Raleigh, North Carolina-based First-Citizens Bank & Trust Co. has applied to open a new business and commercial banking office in Wauwatosa.
The company plans to relocate 12 employees from other area locations to the 6,500-square-foot branch at 10401 W. Innovation Drive, Suite 150, in the Milwaukee County Research Park. Located in a leased space, the office is set to open in the fourth quarter. It would not be a full-service branch, but would focus on serving business and commercial customers, said Frank Smith, vice president and communications project manager at First Citizens Bank.
“It’s an excellent location. It’s in the center of the metro Milwaukee area and southeastern Wisconsin,” Smith said. “It’s also near the Milwaukee Regional Medical (Center) campus and one of our areas of expertise is serving medical professionals, so we’re really excited to be coming to this area and serving the people and medical professionals there.”
Scott Kraemer, Wisconsin area executive, will be based at the Wauwatosa office. He leads commercial banking and banker sales support for the market. Kraemer joined Citizens Bank in March 2018 after 36 years at BMO Harris Bank in the Milwaukee area.
If approved, this would be First Citizens Bank’s 15th location in the Milwaukee market. First-Citizens Bank & Trust Co. entered the market with the May 2017 assumption of the deposits and some assets of Glendale-based Guaranty Bank when that bank failed. In October, First-Citizens acquired Milwaukee-based Capital Commerce Bancorp Inc., parent company of the four-branch Securant Bank & Trust. As of October, First-Citizens was operating 14 locations in the Milwaukee market. First Citizens Bank has more than 500 branches in 19 states, and is a subsidiary of the $35 billion First Citizens BancShares Inc.
