First BanCorp Completes $94.8 Million Private Placement of Common Stock with Scotiabank
27 Agosto 2007 - 2:30PM
PR Newswire (US)
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico, Aug. 27 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- First
BanCorp (NYSE:FBP) today announced the completion of its sale of
9.250 million shares of First BanCorp's common stock to Scotiabank
(TSX, NYSE: BNS) in a private placement. Scotiabank has funded the
transaction paying $10.25 per First BanCorp common share, for a
total purchase price of approximately $94.8 million. Scotiabank
owns 10% of First BanCorp's outstanding common shares as of the
close of the transaction. "This offering further solidifies our
strong capital position as we continue to execute our strategic
business initiatives," said Luis Beauchamp, President and Chief
Executive Officer of First BanCorp. "We are pleased to have
Scotiabank's trust in the financial, operational and managerial
strength of the FirstBank franchise." In connection with the sale
of the shares, First BanCorp entered into a Stockholder Agreement
with Scotiabank. First BanCorp described the material terms and
conditions of the Stockholder Agreement in a Current Report on Form
8-K that was filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on
February 22, 2007. UBS Investment Bank served as placement agent
and acted as First BanCorp's financial advisor in the offering.
About First BanCorp First BanCorp is the parent corporation of
FirstBank Puerto Rico, a state- chartered commercial bank with
operations in Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands and Florida; of
FirstBank Insurance Agency; and of Ponce General Corporation. First
BanCorp, FirstBank Puerto Rico and FirstBank Florida, formerly
Unibank, the thrift subsidiary of Ponce General, all operate within
U.S. banking laws and regulations. The Corporation operates a total
of 153 financial services facilities throughout Puerto Rico, the
U.S. and British Virgin Islands, and Florida. Among the
subsidiaries of FirstBank Puerto Rico are Money Express, a finance
company; First Leasing and Car Rental, a car and truck rental
leasing company; and FirstMortgage, a mortgage origination company.
In the U.S. Virgin Islands, FirstBank operates First Insurance VI,
an insurance agency and First Express, a small loan company. First
BanCorp's common and preferred shares trade on the New York Stock
Exchange under the symbols FBP, FBPPrA, FBPPrB, FBPPrC, FBPPrD and
FBPPrE. Safe Harbor This press release may contain "forward-looking
statements" concerning the Corporation's future economic
performance. The words or phrases "expect," "anticipate," "look
forward," "should," "believes" and similar expressions are meant to
identify "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the
Private Securities Litigation reform Act of 1995. The Corporation
wishes to caution readers not to place undue reliance on any such
"forward-looking statements," which speak only as of the date made,
and to advise readers that various factors, including the
Corporation's ability to file the 2007 quarterly reports so that
the Corporation can return to compliance with the reporting
requirements under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the ability
to obtain a final order approving the settlement of the shareholder
litigation, interest rate risk relating to the secured loans to
Doral and R&G Financial, the continued repayment by Doral and
R&G Financial of their outstanding loans, the impact on net
income of the reduction in net interest income resulting from the
repayment of a significant amount of the commercial loans to Doral,
the impact of the consent orders on the Corporation's future
operations and results, the Corporation's ability to continue to
implement the terms of the consent orders, FirstBank's ability to
issue brokered certificates of deposit, its liquidity, the ability
to fund operations, changes in the interest rate environment,
regional and national economic conditions, including the risks
arising from credit and other risks of the Corporation's lending
and investment activities, particularly the condo conversion loans
in its Miami Agency, competitive and regulatory factors and
legislative changes, could affect the Corporation's financial
performance and could cause the Corporation's actual results for
future periods to differ materially from those anticipated or
projected. The Corporation does not undertake, and specifically
disclaims any obligation, to update any "forward- looking
statements" to reflect occurrences or unanticipated events or
circumstances after the date of such statements. DATASOURCE: First
BanCorp CONTACT: Alan Cohen, Senior Vice President, Marketing and
Public Relations, First BanCorp, +1-787-729-8256, Web site:
http://www.firstbankpr.com/
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