Cornerstone to purchase Bank of Orchard

Ben Clifton, chairman, president and chief executive officer of the Bank of Orchard in Orchard; Kelly Holthus, chairman of Cornerstone Bank, and Zac Holoch,

President and CEO of Cornerstone Bank in York, Nebraska, announced today an agreement has been reached for Cornerstone Bank to purchase the Bank of Orchard.

The Bank of Orchard has total assets of approximately $35 million with total deposits of $30 million and total loans of $9 million. The purchase is subject to regulatory approval with a closing date expected to be in the fourth quarter of 2024.

"Cornerstone Bank is very pleased to be a part of the Orchard Community," stated Holthus and Holoch. "We are committed to the agricultural sector of the economy and serving many smaller communities in Nebraska. We feel this purchase will be a further enhancement to expand our banking footprint."

"I want to thank our customers from Orchard and the surrounding communities for their patronage and support of the bank over years," said Clifton. "The Bank of Orchard is known for treating their customers as family and knowing that Cornerstone Bank is a family bank, I feel comfortable that our customers will be treated in the same manner.

"Becoming a part of the Cornerstone family will benefit the customers. Cornerstone has a reputation for the community focused banking on which the Bank of Orchard prides itself, and will provide additional financial services such as online account opening, online mortgage applications, trust and investment services, to name a few," stated Clifton.

As of June 30, 2024, Cornerstone Bank had $2.7 billion in assets and with the acquisition of Orchard, Cornerstone will have 48 banking locations in 39 communities along with 19 insurance locations. Cornerstone Bank has banking locations in the following communities in Nebraska: Albion, Ashton, Aurora, Bartlett, Beaver Lake, Bradshaw, Central City, Clay Center, Clearwater, Columbus, Creighton, Davenport, Edgar, Franklin, Geneva, Glenvil, Grand Island, Guide Rock, Hampton, Harvard, Henderson, Hildreth, McCool Junction, Malmo, Marquette, Monroe, Murray, North Loup, Polk, Rising City, Shelton, St. Edward, Stromsburg, Sutton, Tilden, Waco, Wilcox and York.

Cornerstone Bank is owned by First York Ban Corp. of York, Nebraska.