Peoples Bank Acquisition Complete

NorthWest Indiana Bancorp is the parent of Peoples Bank. (photo courtesy of our partners at The Times of Northwest Indiana)

Munster-based NorthWest Indiana Bancorp has completed its $15 million acquisition of First Personal Financial Corp. in Illinois. The parent of Peoples Bank SB says the deal brings the number of full-service bank branches under its umbrella to 19.

The acquisition was first announced in February. First Personal Financial Corp. is the parent of First Personal Bank, which NWIN says will be integrated into the Peoples Bank brand. That effort is expected to be complete during the third quarter of 2018.

"Closing on this acquisition represents an important strategic step for Peoples Bank as we enter the South Suburban Chicagoland market," said Benjamin Bochnowski, chief executive officer of NWIN. "I look forward to working with Randy Schwartz, president and chief executive officer of First Personal Bank, as he joins the Peoples team and helps us continue to create value for all of our stakeholders. The combined organization remains committed to building strong customer relationships and helping the customers and communities we serve be more successful."

Schwartz will take on the new role of Chicagoland Market President at Peoples. As a result of the deal, Peoples Bank will have approximately $1.1 billion in assets, $745 million in loans and $948 million in deposits.