SANTA CLARA, Calif. Bridge Bank of Silicon Valley said last week that it had raised more than $19 million in an initial public offering that was concluded April 11.
As a result, the bank is scheduled to open its doors by mid-May, targeting small businesses throughout Silicon Valley, particularly those owned by Asian-Americans.
The IPO lasted a little more than six weeks, and the amount raised exceeded the organizers stated goal by $4 million. The organizers sold 3.8 million shares of common stock at $5 each without using an underwriter. Pending regulatory approval, the stock is to trade over the counter.
Bridges strategy of raising capital through a stock offering is unusual these days, according to Paul Geary, a senior editor at Hoovers International, a Web information company that tracks initial public offerings. Of the roughly 400 IPOs completed from 1996 to 1999, about 100 were by banks, he said.
Last year, though, banks accounted for just eight of the 117 completed IPOs.
