Staff writer
Vintage Bank Kansas has agreed to purchase Peabody State Bank.
The local bank will join three others owned by Vintage Bank Kansas principals Wink and Libba Hartman and Steve Worrell in Leon, Conway Springs, and Wichita.
The sale is subject to regulatory approval by the state bank commissioner and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.
“We are excited about coming into Peabody,” CEO Worrell said. “We believe in serving the needs of small communities.”
Although sale of PSB will include a name change to Vintage Bank Kansas, Worrell emphasized their desire to continue Peabody State Bank’s tradition of safety and soundness, as well as its service and commitment to customers and community.
“We plan to expand services and technology, which should serve customers well. And they will see the same staff and personnel they see now,” he added.
Worrell grew up in rural Butler County in a family involved in agriculture, livestock auctions, and real estate. He has worked in banking for many years and said Vintage Bank Kansas looks forward to serving all of Peabody’s banking needs.
Peabody State Bank chairman Shreves Avery said PBS’s current owners wanted to find new owners committed to the same philosophy of community banking and customer service. He believes Vintage Bank Kansas will ensure continuation of the bank’s commitment to customers, community, and staff that dates to 1899.
Peabody State Bank president Chuck Good said he was excited about opportunities the sale would provide.
“The merger will allow the bank to provide more services to current customers, take on new customers, and handle larger lines of credit for further development of our community,” he said.
Steve Worrell said when Vintage Bank heard the bank was for sale, he called Avery and came to Peabody to visit with him.
“I told him what we were looking for, we talked about philosophy of banking and dealing with families and businesses in small towns,” he said. “We liked what we heard and what we saw and came to an agreement.”
Symbolic of small-community banking is Worrell’s story of how the name Vintage Bank Kansas came to be.
“We bought the bank in Leon on Jan. 1, 2011,” he said. “We decided if we were going to expand into other communities, it would not be logical to keep the Leon Bank name. We sat down and talked about names, the image we wanted, and how we wanted to be known. Someone came up with ’vintage‘ and we all liked it. It fit our image of small-town branch banks.”
It is anticipated the sale will close later this year.