In Brief: $26 Million Merger in Southern California

VIB Corp. of El Centro, Calif., has announced plans to acquire Bakersfield-based Bank of Stockdale in a stock deal.

The buyer, the parent of Valley Independent Bank, said Wednesday that it would issue 2.1 million shares of stock in exchange for Bank of Stockdale's 1.2 million.

VIB, which announced the deal Sept. 16, put its value at about $26 million. That comes to 2.83 times Bank of Stockdale's book value and 37.39 times earnings.

The deal is expected to close in early 1999

VIB, a commercial bank organized in 1981, operates 13 branches in the Southern California valleys and six loan offices in California, Nevada, and Arizona.

Bank of Stockdale, a federal thrift founded in 1985, has $135 million of assets, two branches in Bakersfield, and a loan production office in Fresno. It would retain its name, directors, and employees.

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