The California Bankers Association (CBA)
and Western Independent Bankers (WIB) have entered into a merger
agreement. The boards of directors from each association separately voted in favor of presenting
the merger to member banks for a final vote in October.
If approved by member banks, WIB will merge into the CBA. The CBA name will change to the
Western Bankers Association (WBA) under the leadership of Simone Lagomarsino, the current
president and CEO of the CBA. The WBA board of directors will expand to include six additional
members who represent banks outside of California from the WIB’s current board. The WIB’s
current chairman, David Joves, SVP of the California region for Bank of Guam, will join the WBA
executive committee. Both the CBA and WIB names and professional focuses will be retained as
divisions of the WBA -- CBA for the important state, federal and regulatory advocacy activities, and
WIB for conferences and education.
“We intend to preserve the legacies of both associations as we merge, and we will work together to
create an even stronger organization that leverages the unique strengths of the CBA and the WIB,”
said Lagomarsino, who will take the role of president and CEO of the consolidated association.
The
WBA will serve nearly 250 members, and have 200 years of experience serving banks in the West.
“The WBA will continue to offer WIB's exceptional educational and peer networking opportunities,
and through the CBA brand, we will continue to uphold our reputation as tremendously strong
advocates for our members in the California Legislature, the nation’s capital, and with our
industry’s state and federal regulatory agencies,” Lagomarsino continued.
The WIB’s CEO, Michael Delucchi, will transition to WBA as the senior vice president and executive
director of the WIB division. In this role, Delucchi will continue to direct training and educational
programs for banks throughout 13 Western states and U.S. territories. The Western states served in
addition to California include Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New
Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington and Wyoming.
“Changes to the banking landscape occur every day, and this merger will allow the new
organization to address and focus on the critical needs facing all our members,” said Delucchi. “The
WIB will continue to deliver our dynamic conferences, training seminars and more than 250
webinars, and we will also incorporate the conferences and educational offerings CBA has
historically offered.”
WIB and CBA bank members will officially vote on the proposed merger in mid-October. If
approved, the associations anticipate the merger will be completed by the end of December 2017
with the two associations consolidating at that time.
CBA’s legal counsel in the transaction was provided by Manatt, Phelps, & Phillips, LLP. WIB was
advised by Stinson Leonard Street LLP.
About the California Bankers Association
Established 126 years ago, the California Bankers Association is one of the largest state banking
trade associations in the country. CBA leads the way in developing relevant educational and
legislative solutions to some of California’s more pressing financial and banking issues, including
adult financial empowerment, identity theft, financial privacy and elder financial abuse. CBA’s
membership includes the majority of California’s commercial, community banks and savings
associations.
More information is available at Calbankers.com or by contacting CBA’s SVP of Communications &
Marketing Beth Mills at 916-438-4447 / bmills@CalBankers.com.
About Western Independent Bankers
Established in 1937, Western Independent Bankers is the premier banking trade association
dedicated to achieving the highest standards of personal and organizational development through
three channels of success: Informing, Educating, and Connecting bankers. With over 22,000
individual members across the Western United States, WIB focuses on serving the educational
needs of the more than 550 independent community banks headquartered in the 13 Western state
foot print.
More information is available at www.wib.org or by contacting WIB’s President & CEO Michael
Delucchi at 415-352-3223 / michaeldelucchi@wib.org.