Investor group to buy correspondent bank in Maryland

An investor group has agreed to buy Maryland Financial Bank in Towson, Md.

MFB Acquisition said in a press release Friday that it will pay an undisclosed amount of cash for the $64 million-asset correspondent bank. The deal is expected to close in the second or third quarter.

Maryland Financial will keep its name, though MFB Acquisition said it will expand the bank's products and services. The companies said in the release that the sale should expand Maryland Financial’s capital, lending limit, capacity for loan participations and the staff quality.

Marcelo Sacomori, a managing director at global payments firm MSBB Money in London, and F. Eduardo Parreira, managing director at consulting firm Accelera, are the principals behind MFB Acquisition.

Bob Chafey, Maryland Financial’s president and CEO, and Rick Hook, the bank’s chairman, said in the release that they have known Sacomori and Parreira for “many years” and have “always been intrigued about the possibility of combining our domestic capabilities with international expertise.”

Maryland Financial has “the business model of a bankers’ bank, which fits perfectly with our goals to work in the community banking sector and to quickly pursue our agenda of being a premier international correspondent banking organization,” Sacomori said.

All of Maryland Financial’s directors will keep their posts, while Sacomori and Parreira will join the board. Maryland Financial’s directors have agreed to back the sale, and the holder of bank’s preferred stock has agreed to sell those shares.

Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell & Berkowitz provided legal counsel to MFB Acquisition, while Opencap Global and Kafafian Group provided certain financial advice. Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton acted as legal counsel to Maryland Financial; Olsen Palmer was the financial adviser.

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