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Arvest finalizes Bear State buyout

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Arvest Bank completed its $391 million acquisition of Little Rock, Arkansas-based Bear State Financial Inc. (Nasdaq: BSF).

Arvest announced the finalized purchase on April 20, capping eight months of regulatory and antitrust approvals, according to a news release.

The buyout more than doubles Arvest’s deposit market share across the five-county Springfield metropolitan statistical area. Arvest had $125 million in deposits, or 1.3 percent of the Springfield MSA market share, as of June 30, 2017, the most recent data from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Bear State had $208.2 million, or 2.1 percent of the market. Arvest also added six Bear State branches in the MSA, bringing its total to 12 in the five-county area, according to the June 30 FDIC data. Bear State operates three branches in Springfield, as well as another in nearby Nixa, according to its website.

Systemwide, Arvest increased its assets to $18.8 billion and its deposits to $15.9 billion with the purchase of Bear State Bank. The deal also added new markets for Arvest, bringing its total to more than 135 markets in Arkansas, Missouri, Kansas and Oklahoma, according to the release.

“We have expressed from the beginning of this acquisition how excited we are to add these desirable communities to our footprint,” said Jason Kincy, Arvest marketing director, in the release. “Now, we will start working together to combine the two companies to benefit our customers and the communities we serve.”

Bear State branches will continue to operate under that moniker until this fall, when its branches, accounts and operations will transition to Arvest.

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