Bank of Bolivar buys Village Bank branch

Pending regulatory approval, the 2920 E. Chestnut Expressway branch of Village Bank should take the Bank of Bolivar name early next year, according to Bank of Bolivar President Brad Gregory. Terms of the sale were not disclosed.

Bank of Bolivar opened its first and only Springfield location last fall in a shopping center across the street from Village Bank at 2945 E. Chestnut Expressway. Gregory said that location should stay in place after the switch but would focus solely on investment services.

Because it will have drive-through lanes, the added location will be Bank of Bolivar’s first full-service Springfield branch – and it likely won’t be the last.

“We’re going to concentrate on the Springfield market,” Gregory said, declining to name other possible locations. “A lot of (Bolivar) people are down there on a regular basis, and with our hospital and some of the industry we have here, we have people that drive from Springfield to Bolivar.”

Bank of Bolivar has about $180 million in assets.

Village Bank, meanwhile, has been looking to consolidate because of the current state of the market, President George Marino said, though no other specific plans are in place. Employees and customers at the East Chestnut Expressway location will move to Village Bank’s four other branches, he said.