HomeStar Bank is an Illinois chartered community bank fully insured by the Federal  Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). The bank maintains the "well capitalized" ranking of the FDIC. Total assets have grown from $40 million in 1987 to over $465 million by March 2006. The bank also manages another $518 million of home mortgages.

HomeStar Bank has its roots in Kankakee County following World War II. In 1946, F.W. Smith and several other Manteno community leaders established Manteno State Bank. The Bank primarily served the Village of Manteno until 1987 when it purchased the Bradley Bank in the Village of Bradley. Over the next nine years, each bank expanded to serve other areas of Kankakee County with the establishment of two additional full service branches in neighboring villages. In 1996, the two banks merged all branches and operations under the name of HomeStar Bank.

In 1998, we expanded into Will County with the opening of our first "Mortgage and Investment Center" located in Mokena.  Then in the fall of 2001, the Mokena office became a full-service branch, offering a complete line of deposit products and services including a 24-hour ATM. 

In November 2005, the bank expanded our territory to include the Manhattan area. Our facility is located at 25640 S. Gouger Rd 2 in Manhattan to serve the residents of Manhattan with products including Loan Services, Insurance Services and deposit services. 

The most recent addition to the bank came in February 2006 with the opening of a full-service bank on the first floor of the Clock Tower Centre at 187 S. Schuyler Avenue in downtown Kankakee.

The HomeStar philosophy today is the same as it was when the Bank opened in 1946. Namely, to offer our customers competitive rates on loans and deposits, modern financial services and the old-fashioned personal attention that is so hard to find today.

It is a philosophy that has served our communities and customers well for the past 60 years and a philosophy that we believe will serve them well for many years to come.

Below is a video clip (in windows media player format) that is about 2 minutes long about the history of the bank.

Our History