Detroit will be home to Michigan's largest headquartered bank, as Chemical Financial Corporation, the holding company for Chemical Bank, will immediately relocate its headquarters to its current location in downtown Detroit and plans in the longer term to move into the heart of the Motor City in a new 20-story building that will be built at the corner of Woodward Avenue and Elizabeth Street.
News of the headquarters move coincides with the announcement by the City of Detroit that after an exhaustive RFP and review process, it has named Chemical Bank its new primary banking partner for managing the city's operating deposit accounts, with expected balances of up to $500 million in deposits. Chemical Bank will provide banking services including a comprehensive suite of payment and deposit solutions, including lockbox services.
"Chemical Bank, Michigan's largest headquartered bank, is excited and pleased to be a part of the dynamic growth and success of Detroit," said Gary Torgow, chairman of Chemical Financial Corporation, a long time native Detroiter. "We are honored to be in a position to bring a bank headquarters back to the city of Detroit and become Detroit's hometown bank."
"Chemical Bank is a great banking partner for the city's finances and a great community partner, now headquartered in the City of Detroit," said Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan. "I am very excited to welcome Detroit's new hometown bank."
Chemical Bank, which has been headquartered in Midland, Michigan since its founding in 1917, grew significantly when it joined forces with Talmer Bank and Trust. That merger made Chemical Bank the state's largest headquartered bank with more than $20 billion in assets, approximately 3,300 employees, and 212 banking centers across Michigan, Indiana, and Ohio.
"Detroit is the financial hub for advanced manufacturing and mobility as well as a growing nexus for young entrepreneurs looking to leverage the city's rich history of innovation and hard work, and Chemical Bank is excited to help them build our economy and invest in Michigan's future," said Thomas Shafer, president and CEO of Chemical Bank. "With our legacy markets as our foundation, Chemical Bank's continued expansion into the Detroit market establishes us as a leading financial institution in the Midwest."
Chemical Bank also plans to add more than 500 employees to the city's workforce by moving its headquarters to downtown Detroit once construction on its new building is complete. In the interim, Chemical Bank will expand its Detroit offices at 333 Fort Street.
Chemical Bank also plans to retain its current Midland, Michigan workforce of more than 500 and its presence in that community as it expands into Detroit. Midland will continue to be the home of its corporate operations center. Shafer added, "We are excited about our continued strong ties to Midland and believe our operational infrastructure which is based there will continue to benefit from our increased transaction volumes from our growth markets."
The commitment to developing a major landmark tower in Detroit's downtown landscape and bolstering its workforce is the bank's second major investment in Detroit in the past four years. Prior to Chemical merging with Talmer Bancorp Inc., holding company for Talmer Bank and Trust, Talmer Bank and Duggan partnered in 2014 to adopt the Marygrove neighborhood to help stabilize and revitalize the historic region of Detroit. Talmer Bank committed $1 million to provide $25,000 in forgivable grants, over five years, and to partner with Southwest Housing Solutions to boost home ownership and help new buyers refurbish homes in the Marygrove community.
Published: Fri, Jul 27, 2018
