Citizens completes $3.5B acquisition of Investors

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Citizens Financial Group Inc. completed its acquisition of Investors Bancorp Inc., the buyer announced April 7.

As NJBIZ has reported, upon the completion of the transaction, Citizens will have a combined $214.9 billion in assets, making it the 17th-biggest U.S. lender. The deal was valued at $3.5 billion when it was announced in July 2021.

Citizens’ acquisition of Investors, headquartered in Short Hills — along with its purchase of HSBC’s East Coast branches and national online deposit business — builds on the financial institution’s physical presence in the Northeast with the addition of more than 200 branches in the greater New York City and Philadelphia metropolitan areas and across the Garden State.

“With the acquisitions of Investors and HSBC’s East Coast branches now complete, we look forward to bringing our new customers the full range of Citizens capabilities and building a formidable business in the important New York City metro region and New Jersey markets,” Bruce Van Saun, Citizens chairman and CEO, said in a statement. “We are pleased to welcome more than 1,600 Investors colleagues to the Citizens family. Together we will drive future growth and deliver long-term value for all our stakeholders.”

Investors has been merged with Citizens, with Citizens as the surviving corporation, and Investors Bank, a state-chartered bank and wholly owned subsidiary of Investors, has been merged with Citizens Bank NA with CBNA as the surviving bank.

Kevin Cummings, the former chairman and CEO of Investors, and Michele Siekerka, who previously served as directors of Investors, will serve on Citizens’ and CBNA’s boards.

The anticipated conversion of customers’ accounts to Citizens is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2023. Until then, customers will continue to be served through their respective Citizens and Investors branches, websites and mobile applications.