April 20, 2000
Securities and Exchange Commission
Judiciary Plaza
450 Fifth Street, N. W.
Washington, D. C. 20549
Re: Hibernia Corporation
Current Report on Form 8-K
Commission File No. 1-10294
Dear Sirs:
Pursuant to rules and regulations adopted under the ecurities Exchange
Act of 1934, as amended (the "Act"), transmitted hereby for filing, on behalf of
Hibernia Corporation (the "Company"), is a Current Report on Form 8-K.
Pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Act, by copy hereof we are filing with the
New York Stock Exchange, the national securities exchange on which the Common
Stock of the Company is listed and traded, two complete copies, including
exhibits. Pursuant to General Instruction E to Form 8-K, one such complete copy
being filed with the Exchange has been manually signed on behalf of the Company.
Please call the undersigned at (504) 533-2486 if you have any questions
concerning this filing.
Very truly yours,
/s/Patricia C. Meringer
Patricia C. Meringer
Corporate Counsel and
Secretary
PCM/mch
Enclosure
cc: John Kiesel
<PAGE>
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM 8-K
CURRENT REPORT
Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934
Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported) April 20, 2000
_______________
March 23, 2000
Hibernia Corporation
(Exact name of issuer as specified in its charter)
Louisiana 1-10294 72-0724532
(State or other (Commission (IRS Employer
jurisdiction of File Number) Identification No.)
organization)
313 Carondelet Street, New Orleans, Louisiana 70130
(Address of principal executive offices) (Zip Code)
Registrant's telephone number, including area code (504) 533-5333
<PAGE>
Item 5. Other Events.
On March 23, 2000, Hibernia National Bank announced that it had
signed a definitive agreement to purchase three East Texas banking offices with
deposits totaling approximately $117.5 million. The press release announcing
the transaction is attached to this Report as an Exhibit. The purchase,
which is subject to regulatory approvals, should be completed by the end of the
second quarter.
EXHIBIT INDEX
Exhibit Page
Number Description Number
99.4 News Release issued by the Registrant
on March 23, 2000 3
SIGNATURE
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934,
the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the
undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
HIBERNIA CORPORATION
(Registrant)
Date: April 18,2000 By: /s/Patricia C. Meringer
Patricia C. Meringer
Corporate Counsel and
Secretary
<PAGE>
EXHIBIT 99.4
N E W S R E L E A S E
For IMMEDIATE Release March 23, 2000
MEDIA INQUIRIES: INVESTOR INQUIRIES:
Jim Lestelle - Senior Vice President Trisha Voltz--Vice President
and Manager, Corporate Communications and Manager, Investor Relations
Office: (504) 533-5482; Office: (504) 533-2180;
Home: (504) 488-8826 Home: (504) 738-9852
E-mail: [email protected] E-mail: [email protected]
HIBERNIA'S PURCHASE OF THREE COMPASS BANKING OFFICES
EXPANDS EAST TEXAS COVERAGE TO TWO MORE COUNTIES
NEW ORLEANS -- Hibernia National Bank today announced it has signed a
definitive agreement to purchase three East Texas banking offices with deposits
totaling approximately $117.5 million from Compass Bank.
Under the terms of the agreement, the purchase price will be based on
deposits at closing along with the market value of the three branches, which
will be appraised in the near future. The transaction would establish a Hibernia
presence for the first time in Anderson and Angelina counties and bring to 41
the number of Hiberniaoffices in East Texas.
The transaction is subject to regulatory approvals and is expected to be
completed in late June. Hibernia would have the second-largest deposit market
share in Anderson County, at 18%, and an opportunity to build share in Angelina
County.
The offices are located at 2121 South Loop 256 and 519 N. Sycamore St. in
Palestine and at 1610 S. First St. in Lufkin. In addition to acquiring all
deposits and related buildings of those offices, Hibernia is purchasing
selected loans. Upon completion of the transaction, Hibernia would have banking
offices in 15 Texas counties, from Bowie County, bordering Arkansas and
Oklahoma, southward to Jefferson County along the Gulf of Mexico. Angelina and
Anderson counties are centrally located in East Texas.
"This is a natural and logical extension of our East Texas franchise,
and by acquiring the customer deposits of these three offices, we'll enter
Palestine and Lufkin in a strong market position," said Stephen A. Hansel,
Hibernia president and CEO. "We're excited about the opportunities to serve the
consumers and businesses of Lufkin and Palestine -- communities which share many
of the economic and demographic characteristics of neighboring counties and
contiguous markets in Texas and Louisiana where we already have a strong
presence."
"Lufkin and Palestine have been good markets for Compass, and we've
enjoyed being a part of those communities," said D. Paul Jones, Jr., Compass'
chairman and chief executive officer. "However, our business strategy in Texas
is now focused on different markets, which resulted in our decision to sell
these offices. Hibernia's emphasis on high-quality products and service, along
with its commitment to growth in East Texas and record of community involvement
and support, will serve this area well."
The economy of the Lufkin-Palestine area is similar to those of neighboring
communities where Hibernia is located. It is growing and diversified, with a
strong base in natural resources such as timber and oil,as well as manufacturing
and agriculture, and is home to many types of small businesses.
Joseph A. Wood, Hibernia's Central Texas president, said customers in
Lufkin and Palestine will continue to receive excellent service from the same
hometown people they know and trust today. "Hibernia is committed to providing
hometown banking and maintaining local management," he said. "Customers will
benefit from our wide range of products and services, including checking,
savings, mutual funds, mortgage loans, agricultural loans, credit and debit
cards, investment banking, commercial equipment leasing and much more."
Hibernia currently has an extensive banking-office and ATM network
across East Texas and Louisiana, Internet banking, telebanking and systems
designed to provide lending decision times as quickly as a few minutes.
Hibernia is a $15.3-billion-asset organization with 250 banking locations
in 33 Louisiana parishes and 13 Texas counties. It is first in overall deposit
market share in Louisiana with 22.3% and either first, second or third in 31
Louisiana parishes and six Texas counties. Its Louisiana markets represent
approximately 80% of the state's population and 84% of its deposits.
The company's common stock (HIB) is listed on the New York Stock Exchange.
Hibernia news releases, product and service information, and other useful
data can be accessed through the company's Internet site at www.hibernia.com.
Requests for information about Hibernia products and services can be
e-mailed to [email protected].
<PAGE>
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
HIBERNIA'S MERGER ACTIVITY
26 announced or completed transactions
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
<S> <C> <C> <C> <C>
NAME LOCATION ASSETS# NO. of OFFICES* DEPOSIT
(date merger was completed) RANK*
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Compass Bank -- Anderson and Angelina counties Central TX $118++ 3 5
(pending--2Q 2000)
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chase Bank of Texas -- Beaumont (5/21/99) SE TX $473 4 1
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
First Service Bank (3/8/99) NE TX $312 9 7
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Peoples Bank & Trust Co. (7/1/98) NW LA $232 9 1
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
First National Bank (Marshall) (3/15/98) NE TX $288 5 6
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ArgentBank (2/1/98) SC LA $770 18 1
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
First National Bank in Mansfield (1/1/98) NW LA $101 5 1
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
OrangeBank (11/7/97) SE TX $118 3 3
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
First National Bank of Paris (8/31/97) NE TX $136 3 3
Collin County National Bank (8/31/97) 1 24
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Texarkana National Bank (12/31/96) NE TX $430 10 1
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
St. Bernard Bank and Trust (10/1/96) N.O. $244 11 1
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Calcasieu Marine National Bank (8/26/96) SW LA $759 21 1
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bunkie Bank & Trust Company (1/15/96) Central LA $106 5 1
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
First National Bank of Lake Providence (1/1/96) NE LA $55 2 2
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bank of St. John (7/1/95) SE LA $116 4 1
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Progressive Bank and Trust (7/1/95) SC LA $151 6 3
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
State Bank and Trust Company (5/1/95) SE LA $96 4 2
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
American Bank (3/1/95) SE LA $89 5 1
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
First State Bank and Trust Company (12/31/94) N.O. $150 9 10
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Pioneer Bank and Trust Co. (12/31/94) NW LA $357 9 4
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
First National Bank of Jefferson Parish (8/1/94) N.O. $373 9 4
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Southern National Bank at Tallulah (8/1/94) NE LA $59 1 1
First National Bank of West Monroe (8/1/94) NE LA $157 6 4
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bastrop National Bank (7/1/94) NE LA $117 4 1
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
First Commercial Bank (7/1/94) SC LA $166 8 4
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TOTAL ADDED SINCE MID-1994 $5,973++ 174
- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
</TABLE>
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
LOUISIANA:
added through mergers
<S> <C>
Assets: $4.1 billion
Offices: 136
Parishes: 21
</TABLE>
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
TEXAS:
added through mergers
<S> <C>
Assets: $1.9 billion
Offices: 38
Counties: 15
</TABLE>
