As part of an effort to expand into the Boston region, Webster Financial Corp. in Waterbury, Conn., has signed an automated teller machine branding agreement with Cardtronics Inc.
The banking company announced Tuesday that it would put the name of its Webster Bank retail unit on 158 Cardtronics ATMs in Walgreen's drugstores in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut.
The bank's name is fairly well known in western Connecticut and in New York's Westchester County, "but in Rhode Island and southeast Massachusetts, we're not as well recognized," Arthur House, a Webster spokesman, said in an interview Wednesday.
"We are trying to expand up toward Boston, and this is a great way to create brand awareness in that area," he said.
Several other banking companies have struck similar deals with Cardtronics in recent years, including JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Sovereign Bancorp Inc.
Observers say the strategy is a low-cost way for banks to expand their ATM presence and promote recognition in new markets.
The branding project is expected to be completed next quarter.
Cardtronics, of Houston, operates the nation's largest nonbank ATM network, with about 31,000 machines.
Mr. House said that Webster has 339 machines and the Cardtronics deal will add "significant volume."
