BMO Financial Group and its indirect wholly-owned Chicago-based subsidiary, BMO Harris Bank N.A., today signed a definitive agreement with BNP Paribas to acquire Bank of the West and its subsidiaries, with assets as of Sept. 30 of approximately $105 billion. This acquisition aligns with BMO’s strategic, financial and cultural objectives, the company said.
Under the terms of the agreement, BMO will acquire Bank of the West for a cash purchase price of $16.3 billion, or $13.4 billion net of estimated $2.9 billion of excess capital (at closing) at Bank of the West. BMO will fund the transaction primarily with excess capital reflecting its strong capital position and anticipated capital generation.
Founded in 1874, Bank of the West has a strong track record of serving retail, small business, commercial and wealth clients. It has also been one of the largest providers of floor plan financing for RV dealers.
With the combination of two highly complementary geographies and building upon BMO’s digital, data and analytics capabilities, this acquisition enables contiguous market extension, the acceleration of BMO’s commercial banking expansion, and highly competitive scaled entry into California, the company said.
On closing, the acquisition will bring nearly 1.8 million customers to BMO and will further extend its banking presence through 514 additional branches and commercial and wealth offices in key U.S. growth markets. Post closing, BMO will have a strong position in three of the top five U.S. markets, a footprint in 32 states, expanded national specialty commercial businesses and a digital banking platform gathering deposits in all 50 states.
“On behalf of all of my colleagues at Bank of the West, I am excited for what this new opportunity will bring for our customers, our employees and our longstanding community partners,” said Bank of the West CEO Nandita Bakhshi. “Bank of the West’s presence in many of the largest and fastest growing markets in the U.S. provides an ideal and complementary commercial and retail banking platform to fuel BMO’s growth. Combined with BMO’s suite of products and capabilities we’ll be able to help even more customers achieve real financial progress. Our team of dedicated commercial and business bankers will be a great fit with BMO, working on creative solutions to match individual needs.”