By Elliott Brack, editor and publisher | A Peachtree Corners bank is expanding into three additional Northeast Georgia communities by acquiring the Mountain Valley Community Bank of Cleveland.
Brack
The Piedmont Bank, for which Piedmont Bancorp, Inc. is the holding company, has entered into an agreement with Mountain Valley Bancshares Inc., the holding company for Mountain Valley Community Bank, with a plan to merge the two companies. It is expected that the merger will be completed in the third quarter of 2017.
Following the merger, Mountain Valley Community Bank (MVCB) will continue to operate as a division of The Piedmont Bank. MVCB is headquartered in Cleveland, and has additional offices in Gainesville and Jefferson.
The Piedmont Bank has additional offices in Suwanee, Lawrenceville and Dunwoody, and loan production offices in Brookhaven and Cumming.
MVCB will add approximately $202 million in assets, $178 million in deposits and $107 million in gross loans to Piedmont’s operations. MVCB was founded in 2004 and has a strong deposit franchise, with core deposits representing 100 percent of total deposits and non-interest-bearing demand deposits representing 38 percent of total deposits. The composition of the MVCB loan portfolio is complementary to the Piedmont existing loan portfolio, bank officials say.
The Piedmont Bank as of December 31, 2016 had $552 million in assets and $487 million in deposits. It was founded in 2006 as Republic Bank, and became The Piedmont Bank when it was acquired by Piedmont Bancorp in 2009.
Watson
Monty Watson is chairman and CEO of The Piedmont Bank and says of the transaction: “We are very excited to announce our partnership with the Mountain Valley Community Bank. Its dedication to its customers and the communities it serves, along with its strong financial performance, made MVCB a natural partner. We are delighted to welcome MVCB customers and employees to The Piedmont Bank.”
Marc J. Green, the CEO of MVCB, will serve as the North Georgia Regional president and chief risk officer of The Piedmont Bank following the merger. He states: “We are excited to be joining the Piedmont team. It was of great importance to us to find a partner with strong values, clear strategic vision and financial strength. Our customers, employees and the communities we serve will all benefit from this transaction.”
The Piedmont Bank has 69 employees, while MVCB has 30 employees. Watson says that all employees will be retained in the merged operations.
The boards of both Piedmont and MVCB have approved the transaction, which is expected to close in the third quarter of 2017. It is subject to approval of MVCB shareholders, receipt of regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions.
MVCB was advised by the investment banking firm, The Burke Group, and the law firm of Miller and Martin, PLLC. Piedmont was advised by the investment banking firm Roger G. Powell, LLC, and represented by the law firm of Alston and Bird, LLP.
Piedmont directors include Paul Donaldson, Robert D. Cheeley, John J. Howard, Monty G. Watson, Robert J. Ratliff and T. Michael Tennant, while James E. Stephenson is an advisory director.
The two banks’ websites are www.piedmontbankonline.com, and www.mvcb.com.
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