Southern Missouri Bancorp, Inc., parent company of Southern Bank, in Poplar Bluff, MO, announced its merger with Citizens Bancshares Co., Kansas City, MO, was completed. Citizens was the parent company of Citizens Bank & Trust Company, which has become a subsidiary of Southern Missouri effective with the closing of the merger.
Following the completion of the merger, Southern Missouri now operates 65 banking facilities in Missouri, Kansas, Illinois and Arkansas. Greg Steffens, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Southern Missouri, said, “We are very pleased to welcome the team members and valued customers of Citizens Bank & Trust Company to our Southern Bank family. We are looking forward to participating in the continued growth of the excellent communities they call home, including the Kansas City metropolitan area, and Citizens’ strong core deposit base will be a meaningful addition to our funding mix.”
In conjunction with the merger, William Young, President of Citizens Bank & Trust Company, has joined the boards of directors of Southern Missouri and Southern Bank. “We at Citizens are pleased and excited to become a part of the Southern Bank family and the team here looks forward to serving our customers with the advantage of their size, number of branches, and diverse package of products and services to offer our clients. At the same time, our merger will allow Southern Bank to offer trust services to their existing customer base, and significantly grow their wealth management group. I am excited about joining the Board of Directors of Southern Missouri Bancorp and Southern Bank,” said Young.
As a result of the merger, each share of Citizens common stock held immediately prior to completion of the merger is being exchanged for 1.1755 shares of Southern Missouri common stock or $54.93 in cash (as adjusted based on Citizens’ capital and the total number of shares outstanding immediately prior to closing) at the election of the shareholders, subject to the proration and allocation procedures set forth in the merger agreement. Cash will be paid in lieu of any fractional shares of Southern Missouri common stock. Southern Missouri paid approximately $131.4 million in merger consideration, comprised of stock and cash at a 74:26 ratio.
On Dec. 31, 2022, Citizens reported total consolidated assets of $973 million, including loans, net, of $463 million, and deposits of $838 million. On a pro forma basis, the combined entity will hold assets of approximately $4.4 billion, including loans, net, of $3.4 billion, and deposits of $3.8 billion.
The firm of Stinson LLP served as legal advisor to Citizens, while Silver, Freedman, Taff & Tiernan LLP served as legal advisor to Southern Missouri. D.A. Davidson served as financial advisor to Citizens and Piper Sandler served as financial advisor to Southern Missouri.