Talmer Bank and Trust Expanding

Troy-based Talmer Bank and Trust has commitments from previous investors, including Wilbur Ross, to raise an additional $174 million in equity to finance expansion plans, including having an operation in downtown Chicago by the end of the year.   David Provost, president, chairman and CEO, said the bank has received $21 million of that commitment to finance short-term expansion and will make further capital calls as needed.  Talmer Bank and Trust is reported to be the fastest-growing in Michigan since it launched a growth campaign in April 2010, when it was a one-branch bank with $100 million in assets. Today, the bank has 52 branches, about 850 employees and $2.1 billion in assets.  Up to this point, Talmer’s growth has been through the acquisition at a discount of assets of troubled banks shut down by state and federal regulators.  The next round of growth is expected to come from banks being shut down by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., as well as targeting more traditional acquisitions of both private and publicly traded banks.  Originally named First Michigan Bank, the name was changed last year to accommodate the bank’s expansion plans into other states. Talmer is a combination of the first name of Provost’s grandfather, Talmage, and the first name of bank co-founder Gary Torgow’s grandfather, Merzon.  Torgow is chairman of the bank’s holding company, Talmer Bancorp Inc.