Monroe County Bank, United Bank announce merger

United Bank and Monroe County Bank have announced the signing of a definitive agreement whereby Monroe County Bank (MCB) will be merged into United Bank.MCB is Monroe County’s largest and oldest community bank and operates full service locations in Forsyth and Bolingbroke. United Bank, which traces its roots back to the founding of The Bank of Zebulon in 1905, operates 16 banking offices in nine middle Georgia counties including Lamar, Butts and Upson which adjoin Monroe County.”We welcome this opportunity to become a part of the Forsyth-Monroe County community,” said Jim Edwards, United Bank’s CEO. “Monroe County shares many similar qualities with the other great communities we serve in Middle Georgia. We are very optimistic about the future of Monroe County and look forward to being a good financial partner with MCB’s customers. Our bankers have worked hard to maintain the qualities of a small town community bank while investing in products and services often found only in larger regional or national banks. Our customers enjoy having a close relationship with their community banker while benefiting from innovative services such as our mobile banking apps and our call center and live video tellers which are available from 7 a.m. – 11 p.m., seven days a week”Bill Bazemore, MCB’s chairman, CEO and president, will join United Bank’s executive management team as division president of Monroe County.”Bill is a respected community banker whom we’ve known for decades. He will add great depth to our leadership team. We look forward to getting to know MCB’s customers and welcoming its employees into our banking family,” Edwards added.Commenting on the transaction, Bazemore said, “We look forward to continuing to offer the great customer service we have been known for since the founding of our bank in 1908. We are very excited about the potential of our combined organizations and look forward to joining United Bank, one of Georgia’s premiere community banks.”The terms of the merger were not disclosed. United Bank anticipates that the merger will close during the third quarter pending normal regulatory approvals.Alston & Bird, LLP served as United Bank’s legal counsel. Demarest Strategy Group provided consulting services and Troutman Sanders LLP served as legal counsel to MCB”s holding company, Country Bank Company.