Huntington Bancshares has completed its acquisition of Capstone Partners, a leading investment banking and advisory firm, creating a full-service banking experience for clients in Huntington's expanding capital markets and commercial banking franchise.

With primary offices in Boston and Denver and additional offices in 12 U.S. cities – including Chicago, Dallas, Detroit, Los Angeles, New York and Philadelphia – Capstone brings a national scale to serve middle market business owners throughout the corporate lifecycle, building on Huntington's strong regional banking foundation. Together, Capstone and Huntington provide a unified set of banking solutions across traditional commercial banking, investment banking and capital markets, specifically tailored for private business owners.

Deal synergies:

• Deep Industry Expertise: Enables Huntington to deliver extensive domain expertise across 12 primary industry sectors

• Full Lifecycle Capabilities: Expands and elevates Huntington's business owner solutions for M&A, financing and strategic advisory   

• Broader Combined Footprint: Further expands Huntington's reach and strengthens its ability to deploy integrated, national teams at the local client level

• Customer-Centric Cultural Alignment: Reflects a common commitment to Huntington's client-first approach

"The combined industry expertise of Huntington and Capstone, along with our ability to serve our growing core middle market client base across the United States, enables us to expand our role as a trusted advisor to a wide variety of businesses," said Scott Kleinman, senior executive vice president and co-president of Huntington Commercial Banking. "Our industry insights and full range of capabilities position us to provide a consistent, differentiated experience for our clients, who will benefit from an aligned culture that puts customers and communities at the center of everything we do."

Capstone has four primary areas of expertise: Mergers & Acquisitions, Capital Advisory, Financial Advisory and Special Situations & Restructuring. Capstone consistently ranks among the top U.S. advisors for middle market M&A.

"Capstone had a strong strategic partnership with Huntington before we agreed to join forces. We're seeing tremendous interest from Huntington commercial bankers, who are eager to add investment banking and advisory services to round out the full range of solutions they can provide their clients," said John Ferrara, founder and president of Capstone Partners. "Our combination will accelerate Capstone's plans for continued growth while also bolstering Huntington's banking verticals, especially in sponsor finance, healthcare, technology and telecom, and industrials."

Keefe, Bruyette & Woods, A Stifel Company, served as financial advisor to Capstone Partners.

Previously reported on ABL Advisor: Huntington Bancshares to Acquire Capstone Partners