The Palmetto Bank Announces Agreement to Sell Two Branches
January 31, 2012
GREENVILLE, SC – January 30, 2012 – Palmetto Bancshares, Inc. (the “Company) (NASDAQ: PLMT) announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary, The Palmetto Bank, entered into a Purchase and Assumption Agreement (the “Agreement”) to sell its Rock Hill and Blacksburg, South Carolina branches to Carolina Premier Bank, a North Carolina state chartered bank and wholly owned banking subsidiary of Premara Financial, Inc.
The potential sale of these two branches was previously announced on December 14, 2011 as one of the Company’s strategic actions designed to align its infrastructure and expense base with its current balance sheet size, scope of business activities, and underlying revenue generating capacity of the franchise. Under the terms of the Agreement, Carolina Premier Bank will purchase real estate, equipment, substantially all of the loans, and certain other assets, and assume the deposits and lease obligations associated with these two branches. The terms of the transaction include a deposit premium to be paid to the Company at closing. The transaction, which is subject to regulatory approval and other standard closing conditions, is expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2012. Raymond James & Associates, Inc. served as financial advisor to the Company for the transaction.
“In December, we announced our intention to sell these two branches and we are pleased to reach an agreement with Carolina Premier Bank so that our clients in these markets will continue to have access to local banking services,” said Samuel L. Erwin, Chief Executive Officer of the Company. “Carolina Premier Bank is committed to providing the same level of high quality banking services that the clients of these branches have come to expect. As we noted when we originally announced our decision to sell these two branches, we believe the reduction in our branch network positions us for a more profitable future while we also continue to provide convenient and cost-effective banking services to our clients in the communities in which we operate.”
About The Palmetto Bank
Headquartered in Greenville, South Carolina, The Palmetto Bank is a 105-year old independent state-chartered commercial bank and is the fourth largest banking institution headquartered in South Carolina. The Palmetto Bank has assets of $1.2 billion and after completion of the reduction in the branch network announced in December 2011 will serve the Upstate through 25 banking locations in the nine counties of Abbeville, Anderson, Cherokee, Greenville, Greenwood, Laurens, Oconee, Pickens, and Spartanburg. The Bank specializes in providing personalized community banking services to individuals and small to mid-size businesses including Retail Banking (including Mortgage and Credit Cards), Commercial Banking (including Business Banking, Treasury Management and Merchant Services), and Wealth Management (including Trust, Brokerage, Financial Planning, and Insurance). Additional information may be found at the Company’s web site at www.palmettobank.com.
