Merchants Bonding Co. will open a contract underwriting office March 2 in Phoenix that will serve Arizona and the Las Vegas metro area.  The office will be led by Iowa native Chris Bachman, Merchants’ assistant vice president of contract underwriting. The addition of the Phoenix office is the latest in Merchants’ expansion over the past five years.  Merchants opened offices in Dallas and Seattle in 2010 and in Kansas City in 2014.  Merchants is constructing a new corporate headquarters in West Des Moines, which will be completed by the fall. It currently is based in Des Moines. Bachman joined Merchants after serving for 17 years with Travelers Insurance, the last 11 as managing director of its Phoenix branch. He is a 1995 graduate of the University of Northern Iowa with degrees in finance and economics.