First State Community Bank announced Monday evening it plans to acquire seven First Bank facilities in Missouri including ones in Owensville, Hermann and Gerald.

Doug Dunlap, marketing president for First State Community Bank (FSCB) based in Owensville, said Tuesday decisions on buildings in communities where both banks have a presence, will be made at a later day. And, all First Bank employees will be offered positions with FSCB.

“We’ll have to look at the buildings and see what works best for our operations,” said Dunlap. “We don’t lay off employees. All the employees will have job offers after the August conversion date. We always find a position for them.”

First State Community Bank’s Washington site is directly behind First Bank’s facility off of Highway 100. The Owensville FSCB facility is five blocks from First Bank’s location. FSCB previously acquired a former Progress Bank site in Warrenton where First Bank also has a building.

There are no First State Community Bank operations in Hermann or Gerald.

“We’re super excited about acquiring these seven branches. They really fall into our rural footprint,” said Dunlap who previously worked out of the former First Bank in Beaufort. “With the Gerald bank, this gives us a presence on the U.S. 50 corridor.”

Reached for comment at the Gerald branch on Tuesday, none of the First Bank staff members could comment. The bank’s manager, Debbie Kottwitz, retired in January and has not been replaced, The Republican was told.

The acquisition is pending state and federal regulatory approval and is expected to be finalized by some time in mid-August. FSCB has acquired 17 banks or branches previously and will give the Farmington, Mo., based firm 59 locations in Missouri.

First Bank employees at the Owensville, Hermann and Gerald facilities were notified in person by FSCB officials on Friday afternoon. An announcement from FSCB was released at 5:15 p.m. Monday through an email.

FSCB, which is a subsidiary of  First State Bancshares, Inc., is also acquiring First Bank sites in Ste. Genevieve, Dutzow, and Washington along with Warrenton.

“Our team at First State Community Bank is excited about this opportunity,” said Greg Allen, FSCB chairman and CEO. “The new locations will be a great complement to our existing branches in the area. Customers will enjoy all that First State Community Bank has to offer, including strong leadership from our local presidents who have experience serving many of the markets.”

First Bank, headquartered in St. Louis, released a statement — through FSCB — from their chairman and CEO, Shelly Seifert, saying: “We are committed to partnering closely with First State Community Bank to ensure a smooth and seamless transition for both clients and staff. We are pleased the communities will continue to receive great banking products and services through the team at First State Community Bank.”

The announcement Monday by First Bank also noted First Bank had reached an agreement in principle with three different banks to execute the sale of 14 of its branches in predominantly rural markets.

Royal Banks of Missouri has agreed to purchase First Bank branches in Granite City, Ill., and Jerseyville, Ill.

Dieterich Bank has agreed to purchase five Illinois branches of First Bank located in Columbia, Red Bud, Chester, Waterloo and Breese.

Through First Bank, a release quoting Seifert noted: “The purpose of these sales is to focus our branch network on markets where we have the greatest opportunity to grow and to align our investments with our strategy.”

First Bank’s release twice noted four generations of family ownership but did not mention the James Dierberg family by name.

“First Bank has been family owned for more than four generations,” their release noted. “Its approach to hyper long-term planning is rooted in more than 100 years of independent, single-family ownership and has uniquely positioned it as the bank of choice for independent and family-owned businesses.”

The release went on to state that First Bank, a subsidiary of FB Corporation, “is one of the largest privately owned banks in the country.” First Bank lists more than $6 billion in assets and nearly 100 locations throughout California, Missouri and Illinois.

Established in 1954, FSCB is owned and operated by First State Bancshares, Inc., a financial services holding company in Farmington, Mo. The bank owns First State Insurance Agency and First State Financial Management.

(With additional reporting by Linda Trest of The Republican’s staff).