Leadership and employees of Primary Bank from a 2025 event. (FIle photo)
Bedford-based Primary Bank is being acquired by Hometown Financial Group, the East Hampton, Mass.-based holding company for bankESB, bankHometown, and TruNorth Bank. The Board of Trustees of Hometown Financial Group, MHC unanimously adopted a Plan of Conversion to reorganize from the mutual holding company structure to the stock holding company structure.
This builds on Hometown's previously announced plan to merge its three banks and unite under the TruNorth Bank name, which, subject to the receipt of all regulatory approvals, is scheduled to occur in August.
Acquisition of Primary Bank
Under the terms of the merger agreement, which has been unanimously approved by both companies' boards of directors, Primary Bank shareholders will receive, for each share of Primary Bank common stock, either $33 in cash or $31 in shares of stock issued by Hometown Financial Group, a newly formed Maryland corporation, which will be a successor to Hometown, subject to the requirement that 50% of the outstanding shares of Primary common stock be converted into the cash consideration and 50% be converted into the stock consideration. The total transaction value is approximately $160 million.
The acquisition will add approximately $743 million in assets and four NH locations to TruNorth Bank's 55-branch network, including its existing Newton, NH, branch. At closing of the acquisition, Hometown will grow to 59 TruNorth Bank retail locations across Massachusetts, southern NH, and northeast Connecticut. Primary Bank's branches in Bedford, Derry, Manchester, and Nashua will operate under the TruNorth Bank name.
Primary Bank celebrated its 10th anniversary in 2025. it was orginally founded was opened by local business leaders with a mission to ensure small NH businesses had local access to the capital they needed to grow. The idea for the bank took shape in the years following the 2008–2009 financial crisis. Five local founders—each a small-business owner—experienced firsthand how difficult it had become to secure financing from large national banks.
"We are so pleased to be joining Hometown Financial Group and TruNorth Bank and are truly excited about what's ahead for our employees, customers, and communities in the Granite State," states Primary Bank Chairman William Greiner in a press release. "Primary Bank has achieved tremendous success since opening as a de novo bank, and this partnership represents the next logical step in ensuring our long-term success while continuing to meet customers' evolving needs. Primary Bank's Board of Directors knew that this day would come and one of the most important decisions was making sure that our merger partner would have the same vision, mission, and culture; we could not have picked a better partner than Hometown Financial."
Adds Primary Bank President and CEO Crystal A. Dionne, "The talent, leadership and deep market expertise being brought together will allow for our core mission to continue serving New Hampshire."
Matthew S. Sosik, CEO and chairman of Hometown Financial and the to-be-unified TruNorth Bank, says, "This merger is another important step in our strategy to grow with purpose. It increases our presence in southern New Hampshire, and we're eager to build on the outstanding success of Primary Bank by adding our strength, resources, and community banking commitment to its employees and customers."
Primary Bank customers also will access to the residential mortgage products and services offered through Hometown Mortgage, an affiliate of Hometown Financial Group that will be renamed TruNorth Mortgage concurrently when Hometown's banks merge, which is scheduled to occur in August.
"As consolidation in the banking industry continues, this partnership allows our organizations to build on their shared track record of prioritizing customer needs and helping local businesses take hold, grow, and prosper," Sosik adds. "Together, we can offer customers the best of both banking worlds: a community bank deeply rooted in the neighborhoods we call home and an institution with the size and scale to deliver a full array of innovative products, services, and technology."
This is Hometown Financial Group's ninth merger in the last 10 years.
As part of the conversion, Hometown will establish a new charitable foundation, which will be funded with a number of shares equal to 4% of the shares sold in the stock offering. The conversion and the merger are expected to be completed concurrently in the first quarter of 2027. The merger is subject to regulatory approval and approval by Primary's stockholders. The conversion is subject to regulatory approvals and approval by Hometown MHC's corporators.