BB&T Corp.'s principal subsidiary, Branch Banking and Trust Co., said Thursday that it had agreed to buy the insurance premium finance company Afco Credit Corp. and its Canadian affiliate, Cafo Inc., from Mellon Financial Corp.
The deal's terms were not disclosed; it is expected to close in the first quarter.
"This acquisition is consistent with our announced strategy to add high quality, well-managed specialized lending businesses," BB&T chairman and chief executive officer John Allison said in a press release. The deal would move BB&T from ninth to second-largest among insurance premium lenders in the United States, the company said, and would make it the largest in Canada, where the Winston-Salem, N.C., bank has not previously done business in this line.
BB&T already operates a subsidiary, Prime Rate Premium Finance Corp. Inc., that will remain separate from Afco and Cafo, which will retain their brand names as a unit of BB&T's specialized lending division.
Daryl Zupan, the president of Afco and Cafo, and his senior management team are to continue overseeing the organization's 16 offices in the United States and Canada.
