Conn.’s People’s United Acquiring Northern New England’s Chittenden

People’s United Financial, Inc., the holding company for People’s United Bank in Bridgeport, Connecticut, has agreed to acquire similarly-sized Chittenden Corp. of Burlington, Vermont, in a stock and cash transaction valued at $1.9 billion.

The combined company will have assets of approximately $22 billion.

People’s United Bank, one of the largest independent banks in Connecticut with assets of $11 billion, currently operates 160 branches, 75 of which offer banking in Super Stop & Shop supermarket locations across Connecticut. People’s United insurance subsidiaries include R.C. Knox and Beardsley, Brown Bassett.

Chittenden currently has 133 offices in Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine and western Massachusetts through six bank subsidiaries. Chittenden’s subsidiaries include Chittenden Insurance, formerly Pomerleau Agency, which it acquired n 1997. Chittenden Insurance Group acquired the assets of GSBI Insurance of Portsmouth, N.H. in 2004.

The purchase price is approximately $1.9 billion, of which approximately 55% is in cash and 45% in People’s United Financial stock.

The acquisition is subject to approvals by regulators and Chittenden Corp.’s shareholders. It is expected to close in the first quarter of 2008 .