Community Unity Bank in Birmingham to be Acquired by British Bank for Entrepreneurs

Community Unity Bank (CUB) in Birmingham, today announced it has agreed to be acquired by OakNorth, a United Kingdom-based institution focused on entrepreneurs, in an unspecified amount stock-for-stock transaction.

The acquisition, which is subject to regulatory approval, follows authorization that OakNorth received in August 2024 from the Federal Reserve and the New York State Department of Financial Services for a representative office in New York.

The acquisition will enable OakNorth to expand its business lending throughout the United States, as well as in Michigan.

“With an entrepreneurial focus at our core, and every team member striving for customer delight, we are very excited to be joining forces with OakNorth to support an even greater number of US businesses together,” says Greg Wernette, CEO of CUB who will serve as CEO of OakNorth’s U.S. Bank.

“CUB was formed by bringing together entrepreneurs from around Oakland County with diverse backgrounds to meet a growing need for small business banking. As business owners and executives, we know that access to capital means everything, and CUB was started to meet that need, assembling a team experienced at lending during both up cycles and down cycles.”

CUB was launched in 2023 to provide a full-service suite of banking products to businesses and individuals, primarily in southeast Michigan. The bank has been establishing relationships with a broad range of local businesses with funding for business expansions and depository services.

“This transaction is a transformational opportunity for CUB that, with OakNorth, will provide us with the capital and leading-edge technology to move us forward in new and exciting ways,” says Ron Klein, chairman of the board of CUB. “With OakNorth, our resources and lending capabilities will increase dramatically allowing us to grow our commercial lending business to better serve our community, customers, team members, and shareholders.”

Founded in 2015, OakNorth supports the lower mid-market (businesses with $1 million to $100 million of revenue), providing debt finance and personalized banking services. It uses data and analytics to apply larger company lending approaches to this market segment.

To date, OakNorth has provided approximately $16 billion of financing to businesses across a wide range of sectors. Its loans have directly contributed to the creation of 56,000 new jobs, and 34,000 new homes in the U.K. and U.S., the majority of which are affordable and social housing. OakNorth began operating in the US in mid-2023, and has since lent more than $700 million to businesses in the United States.

“We welcome the CUB team to OakNorth, and look forward to working with them to empower businesses across Michigan and the U.S. to achieve their growth ambitions,” says Rishi Khosla, co-founder and CEO of OakNorth.

“In the summer of 2023 following the collapse of several U.S. banks, which had been focused on serving the lower mid-market, we saw an opportunity to step up and do our part in helping to fill the funding gap they were experiencing. Over the last 18 months, we’ve supported businesses with their growth ambitions, providing several hundred million dollars of capital.

“Demand from U.S. borrowers continues to be exceptionally strong and our differentiated offering and unique approach to lending has enabled us to rapidly establish a strong presence in the U.S. market.”