Valley will lose Bank of America branches

STAUNTON – Bank of America customers will soon be losing bank branches in the Valley after a recent acquisition.

A banking company headquartered in Strasburg, First Bank, has acquired six Bank of America office locations throughout the Valley.

First National Corporation, the holding company for First Bank, announced Wednesday it will acquire multiple Bank of America branch banking operations including branches in Staunton and Waynesboro.

The acquisition should be completed by the second quarter of 2015, according to Nicole Nastacia, spokesperson for Bank of America.

"Until the time this acquisition is final, Bank of America will continue to operate these locations and service those customers and small business accounts just like we do today," Nastacia said.

The sale of the branches to First Bank, rather than closing them, was made in order to preserve as many jobs as possible while still being able to serve the community, Nastacia said.

First Bank intends to hire all current employees of the acquired branches, a release said.

"We constantly adapt our banking center network to fit customers' changing needs and habits," she said. "That includes consolidating centers where we have overlap, investing in new centers where there's a high growth opportunity, and in select instances, selling some centers when an outright closure would leave associates with few employment opportunities, and customers with no convenient banking center."

Other branch locations that will be taken over include Woodstock, Elkton, Dillwyn and Farmville.

"We are delighted to announce the expansion of our banking franchise into Virginia markets that complement our recent expansion initiatives and that we believe embrace First Bank's philosophy that People Matter", said Scott Harvard, president and CEO of First Bank, in a release. "This transaction provides the opportunity to expand our team with the addition of experienced and talented associates while building scale and efficiencies in an expanded geographic footprint across several contiguous counties. We look forward to serving the needs of our new customers and communities for years to come."

The purchase will produce an estimated $308 million of deposits to the balance sheet of First Bank, a release said.

First bank currently operates 12 offices offering loan, deposit, trust and investment products and services throughout the Valley. In September, First Bank had a total of $519 million in assets with 10 retail banking offices. During the second quarter of 2014, the Bank expanded to Staunton where it opened First Mortgage, a newly formed mortgage division.

During the transition phase of the sale, Bank of America will have a team of dedicated customer care agents ready to assist and support customers at 1-866-251-0233.

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