Wintrust Financial has signed a definitive agreement to acquire STC Bancshares, the parent company of STC Capital Bank, an Illinois-based chartered bank, for $47.7m (£38m).

Wintrust

Image: Wintrust Financial to acquire STC Capital Bank. Photo: Courtesy of rawpixel/Pixabay

STC Capital Bank operates from five banking offices located in the communities of St. Charles, Geneva and South Elgin, Illinois. As of 31 March 2019, the bank has nearly $277m (£218m) in assets, about $204m (£161m) in loans and about $246m (£194m) in deposits.

Wintrust president and CEO Edward Wehmer said: “This transaction is a great opportunity to expand and complement our market presence in the western suburbs of the Chicago metropolitan area.

“STC Capital Bank has a wonderful reputation for providing outstanding customer service using a community banking approach.

“We look forward to continuing that tradition and to providing its customers with an expanded array of products, services and resources.”

The deal is expected to be closed in the third quarter of this year, subject to approval by banking regulators and STC’s shareholders and other closing conditions. Wintrust Financial stated that this merger will not have an effect on its present year’s earnings per share.

STC Capital Bank chairman Anthony Sisto said: “We are excited about the opportunity to combine resources with Wintrust. It makes sense in the evolution of our company to partner with a financial organization that is similarly-minded in their philosophy of offering highly personalized customer-oriented banking services with financial capabilities to support further expansion.”

STC president Christopher Woelffer said: “By joining forces with Wintrust, STC Capital Bank’s customers will not only retain very high levels of customer service but will also gain access to a wider range of products and services.

“We clearly see benefits for our customers, shareholders and employees and we look forward to joining the Wintrust family.”

Wintrust owns 15 chartered community banks in Northern Illinois and Southern Wisconsin, operating through 160 banking locations. The bank has assets worth nearly $32bn (£25bn).

Additionally, the company operates non-bank business units which provide commercial and life insurance premium financing in the US and a premium finance company in Canada.