Atlantic Union acquires 53-branch Maryland bank

Atlantic Union Bankshares Corporation is acquiring Sandy Spring Bancorp in an all-stock transaction that values Sandy Spring at about $1.6 billion. The two companies made the announcement Oct. 21.

The merger will create the largest regional bank headquartered in the lower Mid-Atlantic region and will enhance the combined company's presence in Northern Virginia and Maryland. Sandy Spring operates 53 branches in the Washington, D.C. region, while Atlantic Union operates 129 branches in Virginia and North Carolina.

The combined company will have assets totaling $39.2 billion.

“At our 2018 investor day, I noted that part of our long-term vision was to complete the ‘Golden Crescent’ from Baltimore, through Washington D.C. and Richmond to Hampton Roads and recreate a banking franchise that had not existed since the 1990s,” said John C. Asbury, president and Chief Executive Officer of Atlantic Union, in a joint statement. “With today’s announcement of our partnership with Sandy Spring, Atlantic Union will create a preeminent regional bank, with Virginia as its linchpin, that spans the lower mid-Atlantic into the Southeast and that is committed to the communities it serves.”

Each outstanding Sandy Spring common stock will be converted into 0.9 shares of Atlantic Union common stock, per the merger agreement. This values the transaction at approximately $34.93 per Sandy Spring common share, based on Atlantic Union’s closing stock price Oct. 18.

Three members of the Sandy Spring board of directors, including Daniel J. Schrider, Chair, President and CEO of Sandy Spring Bank, will join the Atlantic Union board of directors upon the closing of the transaction.

Both companies' boards of directors approved the agreement unanimously, and the move is expected to be completed by the third quarter of 2025.