Webster Financial Corporation (NYSE: WBS) today announced that
its principal bank subsidiary Webster Bank, N.A. ("Webster") has
signed a definitive agreement to acquire Ametros Financial Corp
(“Ametros”), a custodian and administrator of medical funds from
insurance claim settlements, from funds managed by Long Ridge
Equity Partners (“Long Ridge”).
Ametros, the nation’s largest professional administrator of
medical insurance claim settlements, helps individuals manage their
ongoing medical care through their CareGuard service and
proprietary technology platform. CareGuard provides settlement
advisory support, saves its members money on medical expenses,
ensures compliance with government reporting, and facilitates the
navigation of the complex U.S. healthcare system.
The acquisition of Ametros will provide a fast-growing source of
low-cost and long-duration deposits, provide new sources of
noninterest income, and enhance Webster’s healthcare financial
services expertise. As of December 2023, Ametros has over 24,000
members and $804 million in deposits under custody, which will
become deposits of Webster following the closing of the
transaction; deposits under custody have more than doubled over the
past three years and the average deposit balance per account was
$33,000. Ametros’ deposit characteristics provide a unique value to
Webster:
- Average cost of less than 10 basis points with near-zero
beta;
- Average duration of more than 20 years;
- Member accounts receive FDIC insurance coverage; and
- Deposits are projected to grow at a five-year CAGR of
approximately 25%.
“This acquisition closely aligns with our strategic focus on
building a diverse and unique funding base,” said John Ciulla,
President and Chief Executive Officer of Webster Financial
Corporation. “Ametros’ market position and value proposition for
its clients and partners underpin a robust growth trajectory for
this highly complementary business. Ametros builds on Webster’s
history of developing non-traditional deposit verticals with a
favorable financial profile, including HSA Bank and interLINK.”
“Webster is the perfect growth partner for our unique business,”
says Ametros’ CEO, Porter Leslie. “We are thankful for our clients
and members who continue to place their trust in us and are excited
for this next phase of growth together.”
Webster will acquire Ametros for $350 million in cash, subject
to customary adjustments. The acquisition is anticipated to be over
2% accretive to FY25 consensus estimates, generate an IRR over 25%,
and has a five-year earn-back of tangible book value dilution. Upon
the close of the transaction, Ametros will operate as a subsidiary
of Webster. The transaction is expected to close in the first
quarter of 2024, subject to the satisfaction of customary closing
conditions and anti-trust review. Webster was advised by Wachtell,
Lipton, Rosen & Katz. Ametros and Long Ridge were advised by
Choate, Hall & Stewart LLP.
About Webster
Webster Financial Corporation (NYSE:WBS) is the holding company
for Webster Bank, N.A. and its HSA Bank Division. Webster is a
leading commercial bank in the Northeast that provides a wide range
of digital and traditional financial solutions across three
differentiated lines of business: Commercial Banking, Consumer
Banking and its HSA Bank division, one of the country’s largest
providers of employee benefits solutions. Headquartered in
Stamford, CT, Webster is a values-driven organization with more
than $70 billion in assets. Its core footprint spans the
northeastern U.S. from New York to Massachusetts, with certain
businesses operating in extended geographies. Webster Bank is a
member of the FDIC and an equal housing lender. For more
information about Webster, including past press releases and the
latest annual report, visit the Webster website at
www.websterbank.com.
About Ametros
Ametros is the industry leader in post-settlement medical
administration and a trusted partner for thousands of members
receiving funds from workers’ compensation and liability
settlements. Headquartered in Wilmington, Massachusetts, Ametros
may be reached at 877.275.7415 or via www.ametros.com.
About Long Ridge
Long Ridge is a growth oriented private equity firm focused on
financial and business technology. Since its founding, Long Ridge
has sponsored some of the most successful growth companies,
providing leading management teams with partnership, strategic
resources, and capital to drive profitable expansion. Long Ridge
manages over $1.75 billion of committed capital.
CAUTION REGARDING FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS
This communication may contain certain forward-looking
statements, including, but not limited to, certain plans,
expectations, goals, projections, and statements about the benefits
of the proposed transaction, the plans, objectives, expectations
and intentions of Webster, and other statements that are not
historical facts. Such statements are subject to numerous
assumptions, risks, and uncertainties. Statements that do not
describe historical or current facts, including statements about
beliefs and expectations, are forward-looking statements.
Forward-looking statements may be identified by words such as
expect, anticipate, believe, intend, estimate, plan, target, goal,
or similar expressions, or future or conditional verbs such as
will, may, might, should, would, could, or similar variations. The
forward-looking statements are intended to be subject to the safe
harbor provided by Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933,
Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and the Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.
While there is no assurance that any list of risks and
uncertainties or risk factors is complete, below are certain
factors which could cause actual results to differ materially from
those contained or implied in the forward-looking statements:
changes in general economic, political, or industry conditions;
uncertainty in U.S. fiscal and monetary policy, including the
interest rate policies of the Federal Reserve Board; volatility and
disruptions in global capital and credit markets; movements in
interest rates; reform of LIBOR; competitive pressures on product
pricing and services; success, impact, and timing of our business
strategies, including market acceptance of any new products or
services; the nature, extent, timing, and results of governmental
actions, examinations, reviews, reforms, regulations, and
interpretations, including those related to the Dodd-Frank Wall
Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act and the Basel III
regulatory capital reforms, as well as those involving the OCC,
Federal Reserve, FDIC, and CFPB; the outcome of any legal
proceedings that may be instituted against Webster or Ametros; the
possibility that the transaction may not close in the anticipated
timeline or at all or that the anticipated benefits of the
transaction are not realized when expected or at all; and other
factors that may affect the future results of Webster or Ametros.
Additional factors that could cause results to differ materially
from those described above can be found in Webster's Annual Report
on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022, which is on file
with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") and
available on Webster's investor relations website,
https://investors.websterbank.com/, under the heading "Financials"
and in other documents Webster files with the SEC.
All forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they
are made and are based on information available at that time.
Webster does not assume any obligation to update forward-looking
statements to reflect circumstances or events that occur after the
date the forward-looking statements were made or to reflect the
occurrence of unanticipated events except as required by federal
securities laws. As forward-looking statements involve significant
risks and uncertainties, caution should be exercised against
placing undue reliance on such statements.
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version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20231214511386/en/
Media Contact: Alice Ferreira, 203-578-2610
acferreira@websterbank.com
Investor Contact: Emlen Harmon, 212-309-7646
eharmon@websterbank.com
Ametros Contact: Melissa Coleman, 978-381-4329
mailto:mcoleman@ametros.com
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