NM-based MyBank acquired by United Business Bank

United Business Bank of Walnut Creek, Calif., has agreed to buy New Mexico-based MyBank, which has five branches in the state.

The $1.2 billion-asset UBB said in a press release Monday that it will pay $23.5 million in cash for the company, which was founded as The Bank of Belen in 1992. It changed its name to MyBank in 2006.

The community bank currently has branches in Belen, Rio Communities, Los Lunas, Albuquerque and Mountainair.

As of June 30, MyBank’s parent company had approximately $156 million in assets, $79 million in loans and $136 million in deposits.

United Bank, which already operates one commercial lending office on Mercantile NE in Albuquerque, expects the transaction to occur by the fourth quarter of this year.

At that point, UBB will have 14 locations in California, two in Washington state and six in New Mexico.

“I think it’s a very good match,” said Ed Robertson, president and CEO of MyBank, which has 54 employees who will join the new employer.

Robertson said the most upside about the merger to the business community will be on the commercial lending side.

“We’ve kept our maximum loans to about $2.5 million to $3 million,” Robertson said. “With this merger, the loan amounts will be much larger.”

“We are looking forward to having the MyBank team join the United Business Bank family,” George Guarini, president and CEO of UBB, said in a prepared statement.

“Ed Robertson and his team (have) built a solid franchise that we believe we can leverage with additional products, capital and increased lending limits. We look forward to serving MyBank’s clients.”