Midland States Bancorp Expands Banking-as-a-Service Initiative with Synctera Partnership

EFFINGHAM, Ill., April 07, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) --  Midland States Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ: MSBI) (the “Company” or “Midland”) today announced a new partnership with Synctera, who provides consulting and a technology platform that connects banks with fintech partners. Midland expects to use its partnership with Synctera to focus primarily on developing fintech partnerships that will contribute low-cost deposits and increase the number of customers using its payment solutions.

Jeffrey G. Ludwig, President and Chief Executive Officer of Midland States Bancorp, said, “Over the past decade, we have had a very successful fintech partnership with an originator of consumer loans, which has given us valuable experience that we plan to leverage through a broader Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS) initiative. One of the goals of our technology investment over the past few years has been to position Midland to effectively compete in the BaaS space, and we are now well prepared to begin adding new fintech relationships and expanding our BaaS capabilities. Through our partnership with Synctera, we intend to be very disciplined in adding new relationships and prudently manage our growth in this area. Over the longer-term, we expect BaaS to become another important catalyst for our earnings growth and further improvement in our financial performance.”

Peter Hazlehurst, Co-Founder and CEO at Synctera, said, “My team has been impressed with the experience and technological know-how Midland already has in the BaaS space. Midland also shares our philosophy that BaaS provides enhanced opportunities for community banks to increase their relevancy across a footprint far wider than their branch network, and that banks that take advantage of this opportunity will have a competitive edge in the future of banking. With Synctera, Midland will be able to broaden the number of fintechs with whom it can easily partner to continue to scale efficiently and grow revenues.”

About Midland States Bancorp, Inc.

Midland States Bancorp, Inc. is a community-based financial holding company headquartered in Effingham, Illinois, and is the sole shareholder of Midland States Bank. As of December 31, 2021, the Company had total assets of approximately $7.44 billion, and its Wealth Management Group had assets under administration of approximately $4.22 billion. Midland provides a full range of commercial and consumer banking products and services and business equipment financing, merchant credit card services, trust and investment management, insurance and financial planning services. For additional information, visit https://www.midlandsb.com/ or https://www.linkedin.com/company/midland-states-bank.

About Synctera

Synctera’s end-to-end platform and guided, personalized experiences help FinTech builders create products with embedded banking, card issuance, and more. Synctera’s unique programs enable transparent, efficient partnerships between compatible FinTech builders and community banks, whether a FinTech builder is looking to quickly launch a minimally viable product or scale a fully-fledged offering. Launched in 2020, the company was co-founded by CEO Peter Hazlehurst, former head of Uber Money, head of Google Wallet and CPO at Yodlee, as well as CTO, Kris Hansen and Head of Product, Dominik Weisserth.  For additional information, visit https://www.synctera.com/.

Forward-Looking Statements

Readers should note that in addition to the historical information contained herein, this press release includes "forward-looking statements" within the meanings of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, including but not limited to statements about the Company’s plans, objectives, goals, future financial condition and future earnings levels. These statements are subject to many risks and uncertainties, including changes in interest rates and other general economic, business and political conditions, including the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and its potential effects on the economic environment, our customers and our operations, as well as any changes to federal, state and local government laws, regulations and orders in connection with the pandemic; changes in the financial markets; changes in business plans as circumstances warrant; risks relating to acquisitions; and other risks detailed from time to time in filings made by the Company with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Readers should note that the forward-looking statements included in this press release are not a guarantee of future events, and that actual events may differ materially from those made in or suggested by the forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements generally can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "will," "propose," "may," "plan," "seek," "expect," "intend," "estimate," "anticipate," "believe," "continue," or similar terminology. Any forward-looking statements presented herein are made only as of the date of this press release, and the Company does not undertake any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect changes in assumptions, the occurrence of unanticipated events, or otherwise.

MIDLAND CONTACT:
Douglas J. Tucker, Sr. V.P., Corporate Counsel, at dtucker@midlandsb.com or (217) 342-7321

SYNCTERA CONTACT:
Kara Lester, Gregory FCA for Synctera, at Synctera@gregoryfca.com or (610) 228-2119