The signage of the former Bank of the West location in Dinuba has been converted to BMO. Photo by Alex Scott

The Central Valley’s No. 5 largest bank by market share has a new name, and branches are already getting a new look with a recently completed acquisition.

Toronto-based BMO Financial Group completed the $16.3 billion acquisition of Bank of the West in February, expanding its reach into the western U.S. The agreement for BMO, also known as Bank of Montreal, to buy San Francisco-based Bank of the West from French multi-national bank BNP Paribas was initially struck in December 2021.

With 5.68% of the banking market share in Fresno, Kings, Madera and Tulare counties, Bank of the West has $1.81 billion in local deposits managed at 14 local offices, according to the latest data from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.

At least one of those offices, the branch in Dinuba, has already transitioned to the BMO name with its outside signage. Locations in Fresno remain branded under Bank of the West. BMO expects conversion of the combined banks’ system to be complete by September.

With this deal, BMO welcomes nearly 1.8 million commercial, retail, wealth management and business banking customers with access to more than 1,000 U.S. branches in 32 states. Some 9,300 Bank of the West employees will join the BMO family, according to a news release.

“We are excited to be bringing BMO and Bank of the West together to continue building a leading North American bank with a shared focus on progress for our customers, employees, communities and the planet,” said Darryl White, CEO, BMO Financial Group.

BMO reported total assets of $1.14 trillion and 12 million customers as of Oct. 31, 2022. It is the 8th-largest bank in North America by assets.