First Merchants Bank (Muncie, IN) is headquartered in MUNCIE and is the 2nd largest bank in the state of Indiana. It is also the 103rd largest bank in the nation. It was established in 1893 and as of March of 2023, it had grown to 2,139 employees at 125 locations. First Merchants Bank (Muncie, IN)'s money market rates are 11X the national average, and it boasts an A+ health rating.
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Arlington Bank bought out by First Merchants Bank
I had an account at Arlington Bank before they merged with First Merchant Bank. It was a small community bank where everyone knew everyone. It was easy to set up checking accounts and handle transactions in a timely manner. I had a checking and savings account with them. Now, since they have changed hands, I'm not exactly sure what their new goals are or how they changed. It was a positive experience working with Arlington Bank and adds to the hometown feel cities need to keep adopting instead of throwing away.
Party Like It's 1985
I refi'd this spring with a 2.25% rate. That's fantastic, but if I'd known what a headache it would be to *pay them*, I'd have taken a higher rate elsewhere. I'm still considering refinancing AGAIN just to get away from them.
- They can't autodraft my payment from my Huntington account. They blame Huntington. Odd, the refi for my other property completed in January manages to autodraft it just fine. As do my credit cards, etc. Only First Merchants can't get past this. They keep pulling the payment and then issuing a reversal and telling me I'm overdue.
- They can't ACH my Huntington account, either, though they told me they could and sent a form for me to do so.
- I finally used bill pay from my Huntington account to send them $1100. Nowhere on the site can I see that that $1100 payment posted, though they swear it did. Even the customer service agent said, "I could look at this list of transactions all day and they wouldn't make any sense to me." Great. How are they supposed to make sense to ME, then?
- I got an email saying payments weren't working and I was overdue, but when I call, they tell me I'm current. They say they've been mailing me statements, but I haven't gotten a single one from them. That department said they couldn't sign me up for e-statements, but they would transfer me to a department that could.
- Surprise! That department says they don't do e-statements for mortgages AT ALL. In 2021. So God forbid I would want to use money management software for transactions or something; there's zero chance of that.
If you want a bank that's living in this century, First Merchants is not for you.
Pass On This One
Couldn't agree more with the negative reviews trust the negative reviews
A small local bank got worse as it got bigger
I started banking with them when it was called Cooper State Bank, which was locally owned in my city, with only a small handful of branches. They were the only bank that had very generous weekend hours, including being open for about four hours on Sundays. Due to my weird working schedule, this was the primary reason I signed up with them. Their staff was incredibly friendly and helpful, and I never had to spend more than a few moments inside to get stuff done. I am just a normal working class guy, but they still took it upon themselves to address me by name when I walked in, which made me feel at home. I had an experience with debit card fraud once, and they helped me resolve it incredibly quickly, to the point where the money was back in my account (provisionally) the next day. There were no hoops to jump through, just twenty minutes of filling out some paperwork and a brief chat with the branch manager, who not only got my money back, but gave me some tips on how to avoid this kind of problem in the future.
My savings account minimum balance is only $100, and there is no minimum on my free personal checking account. They offer CDs at pretty standard rates. I have not used any of their business services, but would feel confident with them.
However, they were acquired by a larger firm based out of a different state, called First Merchants Bank. Once this acquisition happened, some of the staff with whom I had become very familiar were replaced, and the bank changed its hours so that it was no longer open on the weekends. I have stayed with them because of their proximity to my home, and just because I am already set up through them and don't want the hassle of going elsewhere at this point. But this acquisition kind of ruined the two things (personal relations with employees, and weekend hours) that were the biggest selling points of the bank.
Data as of Q1 2023
Learn why bank health mattersHealth Grade Components
| Overall | |
|---|---|
| FDIC Certificate # | 4365 |
| Year Established | 1893 |
| Employees | 2139 |
| Primary Regulator | FDIC |
| Profit Margin | |
|---|---|
| Return on Assets - YTD | 1.48% |
| Return on Equity - YTD | 12.35% |
| Annual Interest Income | $206.3MM |
| Assets and Liabilities | ||
|---|---|---|
| Assets | Q1 2023vs Q1 2022 | $18.16B$15.45B |
| Loans | Q1 2023vs Q1 2022 | $12.03B$9.16B |
| Deposits | Q1 2023vs Q1 2022 | $14.77B$13.06B |
| Equity Capital | Q1 2023vs Q1 2022 | $2.20B$1.76B |
| Loan Loss Allowance | Q1 2023vs Q1 2022 | $223.1MM$196.0MM |
| Unbacked Noncurrent Loans | Q1 2023vs Q1 2022 | $49.9MM$42.7MM |
| Real Estate Owned | Q1 2023vs Q1 2022 | $7.8MM$6.3MM |
