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Four months after acquiring Birmingham, Ala.-based Superior Bank, Cadence Bancorp had made an all-cash offer of $250 million for Houston, Texas-based Encore Bancshares.
The deal is expected to close in the second half of this year.
With 12 offices in the Houston area, Encore has about $1.6 billion in total assets.
Cadence Bancorp – which was created with the merger of Cadence Bank of Starkville and Superior – has 100 locations in Mississippi, Alabama, Florida, Tennessee and Texas. Cadence has total assets of about $3.9 billion.
A little background on Cadence Bancorp:
Cadence Bancorp was formerly Houston-based Community Bancorp (or CBC), which raised $1 billion in 2010 for the express purpose of acquiring banks. CBC infused $144 in Cadence Bank last March and took it private.
Superior was closed by the FDIC in April, and CBC acquired its deposits and certain assets.
In November, CBC merged Cadence and Superior and renamed the new combined bank Cadence Bank. CBC then renamed itself Cadence Bancorp, with its headquarters in Birmingham. It maintains corporate offices in Starkville and Houston.
As for the acquisition of Encore, Cadence will pay $20.62 per share forsome 12.1 million outstanding shares of Encore stock.
“When we looked at potential partners in Houston, Encore Bancshares stood out,” said Paul B. Murphy Jr., CEO of Cadence Bancorp. “Encore is a solid franchise with a strategically located branch network, experienced bankers and an enviable customer base. This transaction expands the Cadence footprint and is a strong complement to the southeastern part of the franchise.”