PASADENA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
East West Bancorp, Inc. (Nasdaq:EWBC), parent company of East West
Bank, one of the nation's premier community banks, has completed the
acquisition of Desert Community Bank, a $576 million asset commercial
bank headquartered in Victorville, California. Desert Community Bank
merged with East West Bank as of the close of business today.
The final consideration paid in the acquisition of Desert
Community Bank was $142.7 million. The consideration consisted of
approximately $64 million in cash and 2.0 million shares of East West
Bancorp common stock. East West issued $30.0 million in junior
subordinated debt to partially finance the acquisition.
Desert Community Bank will operate as a division of East West and
the name will be maintained. The nine branches are located in the
cities of Victorville, Apple Valley, Hesperia, Wrightwood, Adelanto,
Barstow and Phelan.
"We are excited to have the customers and employees of Desert
Community Bank join the East West family," said Dominic Ng, President
and CEO of East West. "We look forward to offering our full range of
products and services to the High Desert community and we anticipate a
smooth integration for our customers."
About East West
East West Bancorp is a publicly owned company with $11.4 billion
in assets and is traded on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the
symbol "EWBC". The Company's wholly owned subsidiary, East West Bank,
is the second largest independent commercial bank headquartered in
Southern California with 71 branch locations. East West Bank serves
the community with 69 branch locations across Southern and Northern
California and a branch location in Houston, Texas. East West Bank has
three international locations in Greater China, including a
full-service branch in Hong Kong and representative offices in Beijing
and Shanghai. For more information on East West Bancorp, visit the
Company's website at www.eastwestbank.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This release may contain forward-looking statements, which are
included in accordance with the "safe harbor" provisions of the
Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and accordingly, the
cautionary statements contained in East West Bancorp's Annual Report
on Form 10-K for the year ended Dec. 31, 2006 (See Item I -- Business,
and Item 7 -- Management's Discussion and Analysis of Consolidated
Financial Condition and Results of Operations), and other filings with
the Securities and Exchange Commission are incorporated herein by
reference. These factors include, but are not limited to: the effect
of interest rate and currency exchange fluctuations; competition in
the financial services market for both deposits and loans; EWBC's
ability to efficiently incorporate acquisitions into its operations;
the ability of EWBC and its subsidiaries to increase its customer
base; the effect of regulatory and legislative action, including
California tax legislation and an announcement by the state's
Franchise Tax Board regarding the taxation of Registered Investment
Companies; and regional and general economic conditions. Actual
results and performance in future periods may be materially different
from any future results or performance suggested by the
forward-looking statements in this release. Such forward-looking
statements speak only as of the date of this release. East West
expressly disclaims any obligation to update or revise any
forward-looking statements found herein to reflect any changes in the
Bank's expectations of results or any change in event.
Source: East West Bancorp, Inc.
Contact: East West Bancorp, Inc.
Julia Gouw, Chief Financial Officer, 626-768-6898