Cathay General Bancorp to Acquire United Heritage Bank
November 21 2006 - 5:00PM
PR Newswire (US)
LOS ANGELES and EDISON, N.J., Nov. 21 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ --
Cathay General Bancorp ("Cathay") (NASDAQ:CATY), the holding
company for Cathay Bank, and United Heritage Bank ("UHB") announced
today that they had entered into an agreement for Cathay to acquire
UHB, which was founded in 1997, for $9.4 million in cash before
adjustments, if any. As of September 30, 2006, UHB had total assets
of approximately $60.4 million, total loans of approximately $40.0
million, total deposits of approximately $55.2 million, and total
shareholders equity of approximately $5.0 million. "We are pleased
to announce our agreement to acquire UHB and expand into New
Jersey, where there are many attractive communities including those
with significant numbers of Asian residents and businesses," said
Mr. Dunson K. Cheng, Chairman of the Board, President, and Chief
Executive Officer of Cathay. "Together with the nine branches that
Cathay has in New York City, our new Edison, New Jersey branch will
allow us to better serve our target market in the Greater New York
area. This acquisition continues Cathay's nationwide expansion
strategy as New Jersey becomes the seventh state served by Cathay's
branch network." "We are very pleased with this agreement to become
a part of Cathay, as they expand into New Jersey," said David Lee,
Chairman of the Board of UHB. "We believe that by joining Cathay,
we will be able to better serve our diverse community by expanding
our products and services, providing opportunities of growth for
our employees and continuing the spirit and intent underlying the
founding of United Heritage Bank. Cathay has a demonstrated
commitment to community banking and we look forward to being a part
of the Cathay family in the future," concluded Mr. Lee. Holders of
more than 50% of the shares of United Heritage Bank have agreed to
support the transaction and vote their shares in favor of the
merger proposal. Upon the completion of the merger, UHB
stockholders will be entitled to receive $9.40 in cash per share of
UHB common stock, without interest, and before adjustments, if any.
The transaction is expected to close during the first quarter of
2007 after the receipt of applicable regulatory approvals and the
satisfaction of other customary conditions. ABOUT CATHAY GENERAL
BANCORP Cathay General Bancorp is the holding company for Cathay
Bank, a California state-chartered bank. Founded in 1962, Cathay
Bank offers a wide range of financial services. Cathay Bank
currently operates thirty branches in California, nine branches in
New York State, one in Massachusetts, one in Houston, Texas, two in
Washington State, three in Chicago, Illinois, and representative
offices in Taipei, Hong Kong, and Shanghai. Cathay Bank's website
is found at http://www.cathaybank.com/. ABOUT UNITED HERITAGE BANK
United Heritage Bank was formed in 1997 in Edison, New Jersey and
has one branch in Edison, New Jersey. FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
AND OTHER NOTICES Statements made in this press release, other than
statements of historical fact, are forward-looking statements
within the meaning of the applicable provisions of the Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements other than
statements of historical facts included in this press release are
forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are not
guarantees. They involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties,
and other factors that may cause the actual results, performance,
or achievements, of Cathay General Bancorp to be materially
different from any future results, performance, or achievements
expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such risks
and uncertainties and other factors include, but are not limited
to: the ability to obtain governmental approvals of the merger on
the proposed terms and schedule; the risk that the businesses will
not be integrated successfully; and the risks of entering into new
markets. Additional factors that could cause results to differ
materially from those described in the forward-looking statements
can be found in Cathay General Bancorp's Annual Report on Form 10-K
for the year ended December 31, 2005, its Quarterly Report on Form
10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2006, its reports and
registration statements filed with the Securities and Exchange
Commission ("SEC") and other filings it makes in the future with
the SEC from time to time. All forward-looking statements speak
only as of the date of this press release. Cathay General Bancorp
has no intention and undertakes no obligation to update any
forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information,
future events or otherwise or to publicly announce the results of
any revision of any forward-looking statement to reflect future
developments or events. Cathay General Bancorp's filings with the
SEC are available to the public from commercial document retrieval
services and at the website maintained by the SEC at
http://www.sec.gov/, or by request directed to Cathay General
Bancorp, 777 N. Broadway, Los Angeles, CA 90012, Attention:
Investor Relations (213) 625-4749. DATASOURCE: Cathay General
Bancorp CONTACT: Heng W. Chen of Cathay General Bancorp,
+1-213-625-4752; or Joseph Chu of United Heritage Bank,
+1-732-985-8880 Web site: http://www.cathaybank.com/
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