Overview

The BFKN Financial Institutions Group served as legal counsel to each of CBI Bank & Trust ("CBI") and Bank of Pontiac, in their acquisition agreements with Farmers-Merchants Bank of Illinois (“Farmers-Merchants”), whereby CBI will acquire Farmers-Merchants’ branch located in Joy, Illinois, and Bank of Pontiac will acquire Farmers-Merchants’ branches located in Paxton, Melvin, and Piper City, Illinois.

“We believe this transaction will be beneficial to both Farmers-Merchants and Merchants Bancorp by allowing Merchants Bancorp to focus on its core business of single and multi-family mortgage lending,” said Michael Petrie, Chairman of Merchants Bancorp. “The agreement strategically aligns Farmers-Merchants with institutions that share a similar business model and will provide Farmers-Merchants the ability to offer additional products to its customers. Both Bank of Pontiac and CBI Bank & Trust, like Farmers-Merchants, are deeply rooted in similar communities and share a strong commitment to serving their local markets. Farmers-Merchants and its employees have played a valuable role in Merchants Bancorp’s success and they will continue to thrive with their new partners.”

In addition to the branches, Bank of Pontiac will acquire approximately $157 million in deposits and $22 million in loans, and CBI will acquire approximately $62 million in deposits and $27 million in loans from Farmers-Merchants.

BFKN’s legal team was led by partner Abdul R. Mitha and associate Zoe Xiuha Uvin. Executive compensation & benefits were handled by partner Andrew K. Strimaitis.

To read more about this announced merger transaction, visit:

Jump to Page

Barack Ferrazzano Kirschbaum & Nagelberg LLP Cookie Preference Center

Strictly Necessary Cookies

Always Active

Necessary cookies enable core functionality such as security, network management, and accessibility. These cookies may only be disabled by changing your browser settings, but this may affect how the website functions.

Functional Cookies

Always Active

Some functions of the site require remembering user choices, for example your cookie preference, or keyword search highlighting. These do not store any personal information.

Form Submissions

Always Active

When submitting your data, for example on a contact form or event registration, a cookie might be used to monitor the state of your submission across pages.

Analytical Cookies

Analytical cookies help us improve our website by collecting and reporting information on its usage. We access and process information from these cookies at an aggregate level.

Powered by Firmseek