"Joining forces:" Associated Bank-Corp acquires Bank Mutual Corp. for approximately $482M

MILWAUKEE -- Associated Bank-Corp has acquired Bank Mutual Corporation for approximately $482 million.

The merger was announced Thursday, July 20th.

According to a press release, Bank Mutual's bank subsidiary will also merge with and into Associated's bank subsidiary, Associated Bank, N.A.

Associated and Bank Mutual have served Wisconsin for 156 and 125 years, respectively.

According to the release, based in Green Bay, Associated Bank N.A. is the largest bank headquartered in Wisconsin. It serves more than one million customers in 100 communities across eight states. Bank Mutual is the holding company for the largest Milwaukee-based bank. It serves more than 120,000 customer accounts through banking locations in Wisconsin and Minnesota.

As a result of this transaction, Associated will strengthen its Wisconsin network and expand services into nearly a dozen additional communities.

"We have deep respect for Bank Mutual and its dedicated team of colleagues. Both of our organizations are built around customer-centric strategies and understand the importance of delivering increasing value to customers, colleagues, communities and shareholders," said Associated president and CEO Philip B. Flynn in the release. "The acquisition of Bank Mutual provides significant opportunity to increase our Wisconsin presence and improve the scale of our operations. Ultimately, this positions us to gain efficiencies while also making investments to better support the customer experience."

"I am confident the merger will benefit our customers and the communities we serve," said Bank Mutual president and CEO David Baumgarten in the release. "In addition, Bank Mutual shareholders should benefit from Associated's strong and consistent financial performance and the potential growth opportunities going forward."