Maryland-based Howard Bancorp has completed its acquisition of First Mariner Bank
Maryland-based Howard Bancorp has completed its acquisition of First Mariner Bank.
The two banks will be integrated under the Howard Bank brand, which will immediately include the 21 First Mariner branches in Greater Baltimore, with 160 employees.
“We are excited to expand our internal and external communities by welcoming the First Mariner investors, its customers, and its team,” said Mary Ann Scully, Howard Bank’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. “The combination of our two banks creates a uniquely winning proposition for our customers, prospective customers and centers of influence in Baltimore’s business community.”
The completion of the deal follows a good year for Howard, which organically grew assets by 12% to $1.15 billion, total loans by 14% to $937 million, total commercial loans by 21% to $360 million, total deposits by 7% to $864 million, and total common shareholders’ equity by 53% to $132 million.
“This is certainly a transformational deal for us as a company, for the employees who at the end of the day are our strongest differentiator, and for our individual and commercial customers,” said Scully, who will continue as Chair and Chief Executive Officer of Howard and Howard Bank. “But we are just as thrilled about what this combination is going to mean for the communities that we serve which are geographically clustered around Baltimore from Annapolis and Columbia to Bel Air and Elkton.”
