Southern Bank expands into St. Louis Market, acquires FortuneBank

We’re rooted here, right where you need us. That means keeping a focus on our communities and serving each individual where they live and wherever they go. It is with that goal in mind that we are excited to announce the growth of Southern Bank into the St Louis area!

The move, announced on Sept. 28, 2021, involves two new Southern Bank branches in South St. Louis County, one in Arnold and the other near Oakville, which were acquired in a deal with FortuneBank.

“This expansion into a new market allows us to better serve our current customers travelling into the city as well as future customers in the St Louis community,” says President and CEO Greg Steffens. “Fortune has developed a number of business lines that complement our organization well, and provide a point of entry to a large and growing banking market where we believe our community banking model will perform well.”

We know that banking involves more than just a location - it involves people creating relationships to make the community stronger. From mortgages to checking accounts, we do our best to offer people what they need at their convenience, with great service. This is something we believe will make us stand out as we continue to grow.

“Fortune customers will benefit from the scale and technology we will help their banking officers bring to their relationships. We have been very impressed with the talented personnel who will be joining our team through this partnership and look forward to building on the success Fortune has achieved,” says Steffens. The deal, which will take effect early in 2022, came about as Steffens and FortuneBank founder, chairman, and CEO, Daniel Jones, found they related well at the annual convention of the Missouri Bankers Association in Branson, MO.

According to an article in the St. Louis Business Journal ¹ , Jones felt through conversations with Steffens, that Southern Bank was the right choice for their customers.

“Both of us being principled men with foundations of a Christian faith, coupled with the small town upbringing made our course through life and our core beliefs very similar,” said Jones. “Chris and I left with the feeling that our employees and customers would be well served and in good hands with Southern as our partner.” ¹

We are also excited to welcome Daniel Jones to our executive leadership team as he is expected to join the boards of directors of Southern Missouri Bancorp and Southern Bank as part of the deal.

With the merger expected to close in February of 2022, current FortuneBank customers can expect to receive communications about the transition in the coming months.

The transaction will be subject to approval by shareholders as well as state and federal regulating bodies.