In its 180 years, United Bank has grown from an office in Parkersburg, W.Va., to a powerhouse financial institution with more than $19 billion in assets throughout the mid-Atlantic and Appalachian regions. The company has more than doubled in size in just the last five years. Ten of the company’s last 11 acquisitions have been in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area, which now accounts for more than half of United’s assets.

On the latest episode of the ABA Banking Journal Podcast, United Bankshares President Rick Adams talks about United Bank’s experience with M&A and offers tips on providing quick and candid communication in the merger process. “The non-financial piece is the more difficult piece,” he says. He emphasizes the need to understand people and processes and “take the best of both institutions” to help transactions achieve their stated goals.

Adams also discusses how United Bankshares’ wealth management business gives it advantage over nonbanks with its ability to refer clients from the bank side, how it has built a successful indirect auto lending business and how it invests strategically in leadership development at all levels of the bank.