Park Sterling Corporation (Nasdaq:PSTB), the holding company for
Park Sterling Bank, and Citizens South Banking Corporation
(Nasdaq:CSBC), the holding company for Citizens South Bank, jointly
announced today that they currently expect to consummate their
proposed merger on October 1, 2012, or as soon as practicable
thereafter.
Park Sterling and Citizens South both received approval for the
merger and the merger agreement at their special meetings of
shareholders and stockholders, respectively, held on September 26,
2012. All of the necessary regulatory approvals have been received
for both the parent and bank mergers. It is currently anticipated
that Citizens South Bank will merge with and into Park Sterling
Bank on October 10, 2012, or as soon as practicable thereafter.
James C. Cherry, Chief Executive Officer of Park Sterling,
commented, "This merger will bring together two strong banks to
create the largest community bank in the Charlotte region, with
offices stretching across the Carolinas and into north
Georgia. Customers of both Park Sterling and Citizens South
will benefit from the enhanced product and service offerings of our
larger company without sacrificing the friendly and personal
service they expect from their community bank."
About Park Sterling Corporation
Park Sterling Corporation is the holding company for Park
Sterling Bank, headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. Park
Sterling's primary focus is to provide financial services to small
and mid-sized businesses, owner-occupied and income producing real
estate owners, professionals and consumers doing business or
residing within its target markets. Park Sterling offers a full
array of banking services, including a diverse wealth management
group. Park Sterling is focused on building a banking franchise
across the Carolinas and Virginia that is noted for sound risk
management, superior customer service and exceptional client
relationships. For more information, visit
www.parksterlingbank.com. Park Sterling's shares are traded on
NASDAQ under the symbol PSTB.
About Citizens South Banking Corporation
Citizens South Bank was founded in 1904 and is headquartered in
Gastonia, North Carolina. Deposits are FDIC insured up to
applicable regulatory limits. At March 31, 2012, the Company had
$1.1 billion in assets with 21 full-service offices in the
Charlotte and North Georgia regions, including Gaston, Iredell,
Rowan, Mecklenburg, and Union counties in North Carolina, York
County in South Carolina, and Towns, Union, Fannin, and Gilmer
counties in Georgia. Citizens South Bank is an Equal Housing Lender
and Member, FDIC. The Bank is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Citizens
South Banking Corporation, and shares of the common stock of the
Company trade on the NASDAQ Global Market under the ticker symbol
"CSBC." The Company maintains a website at www.citizenssouth.com
that includes information on the Company, along with a list of
products and services, branch locations, current financial
information, and links to the Company's filings with the SEC.
Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking
Statements
This current report contains, and Park Sterling and Citizens
South and their respective management may make, certain statements
that constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of
the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These
statements can be identified by the fact that they do not relate
strictly to historical or current facts and often use words such as
"may," "plan," "contemplate," "anticipate," "believe," "intend,"
"continue," expect," "project," "predict," "estimate," "could,"
"should," "would," "will," "goal," "target" and similar
expressions. All statements that address events or developments
that Park Sterling and Citizens South expect or anticipate will
occur in the future, including statements relating to the expected
timetable for completing the proposed transaction, are
forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements
express management's current expectations or forecasts of future
events and, by their nature, are subject to risks and uncertainties
and there are a number of factors that could cause actual results
to differ materially from those in such statements. Factors
that might cause such a difference include, but are not limited to,
risks associated with the ability to consummate the merger and the
timing of the closing of the transaction; the potential impact of
announcement of the transaction or consummation of the transaction
on relationships, including with regulatory authorities; legal and
regulatory developments that adversely affect consummation of the
transaction or the businesses in which Park Sterling or Citizens
South are engaged; and those additional risks and factors discussed
in reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission
("SEC") by Park Sterling and Citizens South from time to time,
including those discussed under the heading "Risk Factors" in their
respective most recently filed reports on Form 10-K and 10-Q.
Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future results
or performance and involve certain risks and uncertainties that are
based on management's beliefs and assumptions and on the
information available to Park Sterling or Citizens South at the
time that the statements were prepared. Actual outcomes and results
may differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, any
of these forward-looking statements. You should not place undue
reliance on any forward-looking statement and should consider all
of the following uncertainties and risks, as well as those more
fully discussed in any of Park Sterling's or Citizens South's
filings with the SEC. Forward-looking statements speak only as of
the date they are made, and Park Sterling and Citizens South
undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statement to
reflect the impact of circumstances or events that arise after the
date the forward-looking statement was made.
Additional Information About the Merger and Where to
Find It
In connection with the proposed Merger, Park Sterling has filed
with the SEC, and the SEC declared effective on August 7, 2012, a
registration statement on Form S-4, which includes a joint proxy
statement/prospectus of Park Sterling and Citizens South (the
"Joint Proxy Statement/Prospectus"), as well as other relevant
documents concerning the Merger. The Joint Proxy
Statement/Prospectus constitutes a joint proxy statement of Park
Sterling and Citizens South and also a prospectus of Park Sterling,
and provides details regarding the Merger and the attendant
benefits and risks. A copy of the definitive Joint Proxy
Statement/Prospectus, along with a form of proxy, has been mailed
to the shareholders of record of Park Sterling and the stockholders
of record of Citizens South as of August 9, 2012. This
communication is not a substitute for the Joint Proxy
Statement/Prospectus or any other document that Park Sterling or
Citizens South may file with the SEC or send to their respective
shareholders and stockholders regarding the Proposed Merger. YOU
ARE STRONGLY URGED TO READ THE JOINT PROXY STATEMENT/PROSPECTUS AND
OTHER RELEVANT DOCUMENTS FILED WITH THE SEC, AS WELL AS ANY
AMENDMENTS OR SUPPLEMENTS TO THOSE DOCUMENTS AS THEY BECOME
AVAILABLE, BECAUSE THEY WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION
REGARDING THE PROPOSED MERGER.
A free copy of the Joint Proxy Statement/Prospectus, as well as
other filings containing information about Park Sterling and
Citizens South, may be obtained after their filing at the SEC's
Internet site (http://www.sec.gov). In addition, free copies of
documents filed with the SEC may be obtained on the respective
websites of Park Sterling and Citizens South at
www.parksterlingbank.com and www.citizenssouth.com.
This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the
solicitation of an offer to buy any securities, or the solicitation
of any proxies from the shareholders of Park Sterling or the
stockholders of Citizens South, nor shall there be any offer,
solicitation or sale of securities in any jurisdiction in which
such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to
registration or qualification under the securities laws of such
jurisdiction. No offer of securities shall be made except by means
of a prospectus meeting the requirements of Section 10 of the
Securities Act of 1933, as amended.
CONTACT: James C. Cherry
Chief Executive Officer
Park Sterling Corporation
704-716-2134
jcherry@parksterlingbank.com
Kim S. Price
Chief Executive Officer
Citizens South Banking Corporation
704-884-2260
kim.price@citizenssouth.com
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