Manatt Advises Significant Debt Sale for Central Pacific Bank
LOS ANGELES, CA – August 4, 2008 – Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP, the national law and consulting firm, recently advised Central Pacific Bank on a significant debt sale in California. This is the first of what is expected to be many portfolio dispositions for the financial industry as institutions look to reduce their credit exposure. Central Pacific Bank, based in Honolulu, Hawaii, sold a residential development loan portfolio comprised of 16 loans and one real estate owned (REO) property.
“With today’s challenging combination of economic, real estate and credit market conditions, it is no surprise that the next cycle of opportunities in this area is already underway,” said Steve Edwards, of counsel in the firm’s Orange County office and one of the Central Pacific Bank deal team leaders. “With the confluence of factors and variables involved in a transaction of this kind, you need a true cross-disciplinary approach. We were pleased to be able to provide that to our client.”
Clayton B. Gantz, co-administrative partner of the firm’s San Francisco office and leader of the deal team with Edwards, noted that “for better or worse, we have seen this landscape before. While the specifics are different, the opportunities for institutions and investors are not dissimilar. With the completion of this sale for Central Pacific Bank, Manatt has valuable, and relatively rare, practical market knowledge about how these deals are priced and managed in today’s environment.”
Manatt assembled professionals from its real estate and banking teams, spanning different markets. In addition to Edwards and Gantz, lawyers from Manatt’s Los Angeles, Orange County and San Francisco offices were part of the deal team. The firm assisted in evaluation of the portfolio, development of the offering, evaluation of bids, and completion of the transaction. Manatt lawyers worked in tandem on the deal with LePlastrier Development Consulting Company (LDC) of Irvine, California, Central Pacific Bank’s valuation and marketing consultant.
The Hawaii-based Central Pacific Bank has approximately $5.7 billion in assets, and provides a full range of banking, investment and trust services for businesses and retail customers.
“This transaction was important for Central Pacific Bank," said Dean Hirata, vice chairman and chief financial officer. “We believe our success in reducing our credit exposure in the California residential construction sector will position the bank for improved performance and create value for our shareholders. The combined team of Manatt and LDC were very creative throughout this entire process, helped us to identify the ultimate buyer, and were in many ways instrumental in our achieving our business objectives.”
“Buyers discount heavily when assets are not properly prepared and presented to the market,” said Gantz. “A properly conducted sale requires thorough planning and careful execution. Central Pacific Bank understood that.”
About Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP
Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP, provides legal and consulting services to a global client base from offices in Los Angeles, Orange County, Palo Alto, Sacramento and San Francisco, California; New York City and Albany, New York; and Washington, D.C. Manatt includes Manatt Health Solutions, a healthcare policy and strategic business advisory group, and ManattJones Global Strategies, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary that develops and implements strategies to expand client businesses and facilitate their effective competition in global markets. For more information, visit www.manatt.com, www.manatthealthsolutions.com and www.manattjones.com.