Bank Branches › Closed and merged banks › Michigan › Firstbank - West Michigan
What happened to Firstbank - West Michigan?
Firstbank - West Michigan in Ionia, MI (earlier called The Ionia County National Bank of Ionia) merged into Firstbank of Mt. Pleasant, MI on Jan 31, 2013. After 1 more change of hands, what was Firstbank - West Michigan is today part of Mercantile Bank (Grand Rapids, MI).
The chain, step by step
From the day it opened to the bank at the end of the chain today. Each step is one entry in the FDIC's record.
- 1934The Ionia County National Bank of Ionia opens in Ionia, MI
- Jul 1, 2007renamed Firstbank - West Michigan
- Jan 31, 2013MERGEDFirstbank - West Michigan merged into Firstbank of Mt. Pleasant, MI.FDIC certificate 14471 ends; its business continues under certificate 1597.
- Jun 30, 2014MERGEDFirstbank of Mt. Pleasant, MI merged into Mercantile Bank of Michigan of Grand Rapids, MI.FDIC certificate 1597 ends; its business continues under certificate 34598.
- TodayOPEN
Mercantile BankMain office Grand Rapids, MI · FDIC certificate 34598 · 40 offices in 1 state on June 30, 2026Every Mercantile Bank office → Website on file with the FDIC: www.mercbank.com
If you still have something from Firstbank - West Michigan
A lien that was never released
If a paid-off mortgage, home-equity line or car loan still shows Firstbank - West Michigan as lienholder, start with Mercantile Bank. In a merger the surviving bank takes over the other bank's loans, so it is the bank to ask for a recordable lien release; if the loan was sold along the way, it can tell you to whom.
The FDIC says it cannot process lien releases for banks that merged or were acquired without government assistance, which is what the record shows here.
Record the release with the same county office that recorded the original mortgage or deed of trust.
An old account, passbook or CD
Ask Mercantile Bank to search for the account under the name Firstbank - West Michigan. A passbook or certificate shows an account existed. It doesn't show the money is still there, and the OCC notes that federal rules require banks to keep most account records for five years.
Accounts nobody touches are eventually turned over to a state. The OCC puts the usual wait at three to five years with no activity, set by each state's law. Search the unclaimed-property program of the state of the owner's last known address on the bank's records, and any other state they lived in. It is free to search and to claim through a state's own site, and MissingMoney.com, an official site of the state administrators' association, searches most states at once.
A safe deposit box
Ask Mercantile Bank which branch now holds boxes from the Firstbank - West Michigan office you used. The OCC says a box with no activity for three to five years (the period is set by state statute) is likely treated as dormant, and its contents may be turned over to the state's unclaimed-property program.
Box contents are not covered by FDIC insurance.
Not sure this is your bank?
Many banks shared a name. Match the city and the years above against your paperwork, or search again with the town.
Credit unions were never FDIC-insured and are not in this record; the NCUA credit union lookup covers those. Banks that closed before about 1970 are not in the FDIC's list either.
One caution: banks also sell single branches. If the office you used was sold to a different bank along the way, the account went with the branch, not with this chain. The office list below shows which bank each office reports under now.
This page is drawn from FDIC records and federal guidance. It is not legal advice, and BankBranches is not a bank or a government office. More detail: lien releases · old passbooks and CDs · safe deposit boxes · unclaimed money.
Where the guidance comes from ▾
Its offices in the FDIC deposit reports
11 offices filed under this charter in some year from 1994 on. 4 are still open as of June 30, 2026.
| Office | Now |
|---|---|
| 2600 South State RoadBerlin Township, MI | OpenMercantile Bank |
| 9344 West Belding RoadOtisco Township, MI | OpenMercantile Bank |
| 2601 W Main StLowell, MI | OpenMercantile Bank |
| 202 N Dexter StIonia, MI | OpenMercantile Bank |
| 1500 West M-43 HighwayHastings, MI | No longer reported |
| 115 South Main StreetWoodland, MI | No longer reported |
| 145 Main StreetSunfield, MI | No longer reported |
| 302 West Main StreetIonia, MI | No longer reported |
| 105 South PearlBelding, MI | No longer reported |
| 145 West State StreetHastings, MI | No longer reported |
| 741 Valley View DriveIonia, MI | No longer reported |
Source: FDIC BankFind institution and history records, read Nov 15, 2026. The FDIC's list covers banks that ended in about 1970 or later. Look up certificate 14471 in the FDIC BankFind Suite to see the government's own entry. Corrections: me@byclaude.net.