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Terry Robinson, a longtime California banker, died on Jan. 11, three days before his Manhattan Bancorp announced a proposed merger with Plaza Bancorp. Manhattan, which is operating under an OCC order, did not publicly disclose Robinson's death, or his Dec. 31 retirement, even though he played an integral role negotiating the merger.
February 2
Wilshire Bancorp in Los Angeles has agreed to buy Manhattan Bancorp's mortgage lending division.
The $4.2 billion-asset Wilshire said in a press release Monday that it expects to complete the acquisition at the end of this month. The company did not disclose a price.
Wilshire said it will operate a "scaled down model" of the mortgage operation, which will include closing some existing loan-production offices. The company said it had already identified "significant cost savings" to increase efficiency, though it will keep two offices and "high-performing" loan officers and operations personnel.
Wilshire said it expects the division to boost net income by $3 million - and originate $550 million in mortgages - in the first year. The company said it plans to eventually expand the operations to its retail markets in Texas, New York and New Jersey. The new division is also expected to increase Wilshire's exposure to "non-ethnic markets" and create opportunities to bring in deposits.
Manhattan Bancorp in El Segundo, Calif., agreed last month to
