On October 21, San Antonio-based Southwest Bancshares Inc., the bank holding company for The Bank of San Antonio, closed its merger of three affiliated banks, creating a unique Central Texas banking franchise. In connection with the closing of the transaction, Capitol of Texas Bancshares, the holding company for The Bank of Austin, and Texas Hill Country Bancshares Inc., the bank holding company for Texas Hill Country Bank, were merged with and into Southwest Bancshares, Inc., which was immediately followed by the merger of The Bank of Austin and Texas Hill Country Bank with and into The Bank of San Antonio.
The name of the surviving bank’s charter was changed to Texas Partners Bank, but each of the legacy banking locations of the combined bank will continue to operate under their current trade names as members of Texas Partners Bank. Each of the three markets of the combined bank will maintain their executive management teams and regional advisory boards to preserve their culture and continue to serve the needs of their respective communities.
The Bank of San Antonio has five locations in San Antonio, The Bank of Austin currently has one in Austin, and Texas Hill Country Bank has two locations in Kerrville, one in Bandera and one in Fredericksburg.
The announcement was made by J. Bruce Bugg Jr., chairman, president and CEO of all three bank holding companies, who will continue as chairman, president and CEO of Southwest Bancshares Inc. “We initially announced the merger on June 30,” Bugg says, “and said at that time that the intent was to close the transaction in the fourth quarter. Now, here we are, barely three weeks into that quarter and all regulatory and shareholder approvals have been received and the merger is complete. That’s a testament to the confidence the shareholders of all three banks have in the potential for Southwest Bancshares.”
“This merger will only strengthen each of the three banks and, with a like-minded philosophy and leadership team in all three markets, we can expand the scale of our relationship-oriented financial services to our customers throughout Central Texas,” says Brent R. Given, president and CEO of The Bank of San Antonio.
“While we have only been open for three years, our goal—as demonstrated by the quality of our board of directors—is to be Austin’s business bank,” says Jon Eckert, president and CEO of The Bank of Austin. “The merger gives us even greater strength to achieve that goal.”
“The Texas Hill Country is growing and our clients are participating in more opportunities that require access to stronger banking services and resources,” says Roy Thompson, president and CEO of Texas Hill Country Bank. “This merger will really open the door to those opportunities.”
Bugg pulled together a small group from San Antonio’s business and civic leadership in 2007 to charter The Bank of San Antonio. With $25 million in initial capital and assets, the San Antonio bank has grown to more than $1 billion in assets in just 13 years. He used the same approach to charter Texas Hill Country Bank in 2009 and then again in 2017 to charter The Bank of Austin. The three banks had many common shareholders who were friends and civic and business leaders in San Antonio, Austin and the Texas Hill Country, Bugg says, so the banks were already affiliated before the merger transaction.
