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Banner Bank parent company buying Aberdeen holding company for Bank of the Pacific. * john stearns * 21 hrs ago. The Walla Walla parent company of Banner Bank is acquiring the Aberdeen-based holding company for Bank of the Pacific in an all-stock deal valued at about $177 million, according to an announcement last week. The deal is expected to close in the third quarter. Banner Corp. and Pacific Financial Corp., announced their merger agreement on Thursday. The combined company will have about $18 billion in assets. Bank of the Pacific is a 55-year-old Washington state-chartered commercial bank whose roots date to 1971, when Long Beach grocer Sid Snyder spearheaded the bank's formation with several other local businessmen after Snyder's frustrations attempting to get a loan from a larger bank. For years, Long Beach locals referred to Bank of the Pacific as "Sid's Bank," according to a 2013 biography of the late Snyder by Jeff Burlingame, editor in chief of South Sound Business. The headquarters later moved to Aberdeen, but a regional office and the original branch remain in Long Beach, at the corner of Pacific Avenue and Sid Snyder Drive, according to the book, "Across the Aisles: Sid Snyder's Remarkable Life in Groceries & Government." Bank of the Pacific today serves business and consumer clients through 15 branches in Grays Harbor, Pacific, Thurston, Whatcom, Skagit, Clark, and Wahkiakum counties in Washington, and three branches in Clatsop and Clackamas counties in Oregon. Bank of the Pacific also operates loan production offices in Burlington and in Salem, Oregon. Bank of the Pacific had assets of almost $1.3 billion as of March 31. Denise Portmann, president and CEO, is expected to join the Banner Bank executive team when the merger closes. In the news release announcing the deal, Portmann said, "Combining with Banner represents an exciting next chapter, creating tremendous opportunities for our employees, customers, and shareholders. Our organizations share many important values - we are both financially strong, take a relationship-based approach to banking, are deeply committed to the communities we serve, trust and empower our employees, and take great care in delivering outstanding customer service." In a separate message to customers on the bank's website, Portmann wrote, "By joining a broader bank, you will benefit from access to even more resources, expanded product and service offerings, more technology tools, higher lending limits for commercial customers, robust mortgage lending, and more locations to choose from as you travel throughout the West. When our companies combine, I plan to join the Banner executive team and you can count on many of the same friendly faces serving your financial needs - with the added benefit of more products and services, tools, and locations to choose from." Banner Bank has been serving businesses and consumers for more than 135 years in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and California. Banner had assets of about $16.3 billion as of March 31. "Bank of the Pacific is a highly respected, financially strong community bank with exceptional core deposits, and we're pleased they selected Banner as their merger partner," Mark Grescovich, Banner president and CEO, said in last week's release. "This transaction expands our presence and density in attractive Western Washington and Western Oregon markets while offering Bank of the Pacific customers broader product offerings and technology tools, increased commercial lending limits, and an expanded branch delivery system. We look forward to Denise joining our executive team and are pleased to welcome their employees, customers and shareholders to Banner." Within a year of Bank of the Pacific's formation in 1971, banking experts called it an industry success story, according to Snyder's biography. In 1999, The Bank of the Pacific merged with The Bank of Grays Harbor, and in 2004, Bellingham-based Bank Northwest was brought into the fold. Snyder served as chairman of the bank's board for 25 years, then served as vice-chair after the 1999 merger. By 2013, there were 17 Bank of the Pacific branches serving small communities throughout the region, the biography noted. Snyder also served as secretary of state and as a state senator, including majority leader.

Krug promoted to Executive Vice President and Enterprise Operations Executive. Jennifer Krug, Executive Vice President of Enterprise Operations, Banner Bank WALLA WALLA, Wash.-(BUSINESS WIRE)-The Banner Bank leadership team announces the promotion of Jennifer Krug to Executive Vice President and Enterprise Operations Executive. In this role, Krug will continue leading the Bank's enterprise operations, supporting strong execution, operational excellence, and scalable infrastructure aligned with Banner's long-term strategic objectives. "Elevating Jennifer to an executive-level leader recognizes her strategic vision, operational discipline and focus on execution that have strengthened our foundation and enhanced our ability to adapt in a rapidly evolving banking environment." Share "Elevating Jennifer to an executive-level leader recognizes her strategic vision, operational discipline and focus on execution that have strengthened our foundation and enhanced our ability to adapt in a rapidly evolving banking environment," said Jim Costa, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer. "Her deep institutional knowledge, strategic mindset and collaborative leadership style make her exceptionally well-suited to lead our enterprise operations strategy. Promoting Jennifer reflects our continuing commitment to thoughtful succession planning and the development of leaders from within our organization." With 32 years of banking experience, Krug's expertise is broad and varied, adding tremendous value to her whole-bank perspective. Krug joined Banner in 1998 and has held several leadership roles with progressively expanding responsibilities, most recently as Senior Vice President, Operations Director. She has been instrumental in strengthening the Bank's operational capabilities and driving enterprise-wide initiatives that support growth, efficiency and innovation. Krug is a graduate of the Washington Bankers Association Executive Development Program and McKinsey's Executive Leadership Program. She is active in her community, currently serving on the board of directors for Elijah Family Homes, a non-profit organization focused on stable housing and supportive services. Krug also represents the Bank on several state and national advisory boards focused on technology and operations. Krug reports to Jim Costa, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer. About Banner Bank Banner Bank is a Washington-chartered commercial bank conducting business in Washington, Oregon, California and Idaho. Banner offers a wide variety of banking services and financial products to individuals and businesses. Banner Bank is part of Banner Corporation (NASDAQ GSM: BANR), a $16.35 billion in assets bank holding company headquartered in Walla Walla, Washington. Visit Banner Bank at www.bannerbank.com.