NorthWest Indiana Bancorp, Peoples Bank complete purchase of Illinois-based AJS Bancorp Inc. • Northwest Indiana Business Magazine
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NorthWest Indiana Bancorp, Peoples Bank complete purchase of Illinois-based AJS Bancorp Inc.

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Peoples BankNorthWest Indiana Bancorp of Munster, the parent of Peoples Bank SB, announced Jan. 24 it had completed its purchase of AJS Bancorp Inc. and its wholly-owned subsidiary, A.J. Smith Federal Savings Bank of Midlothian, Ill. in a stock and cash transaction.

The company announced the deal on July 31. A.J. Smith Federal Savings Bank operated one branch in Midlothian, Ill. and two in Orland Park, Ill.

“As we finalize the merger with A.J. Smith, Peoples Bank continues to fulfill our strategic vision,” said Benjamin Bochnowski, president and chief executive officer. “Our footprint has expanded to better serve the banking needs of south suburban Chicagoland and Northwest Indiana.”

He said many people commute daily across the state line and, as a community bank, Peoples Bank is positioned to help customers be more successful.

“That is our mission, and we are excited not just about growing, but about better serving our customers and our communities,” Bochnowski said.

This purchase followed Peoples Bank’s recent acquisition of First Personal Financial Corp. and its wholly-owned subsidiary, First Personal Bank of Orland Park, Ill. That purchase added three branches to Peoples Bank, which brought its total to 19 branches.

Under the terms of the merger, stockholders of AJS Bancorp who hold 100 or more shares of AJS Bancorp common stock will receive 0.2030 shares of NWIN’s common stock and $7.20 in cash for each share of AJS Bancorp common stock. Stockholders of AJS Bancorp holding less than 100 shares of AJS Bancorp common stock will receive $16 in cash and no stock consideration for each share of AJS Bancorp common stock.

NorthWest Indiana Bancorp now has approximately $1.2 billion in consolidated assets, $853 million in loans and $1.1 billion in deposits, following the completed deal. The acquisition deal also expands Peoples Bank’s retail banking network to 22 locations.

The integration of A.J. Smith into the Peoples Bank brand will be completed during the second quarter of 2019, the company said in a statement.

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