December 1, 1995
Securities and Exchange Commission
450 North Capitol Street
Washington, D.C. 20549
Re: Firstbank of Illinois Co. Form 8-K
Dear Sirs:
Pursuant to the filing requirements under the Securities and
Exchange Commission Act of 1934, we are hereby electronically
filing a current report on Form 8-K.
Sincerely,
By: /s/ Chris R. Zettek
Executive Vice President and
Chief Financial Officer
Enclosures
CRZ:ply
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549
FORM 8-K
CURRENT REPORT
Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of
the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
December 1, 1995
(Date of Report)
FIRSTBANK OF ILLINOIS CO.
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
DELAWARE
(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization)
0-8426 37-6141253
(Commission File Number) (IRS Employer Identification No.)
205 South Fifth Street, Springfield, Illinois 62701
(Address of principal executive offices)
217-753-7543
(Registrant's telephone number, including area code)
ITEM 5. Other Events
On November 30, 1995, Firstbank of Illinois Co. ("Firstbank")
completed its acquisition of Confluence Bancshares Corporation
("Confluence") and its wholly owned subsidiary, Duchesne Bank
("Duchesne"). Duchesne, headquartered in St. Peters, Missouri,
also operates a separate branch facility in St. Charles,
Missouri.
Duchesne currently has total assets of approximately $80 million.
The acquisition of all the outstanding common stock of Confluence
Bancshares Corporation was in exchange for approximately 500,000
shares of Firstbank common stock and will be accounted for as a
pooling-of-interests.
A press release publicly announcing the event is attached.
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities and Exchange Act
of 1934, the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed
on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
FIRSTBANK OF ILLINOIS CO.
Registrant
By: /s/ Chris R. Zettek
Chris R. Zettek
ITS Executive Vice President
and Chief Financial Officer
DATE: December 1, 1995
For Immediate Release
Friday, December 1, 1995
FIRSTBANK OF ILLINOIS CO.
COMPLETES ACQUISITION OF DUCHESNE BANK
SPRINGFIELD, ILLINOIS, DECEMBER 1, 1995 -- Firstbank of
Illinois Co. today announced it has completed the acquisition of
Duchesne Bank of St. Peters, Missouri.
Duchesne Bank, which has total assets of approximately $80
million, operates banking offices in St. Peters and St. Charles,
Missouri. This acquisition will complement the Des Peres and
Ellisville locations currently served by Colonial Bank which
became a Firstbank affiliate in 1994.
Mark H. Ferguson, Firstbank's chairman and chief executive
officer, said, "Duchesne gives us a solid base from which to
expand in St. Charles County. St. Peters is located in the heart
of one of the fastest growing markets in Missouri.
"The customer mix at Duchesne Bank is very similar to those
we serve in our other markets," Ferguson added. "We are excited
about our opportunities for future growth."
Richard C. Leuck, president and chief executive officer of
Duchesne Bank said, "We are excited about joining a quality
organization like Firstbank. Although it is a much larger
institution, Firstbank has demonstrated its commitment to
community banking and customer service."
Leuck and Duchesne's chairman, James Wilhite, said they were
attracted to Firstbank because of its commitment to local
decision-making and community-based banking, and because it would
bring a much broader product and service mix to Duchesne's
customers. Wilhite noted that members of Duchesne's board of
directors will remain integrally involved in the bank's business
development efforts in St. Charles County.
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"We have been somewhat constrained by our lending limit as a
relatively small bank," Wilhite said. "With Firstbank's
resources and much larger lending limits, we will be able to grow
with our customers and expand into products and services that we
have not been able to offer as a smaller institution."
Firstbank intends to introduce retail brokerage and trust
products to Duchesne's customers as quickly as possible. These
products will be provided by Firstbank's financial services
division, Firstbank Financial Group.
The addition of Duchesne brings Firstbank's total assets in
Missouri's St. Louis and St. Charles counties to approximately
$250 million. Prior to its entry into Missouri in 1994,
Firstbank made several acquisitions in the St. Louis Metro East
area. In 1986, the Company acquired the United Illinois Banks of
Collinsville, Troy and New Athens, all of which were merged into
Central Bank of Fairview Heights after it was acquired in 1991.
Firstbank acquired the deposits of the failed New Athens Federal
Savings and Loan Association in 1990, and in 1993 acquired The
First National Bank of Highland. Total assets in the Metro East
are currently more than $500 million.
Firstbank is the largest bank holding company headquartered
in downstate Illinois. The Company provides banking, trust, and
other financial services through its subsidiaries in Central and
Southern Illinois and the St. Louis Metro area. Company
subsidiaries include Central Bank (Fairview Heights); Colonial
Bank (Des Peres, Missouri); Duchesne Bank (St. Peters, Missouri);
Elliott State Bank (Jacksonville); Farmers and Merchants Bank of
Carlinville; The First National Bank of Central Illinois
(Springfield); First Trust and Savings Bank of Taylorville; FFG
Trust, Inc. (Springfield) and FFG Investments, Inc.
(Springfield). The Company operates 35 offices in 13 Illinois
counties and five banking offices in two Missouri counties.
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