BB&T Insurance Services to acquire Union Bank of California insurance brokerage arm
April 23 2008 - 5:15PM
PR Newswire (US)
RALEIGH, N.C. and SAN DIEGO, April 23 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ --
Raleigh, N.C.-based BB&T Insurance Services today said it has
reached an agreement with Union Bank of California, N.A., to
purchase its San Diego-based insurance subsidiary, UnionBanc
Insurance Services Inc. The acquisition would expand BB&T
Corporation's insurance operation in California, where wholesale
insurance subsidiary CRC Insurance Services and large account
commercial insurer McGriff, Seibels & Williams already operate.
The deal has been approved by the directors of BB&T Corporation
(NYSE:BBT) and Union Bank holding company UnionBanCal Corporation
(NYSE:UB). It is expected to be completed by the end of the second
quarter pending regulatory approval. Terms were not disclosed.
"We're excited about expanding in California, the No. 1 state for
insurance values in the country," said BB&T Insurance Services
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Wade Reece. "This partnership
will only strengthen our overall investment on the West Coast."
Founded in 1922, BB&T Insurance Services is the nation's
seventh largest insurance broker. BB&T's combined insurance
operation includes 134 agencies across the country. With 369
employees, UnionBanc Insurance Services operates offices in
Pleasanton, San Rafael, Stockton and Roseville in Northern
California; San Diego, Irvine, Fullerton and Glendale in Southern
California; and Portland, Ore. It is the 31st largest insurance
broker in the nation. Union Bank entered the insurance brokerage
business in 2001 with the acquisition of Fullerton-based
Armstrong/Robitaille Business and Insurance Services. The additions
of 115-year-old John Burnham and Company in 2002 and
Pleasanton-based Tanner Insurance Brokers in 2003 expanded the
company's footprint into San Diego and Northern California. In late
2003, Glendale-based Knight Insurance Agency joined the company.
UnionBanc Insurance Services is expected to operate as a wholly
owned BB&T insurance subsidiary after the acquisition is
completed. Martin Loth, who currently manages the McGriff, Seibels
& Williams office in Irvine, would oversee the new West Coast
subsidiary of BB&T Insurance Services. When the acquisition is
completed, BB&T plans to consolidate the UnionBanc Insurance
Services offices in San Rafael and Roseville into "BB&T-Tanner
Insurance" in Pleasanton and Stockton. It also plans to operate
"BB&T Insurance Services of Orange County" in Fullerton and
Irvine, "BB&T-John Burnham Insurance" in San Diego, and
"BB&T-Knight Insurance" in Glendale. It plans to combine the
Portland office of UnionBanc Insurance Services with BB&T's
existing McGriff office there. "We've made a decision to exit the
insurance brokerage business in order to concentrate our efforts on
enhancing other core fee-based lines of business, including wealth
and asset management, institutional services, and capital
markets-related activities," said Johannes (Johs) Worsoe, a senior
executive vice president with Union Bank and head of its Global
& Wealth Markets Group. "We view insurance services as a
critical component of our clients' financial services needs. By
entering into this transaction with BB&T, our clients will have
a broader offering of insurance and risk management services by a
nationally recognized leader and a company we know will continue
our high level of client service." Merrill Lynch & Co. served
as a financial advisor to Union Bank in the transaction; Shearman
& Sterling LLP served as the company's legal advisor. BB&T
Insurance Services, McGriff, Seibels & Williams and CRC
Insurance Services are wholly owned subsidiaries of BB&T
Corporation principal subsidiary Branch Banking and Trust Company.
BB&T acquired CRC in 2002 and McGriff two years later. Both
companies are based in Birmingham, Ala. Headquartered in San
Francisco, UnionBanCal Corporation is a bank holding company with
$55.7 billion in assets at year-end. Its principal subsidiary,
Union Bank of California, N.A., had 330 banking offices in
California, Oregon and Washington, and two international offices at
year-end. The company's Web site is http://www.unionbank.com/. With
$136.4 billion in assets, Winston-Salem, N.C.-based BB&T
Corporation is the nation's 14th largest financial holding company.
It operates nearly 1,500 financial centers in 11 states and
Washington, D.C. More information about the company is available at
http://www.bbt.com/. DATASOURCE: BB&T Corporation CONTACT: Wade
Reece, Chairman and CEO, BB&T Insurance Services,
+1-919-716-9770; or Johannes Worsoe, Sr. Executive Vice President,
Union Bank of California, +1-213-236-6016; or John A. Rice, Sr.
Vice President, UBOC Inv. Relations, +1-415-764-2998; or Jeff
Nichols, Vice President, BB&T Corp. Comm., +1-336-733-1472 Web
site: http://www.bbt.com/ http://www.unionbank.com/ Company News
On-Call: http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/809325.html
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