Staff Report
Published Feb. 21, 2011

SCBT, the bank subsidiary of SCBT Financial Corp., has taken over a failed bank based in Clarkesville, Ga.

Habersham Bank was closed Friday by the Georgia Department of Banking and Finance, which appointed the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. as receiver. The FDIC entered into an agreement with Orangeburg-based SCBT to assume all of the deposits and certain other liabilities of Habersham Bank, and to purchase some of its assets.

The FDIC and SCBT also entered into a loss-sharing agreement covering $270.7 million of Habersham’s loans and foreclosed real estate. SCBT said it will not acquire any of the assets or assume any liabilities of Habersham Bank’s former bank holding company, Habersham Bancorp.

The FDIC estimated the cost to the Deposit Insurance Fund will be $90.3 million.

The eight Habersham branches reopened Saturday under the name Habersham Bank, a division of SCBT National Association.

“We welcome the employees and customers of Habersham Bank,” said CEO Robert R. Hill Jr. “The combination of these two long-standing banks creates one of the strongest and most convenient banks in Northeast Georgia.”

SCBT also announced Friday it had completed a private placement of 1,129,032 shares of common stock, at a price per share of $31, raising $35 million in capital.

John C. Pollok, COO of SCBT, said, “The addition of this capital and the acquisition of Habersham Bank put us in an excellent position for future growth.”

As of Dec. 31, Habersham Bank had approximately $387.6 million in total assets and $339.9 million in total deposits.

Habersham Bank, founded in 1904, is the 19th FDIC-insured institution to fail in the nation this year, and the fifth in Georgia. The last FDIC-insured institution closed in the state was North Georgia Bank, based in Watkinsville, on Feb. 4.

SCBT Financial Corp., based in Columbia, has been in business for more than 76 years. It operates 83 financial centers in 16 S.C. counties, Mecklenburg County in North Carolina and 12 northeast Georgia counties.

As of Dec. 31, SCBT Financial Corp. had assets of approximately $3.6 billion.