Paris, Tennessee bank merges with Renasant in $142M deal. Published on October 28, 2026 Commercial Bank & Trust Company, a West Tennessee lender chartered in 1877, is merging into Renasant Bank under a deal announced Tuesday that will fold nine branches across Paris, Union City, Jackson and Memphis into a Southeastern banking franchise with roughly $28.6 billion in total assets once the transaction closes. Renasant Corporation and Commercial Holding Company, the Paris, Tennessee-based parent of Commercial Bank, jointly announced the definitive merger agreement on Tuesday, according to Renasant Corporation. Under the terms, Commercial shareholders will receive 0.8798 shares of Renasant common stock for every share of Commercial common stock they hold, adding up to approximately 2.64 million Renasant shares in aggregate, as first reported by Radio NWTN. Before the deal closes, Commercial will pay its shareholders a special cash dividend of approximately $35.7 million. Combined with the stock consideration, the deal carries an aggregate transaction value of approximately $142 million, based on Renasant's 10-day average closing price of $40.29 as of October 26, per the companies' statement. The merger has already won unanimous approval from both companies' boards of directors, though it still requires customary closing conditions, regulatory sign-off and approval from Commercial shareholders before it can close in the first quarter of 2027. A 149-year-old West Tennessee institution changes hands. Commercial Bank has operated in West Tennessee since it was chartered in 1877, running nine full-service branches in Paris, Union City, Jackson and Memphis. As of September 30, the bank reported approximately $1.1 billion in total assets, $648 million in total loans and $983 million in total deposits, with its trust and wealth management arm managing roughly $1.2 billion in assets. Immediately after the parent-company merger closes, Commercial Bank will merge directly into Renasant Bank, a 122-year-old institution that is itself the banking subsidiary of Renasant Corporation, which trades under the ticker RNST and currently holds about $27.5 billion in assets across 278 banking, lending, mortgage and wealth management offices throughout the Southeast. Roy Molitor "Mott" Ford Jr., Commercial's chairman and chief executive officer, is expected to join Renasant in a market executive role once the deal closes. Ford said Renasant was the right partner for Commercial's shareholders, associates and customers, pointing to shared culture and capabilities between the two companies. Kevin Chapman, Renasant's president and CEO, said the partnership strengthens Renasant's presence in Memphis and brings long-tenured deposit and wealth relationships across West Tennessee, adding that Renasant looks forward to welcoming Commercial's employees, customers and shareholders and building on the foundation Ford and his team established. What the combined franchise will look like. Once the merger closes, the combined company is expected to carry approximately $28.6 billion in total assets, $20.4 billion in total loans and $22.6 billion in total deposits, creating a larger Southeastern banking franchise. In Tennessee specifically, the combined operation will run 28 branches holding approximately $2.6 billion in deposits. Renasant also offers factoring and asset-based lending nationwide, a service line that extends beyond its traditional Southeastern branch footprint. On the advisory side, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods, a Stifel company, is serving as Renasant's exclusive financial advisor and rendered a fairness opinion to its board, while Phelps Dunbar LLP is acting as Renasant's legal advisor. Commercial, meanwhile, retained Olsen Palmer LLC as its exclusive financial advisor, which also rendered a fairness opinion to Commercial's board, with Alston & Bird LLP serving as Commercial's legal counsel. Deal details head to Renasant's earnings call. Renasant plans to discuss the merger further during its third-quarter 2026 earnings webcast and conference call with analysts, scheduled for Wednesday at 10:00 a.m. Eastern time. The company will also furnish an investor presentation as an exhibit to a current report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, with that presentation set to be posted on Renasant.com under the News & Market Data tab. The webcast will be archived on Renasant's site and is accessible through the company's investor relations website after the live call concludes. Tennessee's community-bank sector has seen similar consolidation elsewhere in the state recently; in September, U Bancshares in Huntington, Kentucky agreed to buy Heritage Community Bank in Burlington, Kentucky, according to the ABA Banking Journal. Separately, the FDIC has issued a notice of proposed rulemaking aimed at modernizing how it reviews bank mergers under the Bank Merger Act, according to the FDIC.

Southern Miss plans $25 million renovation and expansion of 42-year-old Pete Taylor baseball park. The plan is for all money to be raised through private and corporate donations. October 27, 2026 Audio articles are automated for accessibility. Humans wrote and edited the story; however, this audio has not been reviewed for accuracy and may contain errors. Read more about how we use AI to increase access to our reporting. HATTIESBURG - Southern Miss on Tuesday announced a plan to renovate the 42-year-old home of its nationally renowned baseball program, the only Division I program in the U.S. to boast 10 straight 40-victory seasons and 10 straight NCAA Tournament bids. The school plans to raise approximately $25 million through private and corporate funding to complete a renovation and expansion of Pete Taylor Park/Hill Denson Field. "Pete Taylor Park represents so much of what makes Southern Miss baseball special," said Southern Miss Director of Athletics Jeremy McClain. "The history, the atmosphere and, most importantly, our fans have created an environment unlike any other. This project allows us to honor those traditions while making a significant investment in what comes next for our program." Jackson-based Weir Boerner Allin Architecture, which has designed numerous athletic facilities across the South including Dudy Noble Field at Mississippi State, partnered with Southern Miss to do master planning for the project. Seating capacity would increase to approximately 6,500. The largest crowd to date was 6,346, which included more than 2,000 standing room only. Southern Miss has sold out its season tickets of approximately 4,600 tickets for four straight seasons. The proposed stadium renovation would include all chairback seating and the addition of eight more luxury suites to the existing 12. Said McClain, "We wish we had room for 20 more suites because we could sell that many more." The master plan includes an indoor pitching laboratory and hitting facility with high-tech sports science equipment to improve performance. Southern Miss coach Chrisian Ostrander, who has guided the Golden Eagles to 143 victories over three seasons called the proposed performance center "a game changer for player development, the backbone our our program." Southern Miss is calling the baseball stadium project "Where Tradition Meets Tomorrow, " McClain said. "The vision is not to change what makes The Pete special. It is to build around it," he said. "We want our longtime fans to walk into the renovated ballpark and still feel everything they love about Southern Miss baseball, while the next generation of Golden Eagles experience a facility built for the future." McClain said he is confident Southern Miss can raise the money. "We've had several preliminary meetings with potential donors," he said. "We've confident we can get to the finish line soon and move forward with the project. Our baseball program is nationally competitive and we want to continue to invest in its future." Fund-raising will include naming rights to the performance center, as well as different enhanced seating areas in the ballpark, McClain said. Already this year, Renasant Bank bought the naming rights to the former M.M. Roberts Stadium in a deal that will pay the university $13.7 million over 10 years. Sports Columnist Rick Cleveland is a sports columnist for Mississippi Today. A Hattiesburg native, he has covered Mississippi sports for nearly six decades and is a member of both the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame and the Mississippi Press Association Hall of Fame.