Business
Finward Bancorp and Royal Financial, Inc. Announce Receipt of Regulatory Approvals and Election Deadline
MUNSTER, Ind. and CHICAGO, Dec. 29, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Finward Bancorp (Nasdaq: FNWD) (the “Bancorp” or “Finward”), the holding company for Peoples
About this update from Finward Bancorp
[{"type":"text","content":"MUNSTER, Ind. and CHICAGO, Dec. 29, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Finward Bancorp (Nasdaq: FNWD) (the “Bancorp” or “Finward”), the holding company for Peoples Bank, and Royal Financial, Inc. (OTCQX: RYFL) (“Royal Financial”), the holding company for Royal Savings Bank, today jointly announced that the Indiana Department of Financial Institutions has approved the proposed merger of Royal Savings Bank with and into Peoples Bank. In addition, Finward previously received the approval of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation for the merger of Royal Savings Bank with and into Peoples Bank, and the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago previously approved Finward’s requested waiver from its application filing requirements. The Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation also has acknowledged receipt of all required notices, and has issued a letter of no objection to the establishment by Peoples Bank of foreign trust offices at the branches currently operated by Royal Savings Bank, in connection with the merger of Royal Savings Bank and Peoples Bank. As a result, all regulatory approvals necessary for the consummation of the merger of Royal Financial into Finward, and the merger of Royal Savings Bank into Peoples Bank, have now been received. “We are pleased to share the news that all appropriate bank regulators have approved the merger of Royal Savings Bank with Peoples Bank, and that we are on track to close the merger in January 2022,” said Benjamin J. Bochnowski, President and CEO of Finward. “With these approvals, we enter the new year on target to achieve key strategic milestones. Integration of our organizations is on track for early Q2 2022, as we create value for all of our stakeholders,” continued Bochnowski. Leonard S. Szwajkowski, President and Chief Executive Officer of Royal Financial, stated, “We are pleased that the stockholder and merger approvals are complete and that we can now concentrate fully on the integration to provide a full commercial banking experience to our customer base and communities. Throughout this merger process it has become even more clear we both share a cultural approach to community banking, focused on risk management and customer service.” The merger is expected to be completed at the end of January 2022 and remains subject to the satisfaction of various closing conditions. Additionall...