Under the terms of agreement, AmericanWest’s holding company will merge with and into Banner and AmericanWest Bank will merge with and into Banner Bank.
Scheduled to operate under the Banner Bank brand, the combined company will be a super community bank with more than $9.7bn in assets, $6.8bn in loans, $7.9bn in deposits, as well as approximately 190 branches across five western states.
Banner president and chief executive officer Mark Grescovich said: We expect this merger to provide significant benefits to our expanded group of clients, communities, shareholders, and employees.
"Together, we will have the opportunity to deploy our super community bank model throughout a strengthened presence in Washington, Oregon and Idaho and into attractive growth markets in California and Utah."
AmericanWest Bank Chairman and chief executive officer Scott Kisting said: "The merger will also allow us to leverage our collective financial strength to further expand product offerings and technology solutions, while remaining actively involved in the communities we serve."
Grescovich will continue to lead Banner after the merger, and five AmericanWest representatives will join the Banner board of directors, increasing the total number of directors to 17.
Subject to approval by Banner’s shareholders and regulatory agencies as well as other customary closing conditions, the transaction is expected to close during the second quarter of 2015.
Image: Banner Bank is acquiring AmericanWest Bank for $702m. Photo: Steve Morgan.
