National Bank Holdings, the owner of Community Banks of Colorado, announced Jan. 30 it is purchasing Pine River Valley Bank for $14 million.
Pine River was founded in Bayfield in 1977 and was the last locally owned bank in the area.
"It's hard nowadays for smaller banks, with all of the regulatory compliance, to keep up with the things that the big banks do," said Boyd Hodges, president and CEO of the bank.
Pine River owns locations in Bayfield and Durango, as well as the Miners and Merchants banks in Lakes City and Creede.
"It's a great group to deal with, and the best one for the shareholders and staff," Hodges said of the new owners.
Community Banks of Colorado has a location in Durango on Second Avenue.
"They are looking very forward to keeping the locations," Hodges said.
While the bank sale is projected to be completed later this year, it will remain known as Pine River Valley Bank through Dec. 31, he added.
National Bank Holdings Corp. has 97 banks, primarily in Colorado, with a few in Texas and Kansas City. In Colorado, it operates as Community Banks of Colorado.
"We are very pleased to announce our agreement to acquire Pine River Valley Bank," Tim Laney, chief executive of National Bank Holdings, said in a news release. "This opportunity is consistent with our focus on strengthening our position in our existing markets and allows us to leverage our capital in a disciplined manner."
Pine River Valley Bank had $135 million in total assets, total loans of $67 million and total deposits of $120 million, as of Dec. 31.
The bank had taken some losses in foreclosed properties in the past few years, but as the economy has improved, the number of foreclosures has gone down as well, Hodges said. In the past months, a few larger bank groups had approached the bank inquiring about a purchase, he added.
Hodges has worked for Pine River Valley Bank for the past five and a half years and has been CEO for four years. Prior to that, he had overseen the sale of Olathe State Bank and the Bank of Durango to First National Bank of Durango in 2007.
