WSFS shareholders OK Beneficial merger

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WSFS Financial Corporation  stockholders overwhelmingly approved the previously announced merger of Beneficial Bancorp, Inc.

Beneficial stockholders approved the merger at a special meeting of stockholders on December. The bank is based in Philadelphia. WSFS is headquartered in Wilmington.

“The votes of approval by both companies’ stockholders represent another major milestone in our plan to transform WSFS Bank into the premier, locally-headquartered community bank with the size, scale and modern technologies to compete with banks of all sizes,” said Rodger Levenson, WSFS’ executive vice president and chief operating officer who will become WSFS’ President and  CEO  on January 1.

Subject to the receipt of the regulatory approvals and the satisfaction of other conditions to closing, the parties expect to close the merger in the first quarter of 2019. The projected system conversion and rebranding is expected to occur in August 2019.

Beneficial offices will be changed to the WSFS name with about a quarter of offices of the combined banks closing. Some of the savings from the consolidation will be used for a technology platform that addresses the needs of customers, some of whom now do much of their banking from mobile devices. 

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WSFS and Beneficial are of comparable size, with WSFS generating more profits through a wider variety of businesses that include wealth management and an ATM services company.

WSFS will be the largest bank headquartered in Delaware, ranks behind out-of-town giants like Wells Fargo.

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