Rhode Island-based Washington Trust Bancorp will acquire the New Haven-based registered investment advisory firm Halsey Assoc. Inc. in a deal expected to close in the third quarter this year.

"Halsey is a very well run company in and of itself. We feel the employees there will be additive to our effort. We thought it was a very logical acquisition," said Joseph J. MarcAurele, Washington Trust’s chairman and CEO.

MarcAurele, who describes Washington Trust as a community bank with an outsized wealth management business, said the $3.5 billion bank presently has about $5.2 billion in assets under management in its wealth management division. The acquisition of Halsey Assoc., which has about $850 million in assets under management, will bring that number up to about $6 billion.

He said Washington Trust has a history of acquiring registered investment advisors, pointing to its acquisition of the Providence-based Phoenix Investment Management Co. in 2000 and its 2005 acquisition of Weston Financial, in Wellesley, Mass.

The deal strengthens Washington Trust’s presence in Connecticut, too. While Washington Trust doesn’t have any full-service branches in the Nutmeg State, the bank does have residential mortgage origination officers in Glastonbury and Darien and it does a fair bit of commercial real estate lending in the state, too. The bank also has residential mortgage loan officers in Massachusetts – in Sharon, Burlington and Braintree.

"We like New Haven. We like Connecticut," MarcAurele said. "We really think that certainly New Haven, out toward the west and Fairfield County is a vibrant market… Certainly, values on the real estate side have held and improved there. We also believe that we can grow the wealth management business. Halsey serves a high net worth client base and that’s something we believe we’re good at and we think there’s more business to get there."

MarcAurele said the company has not yet decided whether it will bring Halsey Assoc. under the Washington Trust name or let it continue to operate under its current name.

Washington Trust will acquire all of the outstanding shares of Halsey capital stock.  Consideration for the transaction will consist of a combination of cash and Washington Trust common stock.  Halsey’s principals will have the opportunity to receive additional cash consideration over a future earn-out period.

Washington Trust was advised by Sandler O’Neill & Partners, L.P.  Halsey Assoc. Inc. was advised by Silver Lane Advisors.