Betty Dillard bdillard@bizpress.net Dallas-based PlainsCapital Bank plans to open three branches in the Fort Worth area: one in Colleyville, another in Mansfield and a branch in Aledo. The Colleyville branch, located at 6100 Colleyville Blvd., has been a loan production office since 2013 and will become a full-service banking office on Feb. 18. The Mansfield location, at 1748 E. Broad St., also has been a loan production office since late last year and is expected to become a banking branch in March, while the Aledo office will open this summer. PlainsCapital Bank currently operates three locations in Fort Worth, one in Arlington and another in Weatherford. The three newest branches are the first additions in North Texas under the PlainsCapital brand since the bank, a part of the PlainsCapital Corp., was acquired by Hilltop Holdings Inc. in November 2012 for $700 million. Hilltop, a public financial holding company headquartered in Dallas, has more than $9 billion in assets, total deposits of $6.9 billion, $1.2 billion of equity, 4,750 employees and more than 350 locations in 43 states and the District of Columbia. The company has $177 million in excess capital, according to its website. Hilltop’s wholly owned subsidiary, National Lloyds Corp., provides property and casualty insurance through two insurance companies, National Lloyds Insurance Co. and American Summit Insurance Co. Hilltop is now building a regional commercial banking franchise through PlainsCapital Corp.’s three operating companies: PlainsCapital Bank, the No.3 Dallas-based regional commercial bank; PrimeLending, the No. 4 mortgage lender in the nation in purchase units for 2012; and FirstSouthwest Co., the No. 1 financial advisory firm nationwide for 2012. In September 2013, PlainsCapital Bank, which started in Lubbock in 1988, purchased 51 former locations of Edinburg-based First National Bank. The purchase included about $2.6 billion in assets and $2.4 billion in liabilities, including $1.7 billion of core deposits. As a result of this transaction, PlainsCapital is now in all major Texas markets. The deal gave it entrance into the Rio Grande Valley, Houston, Corpus Christi, Laredo and El Paso, among other markets. Prior to this transaction, PlainsCapital was the sixth-largest bank headquartered in Texas based on deposits. The bank’s footprint now consists of 84 locations, including the markets of Lubbock, Fort Worth, Dallas, Austin and San Antonio. Organic growth, acquisitions and/or branch network expansion are what drive the bank’s franchise growth, according to its founder, chairman and CEO, Alan B. White. White also serves as vice chairman of the board of directors for Hilltop Holdings. Expansion in Tarrant and surrounding counties reflects the company’s strategic vision, with the bank’s growth being fueled by a robust regional economy in a state with a historically competitive banking industry. “Texas has a good strong market. We feel very good about the Texas economy, and we have no intention of going outside Texas,” said Jerry L. Schaffner, president and CEO of PlainsCapital Bank since November 2010. Schaffner joined PlainsCapital in 1988 as a vice president. “We’ll continue to grow to help our customers grow. We’ll continue, if we can find the bankers, the talent, to look for opportunities to open new branches or for acquisitions,” he added. “We feel there’s an upside in Tarrant County. We’re in a good position to grow here as the economy is especially strong.” PlainsCapital has already hired the bankers for its three newest branches: Del Waller in Mansfield, Chris Strittmatter in Colleyville and Martin Talley in Aledo. Each location will have a staff of five to six employees. “We first hire the bankers, who then establish relationships within the community. People bank with people. We hire talented, seasoned bankers who help make PlainsCapital what it is today. That’s part of our strategic vision,” Schaffner said. Hilltop Holdings is continuing its expansion into the North Texas banking industry. On Jan. 10, the company made a bid to buy the rest of regional bank SWS Group Inc. that it doesn’t own for $7 per share. The deal would value SWS Group at about $231 million. Hilltop, which owns a 24 percent interest in SWS Group’s common stock, said the deal would complement its banking businesses. The proposed transaction is subject to the approval of the SWS board of directors as well as to customary and usual closing conditions.