CIT to acquire Mutual of Omaha Bank in $1 billion deal

- Extends middle market commercial banking capabilities with expanded products, technology solutions and geographic footprint

- Advances strategic plan and accelerates shareholder value creation

NEW YORK, Aug. 13, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- 

Retail banking major CIT Group Inc on Tuesday announced the signing of a definitive agreement with Mutual of Omaha under which CIT's banking subsidiary, CIT Bank NA, will acquire Mutual's savings bank subsidiary, Mutual of Omaha Bank, for a purchase price of $1 billion. 

The purchase price will comprise primarily of cash and up to $150 million of CIT common stock, the amount of which will be determined by CIT. The transaction will diversify and enhance CIT's funding profile with stable, lower-cost deposits from Mutual of Omaha Bank's market-leading homeowner's association (HOA) banking business, CIT stated in a release. 

In addition, it will advance CIT's strategic plan, extend its commercial banking capabilities and enhance profitability, the release stated.

The transaction includes $6.8 billion in deposits, $4.5 billion of which are HOA deposits from more than 31,000 community associations nationwide, and $2.3 billion of which are from commercial and consumer financial centres in key markets. In addition, $8.3 billion of total assets, including $3.9 billion of middle-market commercial loans, are part of the transaction, which adds to CIT's growing franchise. On a pro forma basis, CIT will have approximately $42.1 billion of total deposits and $58.9 billion of total assets.   

"Following our multi-year strategic transformation, we entered the next phase of our plan focused on thoughtful growth and value creation. This transaction squarely aligns to those goals by immediately enhancing our deposit and commercial banking capabilities and improving our profitability. This is a unique opportunity to accelerate our strategic plan through the addition of a market-leading HOA deposit franchise, a broader set of product and technology solutions and an expanded business footprint that complements CIT's existing franchise,"  CIT chairwoman and chief executive officer Ellen R. Alemany, said. 

"Mutual of Omaha Bank has a talented and dedicated team that built a successful, vibrant institution. The integration of Mutual of Omaha Bank into CIT creates great opportunity to leverage the strengths of both institutions," said Mutual of Omaha chairman and CEO James Blackledge. "This transaction allows Mutual of Omaha to focus on, and invest in, growth in its core insurance businesses."

The acquisition will accelerate the next phase of CIT's strategic plan and complement the company's focus on serving small and midsized businesses with thoughtful solutions, competitive financing and deposit products. The HOA business offers a national, highly scalable deposit channel with a strong market presence and differentiated technology-enabled solutions. The commercial banking business and financial centres add additional talent and expertise in key metro markets that supplement CIT's presence, it added. 

The transaction is expected to improve CIT's deposit costs by approximately 20 basis points upon closing. The company's return on tangible common equity ratio is expected to be enhanced by 80 basis points in 2020 and increase to more than 100 basis points over two years. The transaction is expected to be accretive to 2020 estimated earnings per share (EPS) by 2 per cent, based on CIT's consensus estimate with cost savings fully phased in, and EPS accretion is expected to grow to double-digits over time.

The transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of 2020, subject to regulatory approval and satisfaction of other customary closing conditions. The agreement excludes Mutual's mortgage subsidiary, Synergy One Lending.

JP Morgan Securities LLC served as lead financial advisor to CIT and rendered a fairness opinion to the CIT board of directors. Evercore also served as a financial advisor, and Sullivan and Cromwell LLP served as legal advisor to CIT. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods, a Stifel Company, served as financial advisor and Squire Patton Boggs served as legal advisor for Mutual of Omaha.