THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, August 12, 1995 TAG: 9508120040
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: D2 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY TOM SHEAN, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Short : 43 lines
Seaboard Bancorp Inc., which last month halted merger discussions with Bank of Hampton Roads, has agreed to be purchased by Life Bancorp Inc., the Norfolk parent of Life Savings Bank.
Life announced Friday that it will pay $8.2 million, or $1.65 per share, in cash for the Virginia Beach parent of Seaboard Savings Bank.
``We look at the transaction as a branch acquisition,'' said Edward E. Cunningham, Life's president and chief executive officer. ``They have three excellent branches in markets we have been looking at.''
Life, the largest financial institution based in Hampton Roads, will pick up $69 million of Seaboard deposits as part of the transaction.
For Seaboard, the sale would end a difficult struggle with commercial real estate loans that began going sour in the late 1980s.
Organized in 1977, Seaboard has gone through a sweeping retrenchment in recent years to preserve its capital and stay alive.
Life has already examined Seaboard's loan portfolio for its quality, Cunningham said.
``I won't say it's clean, but it's a heck of a lot better than what it once was,'' he said.
The transaction with Life must be approved by Seaboard's shareholders and by thrift regulators. The two companies said they expect to complete their deal early next year.
Seaboard and Bank of Hampton Roads, a Chesapeake community bank, announced a preliminary agreement in April that called for the bank to pay $7.7 million in cash and stock for Seaboard.
But Seaboard announced three weeks ago that it had ended its discussions with Bank of Hampton Roads and was talking with other prospective buyers.
Life became interested in acquiring Seaboard early this year, Cunningham said. This spring, it re-examined the possibility of an acquisition and began talking with Seaboard two months ago. by CNB