merchants Bank, and $211 million- asset Greater Columbia Bancshares, which is the holding company for First National Bank of Portage.
Last November, Associated signed a deal to acquire SBL Capital Bank Shares and its $67 million-asset subsidiary, State Bank of Lodi.
All three banks are within a 20-mile radius just north of Madison. Though the deals are all stock swaps, Associated would not disclose their terms because the target banks are closely held.
"This is a very steady, consistent company, so I don't expect them to be $10 billion in assets four years from now, but they will be out there making acquisitions," said William W. McGinnis Jr., first vice president at Robert W. Baird & Co., in Milwaukee.
Associated will operate the institutions as separate subsidiaries, with their own chief executives and boards of directors. They will take the Associated name, however.
