U.S. Bancorp Announces Two Acquisitions

The flurry of acquisition activity follows a favorable 2011 earnings report.

The fifth-largest commercial bank in the United States has announced two acquisitions over the past few days.

On Jan. 27, Minneapolis-based U.S. Bank announced that it had acquired the banking operations of Knoxville, Tenn.-based BankEast, a subsidiary of BankEast Corporation, from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). U.S. Bank gained 10 branches in the Knoxville area, received approximately $272 million in assets and assumed $268 million of insured and uninsured deposits as a result of the transaction.

And today, U.S. Bank announced that it has entered into an agreement to purchase the Indiana corporate trust business of UMB Bank, a subsidiary of UMB Financial Corporation. The terms of the agreement, which is expected to close on March 2, have not been disclosed yet. U.S. Bank says its global corporate trust services team will work with UMB Bank Indiana "to ensure a seamless transition."

These moves follow a favorable 2011 earnings report and are in line with U.S. Bancorp's strategy to continue making small acquisitions.