BMO branches seem to be everywhere in Wisconsin, but not long ago that was not the case.
In 2011, BMO already had acquired two smaller Wisconsin banks, but it made a big move with the acquisition of M&I Bank (Marshall & Ilsley Corp). M&I was still feeling the ripple effects of the 2008 recession and agreed to be acquired for $4.1 billion.
For 164 years, M&I Bank had its headquarters in Milwaukee and at the time of the merger, it had roughly 9,100 employees nationwide, about 4,300 of them in southeastern Wisconsin according to Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reporting at the time.
BMO U.S. CEO Darrel Hackett said the chance to have a greater footprint in Wisconsin was too good to pass up.
“We started off as a Chicago-land centric organization. A really large community bank,” Hackett said. “M&I really accelerated our trajectory of growth and turned us into a regional bank with a great foothold right here in the Midwest and a couple of really incredible markets including right here in Milwaukee and throughout Wisconsin.”
Hackett said the merger fit with BMO’s larger plans.
“Culturally, we knew we were very well aligned,” Hackett said. “And 2011 happened to be the opportunity for the two of us to come together but M&I was an organization that we had admired for a long period of time.”
Anthony Hudson, head of distribution and U.S. personal and business banking for BMO , said the move was important for both the bank and the Milwaukee region.
“You think about what took place through that acquisition 15 years ago, and it was the talent, and there is a fair amount of talent that is still with us today that plays a critical role in this community for our clients,” Hudson said.
BMO tried to maintain M&I’s roots in the community
Dale Kooyenga, president and CEO of Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce, said BMO has become an important part of the business community.
“It’s usually concerning when an out-of-state headquartered company purchases a locally headquartered company but this has been one of the exceptions to that general rule,” Kooyenga said.
“BMO has acted as if they’re still headquartered here and their investment from philanthropy to engaging with other business leaders and other not for profit leaders, has been the equivalent to, and in some cases even greater than, companies that are headquartered here.”
BMO executives said they understood the community attachment M&I had in Wisconsin and the bank has worked to continue that close relationship.
“It is our jobs to show up all the time in the good and the challenging times,” Hudson said. “And that constant tie back to community.”
Kooyenga said banking is a relationship based industry and the merger could be an example of what can happen for a company when it expands into another region.
“I believe that the individuals that made M&I successful have largely made BMO successful and those individuals have been advocates for the region,” Kooyenga said.
BMO has donated millions of dollars to local organizations since the merger with M&I, including the sponsorship of a major stage at the Summerfest grounds.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: BMO looks back on merger with M&I after 15 years
Reporting by Ricardo Torres, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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By Ricardo Torres, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel | USA TODAY Network
