FAYETTEVILLE, Ga., July 2, 2007 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- SouthCrest Financial Group, Inc. (OTCBB:SCSG) announced today that on July 1, 2007 it completed its acquisition of Bank of Chickamauga. Bank of Chickamauga is now a wholly-owned subsidiary of SouthCrest. The transaction was approved by the regulators and the Bank of Chickamauga shareholders in June. Under the terms of the definitive agreement dated February 23, 2007, shareholders of Bank of Chickamauga will receive approximately $18 million cash less certain costs related to the acquisition.
Bank of Chickamauga operates two branches in Chickamauga, Walker County, Georgia and is located in the Chattanooga, Tennessee MSA. At June 30, Bank of Chickamauga had approximately $50 million in deposits and $27 million in loans. Its total assets were $67 million and total shareholders' equity was approximately $14 million.
As a result of the transaction, SouthCrest will have combined total assets of approximately $600 million and operate thirteen branches. In addition to Bank of Chickamauga, SouthCrest is the parent company of Bank of Upson, based in Thomaston, Georgia, which has two branches in Upson County, three branches in Meriwether County operating as Meriwether Bank & Trust, and one branch in Fayette County operating as SouthCrest Bank; The First National Bank of Polk County, based in Cedartown, Georgia, which operates three branches in Polk County; and Peachtree Bank, which operates two branches in Maplesville and Clanton in Chilton County, Alabama. Chilton County is located along Interstate 65 between Birmingham and Montgomery, Alabama.
Daniel W. Brinks, Chairman of SouthCrest, commented, "We are delighted to have Bank of Chickamauga join SouthCrest. Like Bank of Upson, The First National Bank of Polk County, and Peachtree Bank, our other banking subsidiaries, Bank of Chickamauga has a long history of high performance and a solid base of core deposits. The Chickamauga market, with its emphasis on suburban housing, consumer and small business lending, is very similar to our existing markets which serve similar suburban areas of the Atlanta, Birmingham and Montgomery metropolitan markets. We continue to look for opportunities to expand into suburban market areas on reasonable terms that are accretive to our shareholders."
Michael S. Wright, President and Chief Executive Officer of Bank of Chickamauga, stated, "We were delighted to find a partner that appreciates our focus on serving our growing community. SouthCrest brings us additional products, capital strength and depth which will enable us to take advantage of the emerging opportunities in our market."
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