Two Rhode Island thrifts, Newport Federal Savings Bank and Westerly Savings Bank, said Monday that they have merged to form a thrift with five branches and $263 million of assets.
The deal, announced this year, combined two of the state's oldest depository institutions; both were founded in 1888. Because both were also mutual savings banks, their combination was structured as a pooling-of-interests transaction, with no purchase price.
Westerly gave up its charter but will continue to use the Westerly name for now and will operate as a division of Newport Federal.
Nino Moscardi, who was Westerly's president and chief executive officer, said the new company is developing a name that is not tied to geography. He is now Newport's executive vice president and chief operating officer.
Westerly, which had $75 million of assets at the end of the third quarter, was finding it increasingly difficult to keep up with the growing administrative and regulatory burden it faced, Mr. Moscardi said.
"We just did not have the in-house staff to manage," he said.
Newport's president and chief executive, Kevin McCarthy, said in a press release that merging with Westerly would give his thrift access to attractive markets in southern Rhode Island and Connecticut. Westerly has no branches in Connecticut, but it makes commercial loans there.
