Bremer Bank, one of the largest Minnesota banks by deposits, has been acquired by Old National Bank, which is based in Chicago and Evansville, Ind.

Bremer, a St. Paul-based farm lender that serves Minnesota, North Dakota and Wisconsin, was established more than 80 years ago by German immigrant, banker and philanthropist Otto Bremer, who established a charitable trust as its largest shareholder and parent company. The three trustees of the St. Paul-based Otto Bremer Trust were closely involved in helping the board of the Bremer Financial Corporation court Old National for the acquisition, according to bank officials.

“We are now writing a new chapter,” wrote bank president Jeanne Crain, in an open letter published to the Bremer Bank website Monday. “When our majority shareholder, Otto Bremer Trust (OBT), reaffirmed their interest in transferring ownership of Bremer, the Bremer Financial Corporation Board and OBT trustees worked collaboratively to identify an acquirer with a commitment to customers and connection to community similar to our own.”

The purchase, which has yet to be finalized, is subject to regulatory approval.

Crain said the transition to the Old National name, brand and services will take several months, but customers can expect no immediate changes. Her letter gave no indication about whether Bremer offices, or the charitable trust, would eventually relocate from downtown St. Paul.

“While our name will change, we are pleased that following the completion of the transaction, we will have expanded banking capabilities and enhanced resources to serve you,” she wrote.

The sale represents a bit of an about-face for Bremer, which had been embroiled in multiple legal disputes between the trustees and the bank board over what was then deemed efforts to manufacture a hostile takeover of the board by selling voting shares. Those efforts, the first step toward positioning the bank for sale, were frozen during years of legal fighting that involved in Minnesota State Attorney General Keith Ellison’s office, which regulates charities.

A Ramsey County District Court judge ultimately removed one of the three trustees from his appointed seat but did not block a bank sale, and the two sides eventually reached legal settlement.

Old National Bank was founded in 1834 in Evansville and maintains approximately $40 billion in deposits, compared to about $13 billion in deposits for Bremer Bank.

This is a developing story — watch this space for updates.

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