EASTHAMPTON — Hometown Financial Group Inc., the holding company for bankESB, bankHometown, and Abington Bank, and North Shore Bancorp, the holding company for North Shore Bank, jointly announced that the organizations have entered into an agreement in which North Shore Bank will join the Hometown Financial Group family of banks through a merger of Abington Bank into North Shore Bank.

The combined bank will have more than $3 billion in assets and 25 full-service retail locations across Massachusetts’ North and South Shore regions and Southern New Hampshire. No branch closures or staff reductions are anticipated.

As part of the transaction, North Shore Bank will establish a new charitable foundation to supplement its existing philanthropic mission. At closing, the branches in the South Shore region will continue to operate under the Abington Bank brand as a division of North Shore Bank, led by Kevin Tierney Sr., the current CEO of North Shore Bank, who will take on the additional role of president of Hometown Financial Group.

Michael Wheeler, currently president and chief operating officer of North Shore Bank, will also become the chief operating officer of Hometown Financial Group. This transaction will allow long-time Abington Bank President and CEO Andrew Raczka to retire after a long career in community banking.

The boards of directors of North Shore Bank and Abington Bank will merge at closing, and corporators of North Shore Bank will join corporators of Hometown Financial Group.

“We’re thrilled to welcome North Shore Bank’s customers, employees, and communities to the Hometown Financial Group family of banks,” said Matthew Sosik, the chairman and CEO of Hometown Financial Group and president and CEO of bankESB. “This merger will more than double our presence in Eastern Massachusetts in terms of locations and assets, so we’re eager to share the significant power and resources of Hometown Financial Group with the employees and customers of North Shore Bank.”

Following completion of the transaction, Hometown Financial Group will have consolidated assets of approximately $6.4 billion, nearly 700 employees, and a branch network of 52 full-service offices across Massachusetts, Northeastern Connecticut, and Southern New Hampshire. This transaction is the seventh strategic merger for Hometown Financial Group in the last nine years.

The merger has been unanimously approved by the boards of Hometown Financial Group, Abington Bank, and North Shore Bank. The transaction is anticipated to close in the second half of 2024, subject to the receipt of all required regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions.