Blackhawk Bancorp Receives Preliminary Approval for Entry Into the Capital Purchase Program
February 04 2009 - 3:00PM
PR Newswire (US)
BELOIT, Wis., Feb. 4 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Blackhawk Bancorp,
Inc. (OTC:BHWB) (BULLETIN BOARD: BHWB) announced today it has
received preliminary approval to participate in the U.S. Treasury's
voluntary Capital Purchase Program which was created under the
Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008. Blackhawk is
preliminarily approved to receive $10 million of capital from the
U.S. Treasury in the form of preferred stock. The purpose of the
CPP is to allow the U.S. Treasury to make capital investments in
healthy financial institutions to promote confidence and
stabilization in the economy. This increases Blackhawk's capacity
to lend money and make investments in the communities it serves. By
making this program available to community banks, the U.S. Treasury
is ensuring that its economic recovery programs reach 'main street'
businesses and communities. "This investment gives Blackhawk a
tremendous additional resource to continue meeting the borrowing
needs of businesses and individuals which help support and promote
economic stability in the communities we serve," said Rick Bastian,
President and CEO. "We believe that being the first community bank
in our market area to be preliminarily approved for the capital is
a reflection of the U.S. Treasury's confidence in Blackhawk, and
the community can be assured that we will invest the capital in
loans to local businesses, homeowners and individuals." "With
additional capital, Blackhawk will be able to continue the growth
and momentum in local lending we have reported over the last few
years. While many banks were shrinking their portfolios of loans to
consumers and businesses, Blackhawk Bank realized 12 percent loan
growth in 2008," said Bastian. "We understand the importance of
transparency, and unlike many of the large institutions, we will
gladly comply with any government requests as to how the funds are
being deployed to support economic growth and recovery in our local
markets," he added. Blackhawk expects to execute agreements and
receive final approval within 30 days. Blackhawk Bancorp, Inc. is
headquartered in Beloit, Wisconsin and is the parent company of
Blackhawk Bank, which operates eight banking centers in south
central Wisconsin and north Central Illinois, along the I-90
corridor from Belvidere, Ill. to Beloit, Wis. Blackhawk's locations
serve individuals and small businesses, primarily with fewer than
200 employees. The company offers a variety of value-added
consultative services to small businesses and their employees
related to its banking products such as health savings accounts,
investment management, and estate and succession planning. The bank
has received numerous accolades for its work with the fast-growing
Hispanic population in its served markets. For more information
about the bank, log onto http://www.blackhawkbank.com/.
Forward-Looking Statements When used in this communication, the
words "believes," "expects," and similar expressions are intended
to identify forward-looking statements. The company's actual
results may differ materially from those described in the
forward-looking statements. Factors which could cause such a
variance to occur include, but are not limited to: heightened
competition; adverse state and federal regulation; failure to
obtain new or retain existing customers; ability to attract and
retain key executives and personnel; changes in interest rates;
unanticipated changes in industry trends; unanticipated changes in
credit quality and risk factors, including general economic
conditions; success in gaining regulatory approvals when required;
changes in the Federal Reserve Board monetary policies; unexpected
outcomes of new and existing litigation in which Blackhawk or its
subsidiaries, officers, directors or employees is named defendants;
technological changes; changes in accounting principles generally
accepted in the United States; changes in assumptions or conditions
affecting the application of "critical accounting policies"; and
the inability of third party vendors to perform critical services
for the company or its customers. DATASOURCE: Blackhawk Bancorp,
Inc. CONTACT: R. Richard Bastian, III, President & CEO, , or
Todd J. James, EVP & CFO, , both of Blackhawk Bancorp, Inc.,
+1-608-364-8911 Web site: http://www.blackhawkbank.com/
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