Proposed Bank Deal Not Happening

Regular readers no doubt will remember our Oct. 3 Whisper regarding First Bank Corp. of Forth Smith’s plan to purchase Bank of Fayetteville.

Multiple sources told us the move was “a done deal,” and it made sense on many levels.

Looks like it’s time for a rewrite.

Sources — and some of the same ones we talked to previously — now say the deal will not happen. As negotiations progressed, we’re told, new hurdles presented themselves almost daily and ultimately proved to be deal-breakers.

President and CEO Sam T. Sicard, meanwhile, chose not to take the I-told-you-so approach, instead politely reasserting the fact FBC does have interest in expanding, but never had an agreement with any other financial institution.

Our conversation with Sicard, in fact, made us wonder if we jumped the gun. If there’s any solace to be found, perhaps it’s the fact we’re not the Northwest Arkansas Times, which ran a similar story with the following headline: “Bank of Fayetteville Sold.”