RALEIGH and ENGELHARD, N.C., April
1, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Crescent Financial Bancshares,
Inc. (NASDAQ: CRFN) and ECB Bancorp, Inc. (NYSE MKT: ECBE)
announced today the closing of their previously-announced
merger. The parties also announced the merger of their
subsidiary banks, VantageSouth Bank and The East Carolina
Bank. The combined bank will operate as VantageSouth
Bank.
"The East Carolina Bank team has built a strong bank with a
great reputation and excellent market share," said Scott Custer, CEO, Crescent Financial
Bancshares, Inc. "The combined bank is the leading
North Carolina community bank from
the central Piedmont to the coast,
and our customers will find that we are everything they expect from
a bank and much more."
The combined company has approximately $2.0 billion in total assets, $1.7 billion in total deposits, $1.2 billion in total loans, and an expanded
network of ATMs and 45 branches reaching across North Carolina.
"We are pleased to join such a dynamic and financially strong
banking company," said A. Dwight
Utz, president and CEO of ECB Bancorp, Inc. "Together we
will create value for our shareholders and enable our employees to
do what they do best - deliver exceptional service to our customers
and contribute to the success of the communities where they live
and work."
Under the terms of the merger agreement, shareholders of ECB
Bancorp, Inc. will receive 3.55 shares of CRFN for each share of
ECBE common stock. ECB Bancorp shareholders will receive
information shortly on how to exchange their ECB Bancorp shares for
shares of Crescent Financial Bancshares.
East Carolina Bank branches will
begin operating under the VantageSouth brand at the end of
April.
"The bank's name is changing, but our people are not," said Utz.
"Our customers will continue to work with bankers who they know and
trust, and the combined bank will have more resources. Whether
customers are interested in expanding their business or planning
for their retirement, we can provide the financial solutions that
best fit their needs."
Keefe, Bruyette & Woods, Inc. served as financial advisor
and Womble, Carlyle, Sandridge & Rice, LLP provided legal
counsel to Crescent Financial Bancshares, Inc. Sandler O'Neill
& Partners, L.P. served as financial advisor and Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton LLP served as
legal counsel to ECB Bancorp, Inc.
VantageSouth
Bank
VantageSouth Bank is a state-chartered bank operating forty-five
banking offices in central and eastern North Carolina. The common stock of Crescent
Financial Bancshares, Inc., which is headquartered in Raleigh and wholly-owns VantageSouth Bank, is
listed on the NASDAQ Global Market and trades under the symbol
CRFN. Investors can access additional corporate information,
product descriptions and online services through the bank's website
at www.vsb.com.
Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking
Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within
the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of
1995. You can identify forward-looking statements by words such as
"may," "hope," "will," "should," "expect," "plan," "anticipate,"
"intend," "believe," "estimate," "predict," "potential,"
"continue," "could," "future" or the negative of those terms or
other words of similar meaning. You should read statements that
contain these words carefully because they discuss our future
expectations or state other "forward-looking" information.
These forward-looking statements involve a number of risks and
uncertainties.
CRFN cautions readers that any forward-looking statement is
not a guarantee of future performance and that actual results could
differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking
statement. Such forward-looking statements include, but are not
limited to, statements about the benefits of the merger involving
CRFN and ECBE, CRFN's plans, objectives, expectations and
intentions, and other statements that are not historical facts.
Important factors that could cause actual results to differ
materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements
are set forth in CRFN's and ECBE's filings with the SEC. These
include risks and uncertainties relating to: the risk that the
businesses will not be integrated successfully; the risk that the
cost savings and any other synergies from the transaction may not
be fully realized or may take longer than expected; disruption from
the transaction making it more difficult to maintain relationships
with customers and employees; the diversion of management time on
post-merger-related issues; general worldwide economic conditions
and related uncertainties; the effect of changes in governmental
regulations; and other factors discussed or referred to in the
"Risk Factors" section of each of CRFN's and ECBE's most
recent Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC. Each
forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date of the
particular statement and except as may be required by law, neither
CRFN nor ECBE undertakes any obligation to publicly update any
forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information,
future events or otherwise.
SOURCE Crescent Financial Bancshares, Inc.; ECB Bancorp,
Inc.