Modern Woodmen Bank being acquired by Axos Bank
By Christopher Ramos
Modern Woodmen Bank has reached an agreement to sell its deposits to Axos Bank.
A spokesperson for Modern Woodmen of America told Local 4 News that it will take several months to complete the purchase and that Axos is a “branchless” bank.
Axos is not expected to use the building in downtown Rock Island.
Axos said in a release announcing the deal is not assuming any assets, employees or branches in this transaction. Only deposits are being acquired.
Modern Woodmen of America confirmed to Local 4 News that 30 employees at Modern Woodmen Bank will lose their jobs in the transaction. They will be eligible for positions at Modern Woodmen of America.
Axos announced Thursday it “signed a deposit assumption agreement to acquire approximately $225 million of deposits, including approximately $194 million of checking, savings and money market accounts and $31 million of time deposits” from Modern Woodmen Bank, also known as MWABank.
Started in 2003, MWABank is primarily a direct bank, one of the few in the United States. It principally conducts business via the internet, mail, telephone and other electronic means. Rock Island is its only location.
Modern Woodmen of America remains locally owned.
Here are some more details Modern Woodmen of America shared with Local 4 News:
• After considerable deliberation, Modern Woodmen’s board of directors decided to sell MWABank and focus on our insurance business.
• The decision was the right one for Modern Woodmen and our members, but it was not easy because approximately 30 MWABank employees will be affected. They were notified now, but the jobs won’t be eliminated for several months, when the transition out of banking is completed. (Likely this spring.)These employees will be eligible to apply for any open positions at Modern Woodmen, and we will provide severance packages and outplacement services. Modern Woodmen of America employees over 500 people in the Quad Cities.
• MWABank has always made customer service its first priority, so we were very careful to find a new home for its customers. With approximately $9.8 billion in assets, Axos is one of the oldest and most trusted direct internet banks in the U.S. It also has an outstanding track record of seamlessly transitioning banking assets from other organizations, such as Nationwide Insurance, H&R Block and Principal Financial Group.
