N / E / W / S R / E / L / E / A / S / E

August 15, 2018

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

For more information, contact:

Nicole M. Weaver, Vice President, Director of Investor Relations 765-521-7619

http://www.firstmerchants.com

SOURCE: First Merchants Corporation (NASDAQ: FRME), Muncie, Indiana

FIRST MERCHANTS CORPORATION ANNOUNCES CASH DIVIDEND

First Merchants Corporation declared a cash dividend on August 14, 2018 of $0.22 per share. The dividend is payable on September 21, 2018, to shareholders of record as of September 7, 2018. For purposes of broker trading, the ex-date of the cash dividend is September 6, 2018.

About First Merchants Corporation:

First Merchants Corporation is a financial holding company headquartered in Muncie, Indiana. The Corporation has one full-service bank charter, First Merchants Bank. The Bank also operates as Lafayette Bank & Trust and First Merchants Private Wealth Advisors (each as a division of First Merchants Bank).

First Merchants Corporation’s common stock is traded on the NASDAQ Global Select Market System under the symbol FRME. Quotations are carried in daily newspapers and can be found on the company’s Internet web page (http://www.firstmerchants.com).

FIRST MERCHANTS and the Shield Logo are federally registered trademarks of First Merchants Corporation.

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