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A large Columbia-based bank with a focus on serving underserved communities is absorbing another bank with a similar mission, a Thursday news release from the companies announced.
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Optus Bank, which was founded in 1921 and is South Carolina’s first African American-owned bank, is joining with Durham, North Carolina-based Mechanics and Farmers Bank, the second-oldest African American-owned bank.
Both companies are Minority Depository Institutions and certified Community Development Financial Institutions, federal designations which indicate a bank is primarily owned by minority businesspeople and aim to serve and empower economically distressed communities.
In a statement, Optus and Optus Bank Chairman Paul Mitchell called the merger a defining moment, saying it would greatly advance mission-driven banking.
“M&F Bank has a proud legacy of supporting entrepreneurship, fostering generational wealth, and expanding access to capital in underserved communities,” Mitchell wrote. “Together, we will create a stronger institution with greater scale, enhanced capabilities, and an expanded capacity to advance economic mobility throughout the Carolinas and beyond.”
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According to the release, the transaction’s total aggregate value is expected to exceed $105 million, with MFBP shareholders, M&F’s parent company, receiving up to $53.30 per common share in cash. The combined company’s total assets were valued at approximately $1.27 billion in March 2026, the release said.
The merger will form the largest African American owned financial institution in the United States, the release said. M&F’s seven locations will operate under their current name for two years before rebranding to Optus.
MFBP CEO James H. Sills III will continue in that role under the combined company, while Mitchell will remain Chairman.
Financial advisor firm Performance Trust Capital Partners, LLC and law firm Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough LLP assisted Optus in making the deal, which remains subject to regulatory and MFBP shareholder approval.
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