Finance
First Financial completes $2.2bn acquisition of Westfield Bancorp
US-based bank holding company First Financial Bancorp has completed its previously announced acquisition of Westfield Bancorp and its subsidiary, Westfield Bank.
In June, First Financial agreed to acquire Westfield Bancorp from Ohio Farmers Insurance Company in a cash-and-stock deal valued at $325m.
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With the addition of Westfield Bank, First Financial’s total assets now stand at $20.6bn, strengthening its presence in the Midwest region of the US.
The acquisition is said to expand First Financial’s commercial banking and wealth management services in Northeast Ohio.
Westfield Bank’s retail locations and related services will now operate as part of First Financial’s network.
These branches will retain their current branding until the completion of conversion process, which is expected to occur in March 2026.
The conversion will merge the two banks’ products, processes and operating systems.
Westfield Bank clients will continue to receive services through existing channels, and will receive information about account conversions in the coming months.
First Financial president and CEO Archie Brown said: “This is an exciting step in the growth of First Financial, as the addition of Westfield Bank opens new possibilities for growth and profitability for us in an attractive market.
“We can now bring our wide range of solutions in consumer, commercial, specialty lending and wealth management to new clients, while expanding our geographic footprint for our current clients.
“The First Financial team is thrilled to welcome the Westfield Bank team members to the First Financial family.”
The transaction follows First Financial’s recent expansion activities in the Midwest.
In 2023, the company established a commercial lending presence in Northeast Ohio.
Earlier this year, First Financial announced BankFinancial, the parent company of BankFinancial, National Association, in Chicago, Illinois.
Furthermore, the company has also established a commercial banking presence in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
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Timestamp: 2025-11-08T08:05:10Z
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Twenty-six million dollars. That’s how much investing platform Robinhood paid out earlier this year after it was found to have breached a range of financial regulations. Amongst them? Failure to properly manage the social media influencers promoting their products. With these so-called “finfluencers” becoming an ubiquitous part of fintech marketing strategies, this eye-watering penalty should serve as a cautionary tale to brands putting content and reach above compliance and risk.
The world of the finfluencers has expanded dramatically in recent years. These young, passionate and social media savvy voices amass legions of fans and millions of views as they dole out advice on everything from stock tips to savings techniques. The main audience? Gen Z. Facing the dual pressures of a tough job market and the spiralling cost of living, Gen Zs are turning to social media for new routes to financial stability — hungry for insights and advice that will help them get ahead. With a huge 34% of Gen Zs saying they learn about personal finance from TikTok and YouTube, finfluencers have exploded in number, reach and power.
Acquiring Gen Z customers is a huge priority for marketing teams. In the world of financial products, customers are sticky. Get them young and you might have a customer for life. That’s why the rise of finfluencers represents a huge opportunity for companies operating across the finance, investment and savings space. And it’s one they’ve been tapping into.
On the surface, engaging finfluencers for paid partnership is a marketing slam duck for fintech and finance brands. Unlocking a route into Gen Z audiences via trusted, engaging voices. But, as Robinhood’s experience shows, the stakes are high when you get it wrong. Any company selling financial products or services is subject to a litany of regulation. And these high standards of compliance aren’t necessarily compatible with the fast-paced, algorithm-chasing game of social media content creation. It’s a conundrum that’s starting to trip brands up.
Alongside Robinhood, this year has also seen Public Investing fined $350k by the US regulator FINRA after influencers made misleading claims. And a recent crackdown from the UK’s financial regulator, the FCA, saw three individual finfluencers end up in court charged with encouraging high-risk strategies without the correct authorisation. Brands and the influencers they rely on are sailing far too close to the wind.
And this risk-reward matrix is only set to become more intense. The use of AI tooling in marketing is speeding up content creation and enabling thousands of iterations of adverts to run simultaneously. And brands are increasingly upping the percentage of marketing budget allocated to social media. Collectively, this is encouraging faster, more dynamic social strategies, with influencers forming a critical part. It’s putting marketers on a potential collision course with regulators cracking down on violations.
Companies leveraging social media partnership with a view to reaching Gen Z customers cannot afford to overlook this reality. From eye-watering fines to a tarnished brand, the implications of getting your social marketing wrong are severe.
But that doesn’t mean brands can’t play in this space. They just need to be smart about it.
Businesses swimming in this pool need to ensure they aren’t sidelining the compliance and risk management strategies that will keep them on the right side of regulation. This cannot be an afterthought. Marketing teams must invest in tooling, work closely with legal teams, and run stress tests on campaigns to ensure they are watertight.
Regulators are coming for finfluencers and the businesses that work with them. Companies should heed the warning and not let their quest for young, digitally-savvy customers rush them into an approach which could see them break the law and sink their finances. Instead, the same level of zeal applied to the creative should be applied to the compliance. They are two sides of the same coin. Combined, they’ll allow companies to cash in.
The opinions expressed in Fortune.com commentary pieces are solely the views of their authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions and beliefs of Fortune.
The United States sanctioned financial operatives funneling tens of millions of dollars from Iran to Hizballah. These individuals collaborate with businessmen and exchanges to enable significant financial transfers from Iran and conduct covert business dealings that fund Hizballah’s terrorist activities.
This action supports President Trump’s whole of government policy of maximum pressure against Iran and its terrorist proxies like Hizballah, as detailed in National Security Presidential Memorandum 2 issued on February 4.
The United States is committed to supporting Lebanon by exposing and disrupting Iran’s covert financing of Hizballah. By enabling Hizballah, Iran holds Lebanon back and undermines its sovereignty. Iran and Hizballah cannot be allowed to keep Lebanon captive any longer. The United States will continue using every tool at its disposal to ensure this terrorist group no longer poses a threat to the Lebanese people or the broader region.
Today’s action is being taken pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 13224, as amended, which targets terrorists and their supporters. The Department of State designated Hizballah as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist pursuant to E.O. 13224 on October 31, 2001, and as a Foreign Terrorist Organization on October 8, 1997. For more information, today’s designation can be found on the Press Release.
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