Peoples Bank and North Star Leasing Company announced North Star Leasing is now a division of Peoples Bank.
Founded in 1979 and located in Burlington, VT, North Star Leasing provides specialized lease solutions for vendors and commercial customers across numerous industries, including automotive, plumbing, healthcare, pet supply and foodservice. North Star Leasing works with more than 10,000 equipment vendors, manufacturers and resellers to help customers finance and access mission critical pieces of equipment they need to grow their businesses. With a portfolio ranked 119th by Monitor Daily, North Star Leasing has grown its originations 18 percent annually from 2014 to 2020. North Star Leasing has 42 employees.
Peoples Bank is the wholly owned subsidiary of Peoples Bancorp Inc., a diversified financial services holding company that makes available a complete line of banking, trust and investment, insurance and premium financing solutions through its subsidiaries. Peoples Bank has been headquartered in Marietta, OH, since 1902 and has an established heritage of financial stability, growth and community impact. Peoples had $4.8 billion in total assets as of Dec. 31, 2020, and 88 locations, including 76 full-service bank branches in Ohio, Kentucky and West Virginia.
“We are excited about North Star Leasing becoming part of Peoples Bank and our being able to offer equipment leasing to our commercial clients," said Chuck Sulerzyski, President and Chief Executive Officer of Peoples. "There's a strong team in place at North Star Leasing committed to serving clients and driving future growth. North Star Leasing’s culture and commitment to community is a natural fit with Peoples Bank.”
Dan Feeney, Chief Executive Officer of North Star Leasing, said, “We are thrilled to have the opportunity to join forces with one of the best community banks in America. We have an aggressive growth plan and being part of Peoples Bank will provide us with the opportunity to grow our business to new levels.”
The acquisition was effective Thursday, April 1 with North Star Leasing’s business operations remaining in Burlington, VT.