Bank holding company expands advisory footprint in south-central Pa.. Sterling Financial Corporation has purchased the assets of Infinity Investment Advisors through Church Capital Management, Sterling's registered investment advisor affiliate. Lancaster, Pa.-based Sterling says the acquisition of Hershey, Pa.-based Infinity will make it a bigger player in south-central Pennsylvania’s wealth market.

Financial details of the transaction weren’t disclosed.

“The Infinity acquisition paves the way for us to enter the attractive Hershey area market – one that will complement the strong presence that Sterling already has in Lancaster, Harrisburg, Lebanon, York and other south- central Pennsylvania markets,” says J. Roger Moyer Jr., Sterling Financial’s president and CEO.

Infinity's end

In addition to deepening Sterling Financial’s wealth-management footprint in counties just west of Philadelphia, Gregory Church, founder and CEO of Church Capital Management, says the deal also makes sense from a business-culture standpoint. “[Infinity] is an excellent fit with our values and strategy of offering personalized, professional investment management to customers who want to grow their net worth,” he says.

Bruce Smith, Infinity’s president and CIO, will join Church Capital Management as vice president and an investment services advisor. Smith is the only management-team member listed on Infinity’s website. The firm has fewer than five salaried employees, according to its most recent ADV filing with the sec.gov Securities and Exchange Commission.

The Infinity brand will disappear when the transaction is completed early in 2006. Infinity’s office in Hershey will shared by Church Capital Management and Pennsylvania State Bank, a Harrisburg, Pa.-based community bank that Sterling acquired in 2004.

Church Capital Management has approximately $2.2 billion under administration with $1.8 billion of that being assets under management, according to Sterling.

Infinity had about $40 million in assets under management at the time of its latest – and probably last – ADV filing.

Sterling Financial shouldn’t be confused with Pepper Pike, Ohio-based Sterling, the family-office unit of Cleveland, Ohio-based National City Corporation. –FWR

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