UMB buys Harris corporate trust business-WEB ONLY

UMB Bank has acquired the corporate trust business of Harris bank for an undisclosed price. The deal, which closed last week, includes 80 accounts and $213 million in assets, UMB President and Chief Operating Officer Peter deSilva said today.

Corporate trust units underwrite corporate and government bonds.

UMB, headquartered in Kansas City, Mo., added the accounts to an existing corporate trust business it operates in Indianapolis.

Harris is the U.S. arm of Bank of Montreal in Canada. Its U.S. presence is centered in Chicago.

Harris’ corporate trust business was a legacy of its 2006 acquisition of First National Bank & Trust, a Kokomo bank owned by the Hasten family of Indianapolis.

The $290 million acquisition ended the run of one of the largest privately owned banks in the state. Mark and Hart Hasten, brothers who are Orthodox Jews and who escaped Nazi Germany, planned to give away most of the proceeds from the sale.

Harris spokeswoman Chris Nardella said Harris exited the corporate trust business about a decade ago and didn’t want to be distracted from its core retail, business banking and wealth management.

“Harris had a nice book of business in Indiana,” deSilva said. The additional business will help UMB determine whether it wants to bring more of its commercial lending and asset management to Indianapolis, he said.

“We’re trying to understand the market,” deSilva said. “This is a good entry point for us.”