East West Bancorp (EWBC) Shares Rocket Higher Amid Acqusition of UCB

November 9, 2009 2:06 PM EST

Shares of East West Bancorp (Nasdaq: EWBC) are soaring today following news on Friday that it has acquired United Commercial Bank in a deal that analysts believe will expand market share and improve earnings. The stock is currently up 50% to around $12.99.

East West Bancorp obtained $10.4 billion in assets and $9.2 billion in liabilities in the deal.

The deal to acquire the San Francisco-based competitor was arranged by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. which will share any losses on $7.7 billion of the total loans taken in. The move eliminates a rival for East West Bancorp, giving the bank a stronger grasp on the market.

The deal is being scrutinized by government regulators who are pushing United Commercial Bank to raise as much as $600 million in capital. UCB is the first of the commercial banks to fail after receiving TARP money.

The deal will allow East West Bancorp to expand into the Chinese market as UCB is one of the largest banks in the Chinese-American niche.

Related Categories

Insiders' Blog
Mergers and Acquisitions
Momentum Movers

Stocks Mentioned

Add Your Comment

Name

Subject

Body

Verification can't see the text?
click here to refresh the image.
what's this?