ISLANDIA, NY--(Marketwired - Dec 19, 2014) - Empire Bancorp, Inc. (OTCQB: EMPK), the parent bank holding company of Empire National Bank, announced today that it had completed a private placement of $20.0 million in equity capital through the sale of 1,343,750 shares of its common stock and 1,156,250 shares of its preferred stock at a price of $8.00 per share to institutional and individual investors. The preferred stock sold in the offering was structured as a non-voting common stock equivalent for regulatory considerations. The company intends to use the net proceeds from this offering to support continued organic growth.

"We are very pleased with the results of the offering," stated Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Douglas Manditch. "The successful completion of this capital raise will enable us to continue to implement our growth strategy and better serve the diverse financial services needs of our growing customer base on Long Island."

Sandler O'Neill + Partners, L.P. served as the sole placement agent for the offering, and Fenimore, Kay, Harrison & Ford, LLP served as legal counsel for the transaction.

The private placement was led by Patriot Financial Partners. Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz served as counsel to Patriot.

The shares sold in the offering have not been registered under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or an applicable exemption from registration requirements.

About Empire Bancorp, Inc.

Empire Bancorp, Inc. is a bank holding company for Empire National Bank, a Long Island-based independent bank that specializes in serving the financial needs of small and medium sized businesses, professionals, nonprofit organizations, real estate investors, and consumers. The bank has four banking offices located in Islandia, Shirley, Port Jefferson Station and Mineola, New York.

This release may contain certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. For this purpose, any statements contained in this press release that are not statements of historical fact may be deemed to be forward-looking statements. Without limiting the foregoing, words such as "may," "will," "expect," "believe," "anticipate," "estimate" or "continue," or comparable terminology, are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These statements by their nature involve substantial risks and uncertainties, and actual results may differ materially depending on a variety of factors, many of which are not within the control of the company. The forward-looking statements included in this press release are made only as of the date of this press release. Empire Bancorp has no intention, and does not assume any obligation, to update these forward-looking statements.