March 8 public hearing set for sale of The Bank of Delmarva

The Delaware Office of the State Bank Commissioner has issued a notice about a public hearing Tuesday, March 8, regarding the sale of The Bank of Delmarva to New Jersey-based OceanFirst Financial Corp.

OceanFirst submitted an application with the state Jan. 31 to purchase The Bank of Delmarva. The merger of the two banks was announced in late 2021.

The Bank of Delmarva is a subsidiary of Partners Bancorp, which also owns Virginia Partners Bank. As of Sept. 30, 2021, Partners had $1.64 billion in assets, $1.11 billion in loans, $1.44 billion in deposits, and $139.5 million in stockholders’ equity.

The Bank of Delmarva operates 12 full-service branch facilities in the area: four in Salisbury, Md., and and three in Ocean City, Md.; and one each in Delmar, Seaford, Laurel, Dagsboro, and Rehoboth. The address for the Rehoboth location is 18572 Coastal Highway, which is the Pelican Square shopping center with Acme.

The hearing will be a virtual meeting held by phone. To access the hearing, call 302-504-8986. When prompted, enter teleconference access code 136 615 078#.

OceanFirst’s application is on file at the state bank commissioner’s office, 1110 Forest Ave., Dover. The non-confidential portions of the application are available for inspection during regular office hours and online on the state’s public meeting calendar at publicmeetings.delaware.gov.

Written comments on the potential sale may be submitted to the commissioner’s office in Dover. Individuals have the right to present evidence and to be represented by counsel. Any person wishing to present testimony at the hearing should register in advance of the hearing.