In good times and in bad, mergers and acquisitions can lead to increased shareholder value. While we may all agree with this premise, care must be taken to analyze your strategic objectives and find transaction candidates that are a good fit for your long-term organizational goals.

Several types of transactions are available in today’s market including:

• Failed institution acquired from the FDIC
• Distressed banks seeking additional capital or those hoping to partner with a stronger entity
• Healthy banks that are in sound financial shape, but wish to expand their market reach
• Portfolio or department purchases with banks that have decided to exit a product or service line.

If your bank is contemplating a merger, acquisition or portfolio/department purchase, the first place to begin is by defining your overall strategic objectives and tolerance for risk. Key members of senior management and members of the board of directors should be gathered to discuss financial, geographic and cultural attributes of a transaction candidate that when added to your organization will create additional shareholder value. This process goes beyond basic financial analysis and allows your organization to narrow the field of candidates to those best suited to your long-term goals and objectives.

Don’t go it alone. While your internal management team may be very good at performing their current duties, they may not have the time or experience necessary to execute on all aspects of a due diligence project. CCG Catalyst professionals have unique specialization including accounting, risk management, internal audit and credit reviews. Proper leverage with CCG Catalyst professionals can allow your management team to focus on the big picture strategic issues associated with the transaction and allow outside specialists to perform the heavy lifting.

Benefit

When contemplating a merger, acquisition or portfolio purchase, strategic objectives should be defined in advance along with your tolerance for risk. Partnering with CCG Catalyst will get you ahead of the curve.x