Orange County Business Bank has agreed to sell to HomeStreet Inc. for $55.3 million.
Irvine-based OC Business Bank, headed by Chairman and Chief Executive J.P. Gough, had about $200 million in assets as of June 30. Its sole office will become an office of HomeStreet Bank, according to a statement.
OC Business Bank’s stock, which is traded on the OTC exchange, was up 23% at midday to $52 million in market capitalization.
HomeStreet is a financial services company based in Seattle and is the holding company for HomeStreet Bank. It had about $4.9 billion in assets as of the end of the second quarter. HomeStreet’s stock was flat, at a recent market capitalization of $516.3 million.
HomeStreet has a number of branch and operations centers in California, including a home-loan center each in Brea and Newport Beach.
The acquisition is expected to close in the fourth quarter or first quarter of next year.
OC Business Bank had been under pressure for several months from activist investors, including Dallas-based Commerce Street Investment Management, to improve shareholder returns and possibly sell the bank.
