Deals & People December 4, 2006

First Charter Lets Go of Recordkeeping Unit

First Charter Corporation announced on Monday it has sold Southeastern Employee Benefits Services (SEBS), part of the Wealth Management division of First Charter Bank which provides recordkeeping and administrative functions for retirement plans.
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At the request of the purchaser, and to respect its wishes, Charlotte, North Carolina-based First Charter would not reveal the purchaser’s identity. However, Kevin Toomb, Executive Vice President, Director of Corporate Communications at First Charter Corporation, told PLANADVISER.com the purchaser is a large, nationally-known, well-respected firm which is not a bank and is not located in North Carolina.

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Toomb also said the purchaser does have a desire to grow business at SEBS. Employees of SEBS, located in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, were notified of the deal, which closed on Friday, via a meeting with the purchaser, according to Toombs.

In the First Charter announcement, John Allen, Senior Vice President and Director of the Wealth Management division at First Charter, said the firm will continue to use SEBS as the strategic recordkeeping partner for its Wealth Management clients.

The sale of SEBS is expected to result in a pre-tax gain of approximately $0.9 million for First Charter and will be recorded in the fourth quarter of 2006, the announcement said.

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