Randy Peterson knew a sale was in the cards for the First National Bank of Buhl. Having worked at the Minnesota bank for nearly two decades, he'd seen other small community banks consolidate. And while Peterson expected another bank would be the eventual landing spot for Buhl, an unexpected buyer came along in January 2021: Brian Barnes, founder and CEO of fintech unicorn M1 Finance.
"With trying to keep up with regulations and the cost of software and everything else, a sale was a matter of time. It was destiny at some point," Peterson, who took over as CEO of the First National Bank of Buhl in 2013.