Sterling Financial Rebrands Calif. Branches as Argent Bank

By Chris Cumming September 23, 2013, 11:43 a.m. EDT 1 Min Read

Community banking

Why Two Names Are Better Than Three for Sterling Financial

The Spokane, Wash., bank could not rename its two retail operations in California "Sterling" because of legal matters, so executives turned to their French-English dictionary for a unique substitute: "Argent."

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M&A

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Umpqua Holdings' agreement to buy Sterling Financial is the latest in a series of deals this year to pair similarly sized banks, creating a new crop of midsize financial institutions.

By Robert Barba

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M&A

Sterling Financial Illustrates PE's Multiple Routes for Bank Exits

The decision by private-equity backers of Sterling Financial to push for a sale of the entire Spokane company, rather than to merely unload their shares, surprised investors. It also showed that investor exits are a complex business which often defy expectations.

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M&A

Umpqua, Sterling Set $75M Termination Fee for Deal

Umpqua Holdings in Portland, Ore., and Sterling Financial in Spokane, Wash., have set a $75 million penalty for terminating their planned merger.

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September 18

Sterling Financial (STSA) in Spokane, Wash., has gone ahead with rebranding its California operations as Argent Bank despite its recent merger announcement.

The $9.9 billion-asset Sterling unified the operations of its two California units under the Argent brand on Monday. Previously its Northern California branches operated as Sonoma Bank and its San Diego-area branches bore the name Borrego Springs Bank.

Sterling had announced the rebranding plan for California last month as part of a long-term operational and marketing makeover. Then this month Umpqua Holdings (UMPQ) in Portland, Ore., agreed to pay $2 billion to acquire Sterling. The deal, which is set to close in the first half of 2014, would create a $22 billion-asset regional lender.

Sterling has two regional brands at present: Sterling Bank in Washington, Oregon and Idaho and Argent Bank in California. It had said it cannot use the Sterling name in California because of a dispute with another bank.

"We are pleased to unite all of our California banking operations under Argent Bank," David DePillo, the vice chairman of Sterling Financial, said in a news release. "With 16 locations in the state, a consistent, cohesive identity was vital in helping our teams to best deliver financial solutions to California customers."

Chris Cumming