The former Union Bank branch at Shaw and Marks avenues is now U.S. Bank. Photo by Frank Lopez

The fruits of an $8 billion bank merger are beginning to show in the Central Valley as former Union Bank locations transition to U.S. Bank.

In addition to changes in signage, this past holiday weekend was a pivotal time as deposit accounts, loans, lines of credit and digital investment services were transitioned from Union Bank to U.S. Bank.

In the Central Valley, it was no small task. Union Bank is the fourth-largest financial institution in the region, with nearly 6% of local market share, 13 local branches and $1.9 billion in deposits, according to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.

According to social media posts, the transition didn’t go by without a hiccup.

In late September 2021, Minneapolis-based U.S. Bancorp agreed to purchase Japanese financial group MUFG’s Union Bank consumer business for $8 billion. Before the deal, approved by regulators in October 2022, U.S. Bank had the fourth-largest branch network in California. With the conversion, it now has hundreds more.

The transition to U.S. Bank started at the beginning of May. Some customers took to social media to express displeasure about the process.

For its part, the U.S. Bank social media team was responsive to concerns.

Christopher Laird Simmons from Temecula shared a flaw in the system during the transition. He noted that the account migration tool asked customers for a banking PIN which is five digits, but the tool only allowed four.

Hi Christopher, thank you for reaching out. It sounds like you may be experiencing trouble enrolling into U.S. Banks online banking. Due to the transition with Union Bank, some banking features are unavailable. We are working diligently to get all banking functions restored. ^KT

— U.S. Bank (@usbank) May 30, 2023

 

“Hi Christopher, thank you for reaching out. It sounds like you may be experiencing trouble enrolling into U.S. Banks online banking. Due to the transition with Union Bank, some banking features are unavailable. We are working diligently to get all banking functions restored,” U.S. Bank responded.

Hey @usbank: Not impressed w/ transition so far. How am I supposed to pay bills when I can't login to my @UnionBank account but there's no access to the new accounts yet? Looking for recommendations for a reliable SoCal banking partner since my 30 years at Union are now garbage.

— Soozzone (@soozzone) May 10, 2023

For existing Union Bank customers, becoming part of U.S. Bank will mean both a significant increase in branch and ATM access and an improvement in technology, stated U.S. Bank’s Carl Jordan, executive vice president, bank and small business banking for California.

“This is a game changer for California,” said Jordan, executive vice president, branch and small business banking for California. “It’s going to completely transform the market for customers. I am in awe thinking about how far we’ve come – and where we’re going.”