East West Bancorp, Inc. (Nasdaq: EWBC), parent company of East West
Bank, one of the nation’s premier community
banks, today announced that it intends to offer 150,000 shares, or
$150,000,000 aggregate liquidation preference, of Non-Cumulative
Perpetual Convertible Preferred Stock (the "Preferred
Stock”). The Company also expects to grant the
underwriter an option to purchase up to an additional 22,500 shares of
Preferred Stock, or $22,500,000 aggregate liquidation preference, to the
extent the underwriter sells more than 150,000 shares of the Preferred
Stock in the offering.
The proceeds from this offering will be used for general corporate
purposes, including to increase the Company’s
liquidity and capital and reduce its borrowings.
Dividends will be payable on the Preferred Stock on a non-cumulative
basis quarterly in arrears on each February 1, May 1, August 1 and
November 1, commencing on August 1, 2008.
The holders of the Preferred Stock will have the right at any time to
convert the Preferred Stock into shares of East West common stock, plus
cash in lieu of fractional shares. On or after May 1, 2013, the Company
will have the right under certain circumstances to cause the Preferred
Stock to be converted into shares of East West common stock.
Lehman Brothers Inc. is serving as the sole book-running manager and
underwriter of this offering.
The offering will be made under the Company’s
shelf registration statement filed with the Securities and Exchange
Commission on April 21, 2008. This press release does not constitute an
offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy securities and does
not constitute an offer, solicitation or sale in any jurisdiction in
which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful.
Copies of the preliminary prospectus supplement and accompanying
prospectus relating to the offering can be obtained from Lehman Brothers
Inc., c/o Broadridge, Integrated Distribution Services, 1155 Long Island
Avenue, Edgewood, NY 11717, telephone: 1-888-603-5847 fax: 631-254-7140,
or email: qiana.smith@broadridge.com.
About East West Bank
East West Bancorp is a publicly owned company, with $11.8 billion in
assets, whose stock 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 72 branch locations. East West
Bank serves the community with 70 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 press release contains statements that the Company believes are "forward-looking
statements.” These statements relate
to the Company’s financial condition, results
of operations, plans, objectives, future performance or business. You
should not place undue reliance on these statements, as they are subject
to risks and uncertainties. When considering these
forward-looking statements, you should keep in mind these risks and
uncertainties, as well as any cautionary statements the Company may make. Moreover, you should treat these statements as speaking only as of
the date they are made and based only on information then actually known
to the Company. There are a number of important factors that
could cause future results to differ materially from historical
performance and these forward-looking statements. Factors that might
cause such a difference include, but are not limited to, competitive
pressures on product pricing and services and financial institutions
generally; changes in the interest rate environment may reduce interest
margins; prepayment rates, loan originations and sale volumes,
charge-offs and loan loss provisions are inherently uncertain;
deterioration in the Company’s loan portfolio
could be worse than expected due to a number of factors such as the
underlying value of the collateral could prove less valuable than
otherwise assumed and assumed cash flows may be worse than expected;
general economic conditions, either nationally or in the states in which
the Company does business, may be less favorable than expected;
political developments, wars or other hostilities may disrupt or
increase volatility in securities markets or otherwise affect economic
conditions; changes and trends in the capital markets; the nature,
extent and timing of legislative or regulatory changes, reforms or
actions, or significant litigation, may adversely affect the businesses
in which the Company is engaged; effects of critical accounting policies
and judgments; changes in accounting policies or procedures as may be
required by the Financial Accounting Standards Board or other regulatory
agencies; fluctuation of the Company’s stock
price; ability to attract and retain the Company’s
key personnel; ability to receive dividends from the Company’s
subsidiaries; success and timing of other business strategies; ability
to secure confidential information through the use of computer systems
and telecommunications network; and the impact of reputational risk
created by these developments on such matters as business generation and
retention, funding and liquidity. You should refer to the Company’s
periodic and current reports filed with the Securities and Exchange
Commission for further information on other factors which could cause
actual results to be significantly different from those expressed or
implied by these forward-looking statements.
