UMB-Heartland Deal Was Delayed by Fuller Revolt

A push by Heartland's then-chairman in March 2022 to seek bidders led UMB Financial to walk away from what could have been a $2.7 billion acquisition. A $2 billion deal was struck this year.

Hello again, Bank Slaters!

We have made it to mid-week. I wanted to share another interesting merger backstory. This one involves the second-biggest deal announced in 2024. UMB Financial’s pending purchase of Heartland Financial USA could have had a larger value (potentially $2.7 billion) but a push by former CEO Lynn Fuller threw a monkey wrench into the companies’ negotiations.

UMB and Heartland would reconnect two years later, announcing a deal priced close to $2 billion. Here is how the drama played out and how Heartland focused internally in the two years between its talks with UMB.