It’s been a year of expansion for Flagstar Bank.
Earlier this year, the company acquired Stearns Lending’s delegated correspondent lending business. And in May, Flagstar closed on its acquisition of “certain assets” of Opes Advisors, a full-service mortgage bank and financial advisory firm.
The Opes Advisors acquisition positioned Flagstar to grow its lending business in the Western part of the U.S., and now, the company is making another move to grow its business on the west coast.
Flagstar announced Monday that it reached a definitive agreement to acquire eight Desert Community Bank branches in San Bernardino County, Calif., from East West Bank.
According to Flagstar, the branches have approximately $600 million in deposits and $70 million in loans. Flagstar said that “certain related assets” were also included in the deal.
In a release, the company said that the acquisition fits into the company’s strategic goal of acquiring deposit franchises to fund loan growth.
“I would like to welcome the Desert Community team to the Flagstar family. We’ve been looking to acquire a high-quality deposit franchise, but they've been difficult to find. The Desert Community branches fit the bill,” Alessandro DiNello, president and chief executive officer of Flagstar Bancorp, said.
“The acquisition provides low-cost, stable funding to continue growing our balance sheet. It also combines a successful deposit franchise with a significant Flagstar presence already on the West Coast, including our Opes Advisors division and warehouse lending and home builder financing activities,” DiNello added.
“Expanding our deposit franchise into California made a lot of sense because it's a state where we already do significant business,” DiNello concluded. “We look forward to expanding our franchise in California and serving the needs of the local community.”
According to Flagstar, the deal is subject to regulatory approval and customary closing conditions, and is expected to close in the first half of 2018.
Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
