MidWestOne Financial Group raises capital with stock sale

An Eastern Iowa bank holding company has raised $8.4 million of new capital with a private placement newly issued common stock.

MidWestOne Financial Group in Iowa City, owner of MidWestOne Bank and Central Bank, sold 300,000 shares of common stock at $28 per share to various institutional investors.

The company in a news release said it plans to use the new capital for the retirement of debt and to support the continued growth of its wholly owned bank subsidiaries - MidWestOne Bank in Iowa City and Central Bank in Golden Valley, Minn.

MidWestOne Financial also has an insurance subsidiary, MidWestOne Insurance Services, which provides personal and business insurance services in Iowa.

'We believe our past results have provided our existing institutional shareholders with confidence in MidWestOne, which prompted interest in participating in this private placement,” said Charles Funk, president and CEO.

'We are gratified by the interest shown in our company since our announced merger with Central Bancshares. This new capital will help the company continue to grow and realize our financial goals.”

MidWestOne Financial Group and Central Bancshares, owner of Central Bank, in November 2014 announced plans to merge. The combined company - Mid­WestOne Financial Group - has assets of nearly $3 billion.

MidWestOne Bank operates 25 branches in Iowa and Central Bank has 20 branches in the Minneapolis/St. Paul metropolitan area and western Wisconsin as well as branches in southwest Florida.