Frost merger with Western National Bank finalized

June 21--The seven Western National Bank locations in Odessa and Midland officially became Frost Bank branches at the end of Friday business hours, marking the completion of a merger announced in August.

But locally, 22 project teams have been managing the shift for months -- sending out replacement debit cards to customers that can now be activated, learning Frost's internal practices, among other measures like putting up the new Frost signs uncovered on Friday, said Wesley Bownds, the president of the Midland market for Western National Bank who became the president of the Permian Basin region for Frost.

"If you are just talking about Wesley Bownds who has a checking account, we go to sleep tonight and wake up tomorrow, there is really nothing different," Bownds said Friday morning. "Everything works the same way. But as a consumer now you have access to some things you probably didn't have access to before."

Those include a better mobile application and the use of Frost ATMs throughout the state. There are more than 120 Frost Bank locations.

Western National Bank's President Jack Wood said in August that the main reason for the merger is that "this Basin is exploding. Our customers are getting larger and have greater needs than we can provide."

The merger allows for larger loan limits here and more sophisticated financial products, including insurance, internal credit and wealth management services. It allows Frost, the premier commercial lender in Texas, an opportunity to delve more deeply into the booming Permian Basin Market. Wood also will remain active with the company and is set to join the Cullen/Frost Board of Directors in July.

Local employees kept their jobs after the merger. The official completion on Friday meant they would begin changing their software and other internal operations this weekend.

Bank officials said also the merger won't affect the bank's sponsorship of the WNB Golf Classic tournament or the CAF Airshow, noting part of the appeal of the merger was a similar culture between the two banks.

Under the terms of the agreement, Cullen/Frost issued 2 million shares of Cullen/Frost common stock and an amount of cash necessary to bring the aggregate consideration to $220 million.

Western National Bancshares, Inc. added $1.8 billion in assets, $1.6 billion in deposits and $668.3 million in total loans to Cullen/Frost, a financial holdings company of about $24.7 billion in assets.

The oil and gas industry already represents a large component of Frost's loan portfolio and the bank's trust includes holdings of roughly 7 million acres, Bownds said.

Chartered in 1977, Western National Bank was privately owned by the Wood family and operates four branches in Midland, three in Odessa and one in San Antonio, which is also a Frost Bank now.

"This merger strengthens our Texas franchise and gives us an entry into the dynamic Permian Basin markets of Midland and Odessa," said Dick Evans, chairman and CEO of Cullen/Frost in a statement. "Frost and WNB embrace the same values and share a vision of community-oriented banking and superior customer service ... we are delighted to welcome WNB employees and customers into our Frost financial family."

Contact Corey Paul on Twitter @OAcrude on Facebook at OA Corey Paul or call 432-333-7768.

___

(c)2014 the Odessa American (Odessa, Texas)

Visit the Odessa American (Odessa, Texas) at www.oaoa.com

Distributed by MCT Information Services