Middlefield Banc Corp. (MBCN)

Middlefield Banc Corp. was the bank holding company for The Middlefield Banking Company, headquartered in Middlefield, Ohio. The bank was founded in 1901 and served communities in northeastern and central Ohio. The holding company's common stock traded on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the ticker MBCN.

The bank provided commercial banking services to small and mid-sized businesses, professionals and retail customers. Deposit products included checking, savings, money market accounts and certificates of deposit, while loans included commercial and commercial real estate loans, residential and construction mortgages, consumer installment loans, agricultural loans and loans under small business guarantee programs. It also offered online banking, bill payment, cash management services for businesses and ATM access. As a community bank holding company, Middlefield relied mainly on local deposits and lending to small businesses, farmers and homeowners, and its performance followed the interest rate environment and regional economic conditions in Ohio.

The company operated banking centers across northeastern Ohio, with locations in Chardon, Newbury, Middlefield, Garrettsville, Mantua, Orwell, Cortland, Beachwood, Solon and Twinsburg, and expanded into central Ohio with offices in the Columbus area, including Dublin, Westerville, Sunbury and Powell. It also had an administrative office in Middlefield and a loan production office in Mentor. Its growth included the 2022 acquisition of Liberty Bancshares, Inc., which broadened its central Ohio presence.

In October 2025, Farmers National Banc Corp., the holding company for The Farmers National Bank of Canfield, announced a definitive agreement to acquire Middlefield Banc Corp. in an all-stock merger. Farmers National, headquartered in Canfield, Ohio, was founded in 1887 and reported about $5.2 billion in banking assets at the end of 2025, with branches across Ohio and Pennsylvania and trust, insurance and wealth management subsidiaries.

Shareholders of both companies approved the merger, as announced in February 2026. The companies had expected the merger to close in the first quarter of 2026, and Farmers National later described the acquisition of Middlefield as having occurred on March 2, 2026. The transaction combined two Ohio-based community banking franchises with adjacent and overlapping markets, which the companies said would give the combined bank a larger scale in northeastern and central Ohio.

Upon completion, Middlefield shareholders received shares of Farmers National common stock under the exchange terms in the merger agreement, and Middlefield Banc Corp. ceased to exist as a separate public company. A Form 25 relating to Middlefield's common stock was filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 2, 2026. Farmers National Banc Corp. continues to trade on Nasdaq under the ticker FMNB, and holders of Middlefield stock now hold their investment through that company.