The parent company of the investment firm Sterne, Agee & Leach Inc. is planning to enter the banking business.
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Sterne, Agee Group Inc., of Birmingham, Ala., said Monday that it has agreed to buy a community bank.
It intends to file an application to become a financial holding company "as soon as possible." The company did not disclose the name, size or location of the bank it is acquiring, saying only that it is not in Alabama.
Jim Holbrook, Sterne Agee's chief executive, said in a press release that buying a bank is a "key component" of the company's long-term strategic plan. "The addition of a bank will greatly expand the products that Sterne Agee can offer its clients," he said.
