Valley Bank Courts Small Businesses With Bluevine Acquisition | PYMNTS.com

Valley Bank is pursuing a $340 million acquisition of Bluevine to strengthen its funding base, expand its small-business franchise, and accelerate its digital and AI strategy, the bank said in a news release dated Monday, Sept. 28. Valley’s chairman, president and CEO Ira Robbins said Bluevine has built a small-business-focused franchise with a diversified base of operating-deposit relationships, an engaged customer community, and a modern technology platform. Bluevine, founded in 2013 and based in Jersey City, serves about 175,000 active small-business customers. The release says platform-generated deposits grew at roughly a 35% compound annual growth rate from 2023 through the second quarter of this year, with nearly all deposits currently from non-borrowing customers. Valley said the deal adds a nationwide digital acquisition channel alongside its relationship-led model, and it would give Bluevine customers broader offerings through Valley’s branch network and treasury management, plus credit, insurance, wealth and capital markets solutions.