Salisbury Bank to buy Webster Bank branch

NORTH CANAAN — Salisbury Bancorp, Inc., announced on Aug. 25 that its subsidiary, Salisbury Bank and Trust Co., plans to purchase the North Canaan branch of Webster Bank.

Salisbury Bank and Trust has seven branches in Connecticut, New York state and Massachusetts, and is building an eighth office in Millerton. There is already a Salisbury Bank and Trust branch in North Canaan (the main office is in Lakeville). A news release said the bank will consolidate the two North Canaan branches. The Webster Bank office is at the corner of Main Street and Granite Avenue. The bank has not decided yet into which office the operations will be consolidated. Salisbury Bank has agreed to hire all the Webster employees from the North Canaan office.

Salisbury purchased the North Canaan branch of People’s Bank in 2001; there is now a People’s Bank branch in North Canaan at the Stop & Shop plaza.

The company also purchased Canaan National Bank in North Canaan in 2004. Salisbury Bank and People’s Bank are now the only banking companies in North Canaan.

If the deal is approved by regulatory agencies, Salisbury Bank will assume what it calls “certain deposits, fixed assets and certain loans of the Webster branch.�

“In the aggregate, the transaction includes approximately $17 million in deposits and approximately $4 million in loans,� according to the news release. The purchase is expected to be complete by the fourth quarter, which begins Oct. 1.

“We welcome the customers and employees of Webster Bank’s North Canaan branch to the Salisbury Bank family,� said Rick Cantele, president and chief executive officer of Salisbury Bancorp and Salsibury Bank. “We look forward to continuing to provide outstanding customer service to these customers. We anticipate that the Webster customers will have a smooth transition into our suite of products and services, and we are confident that no disruption of service will occur.�

It’s not unusual for a banking company to sell a single branch, according to Salisbury Bank spokesperson Diane Farrell, “when a branch doesn’t fit their strategic plan.�

When asked if her company plans to purchase any other Webster Bank branches, such as the one in Sharon (which is in the shopping plaza, across the street from a Salisbury Bank branch office), she said that as far as she knows the North Canaan location is the only office “that was made available to us.�

Webster Bank is a commercial bank headquartered in Waterbury, Conn., with more than 175 branches in Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and New York. It merged with New Mil Bank in 2006.

Salisbury Bancorp is a Connecticut chartered commercial bank with assets in excess of $500 million and capital in excess of $46 million.

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