EXHIBIT INDEX
Exhibit
No. Description
2.1 Agreement and Plan of Merger dated April 24, 2000 among Washington
Trust Bancorp, Inc., The Washington Trust Company, PhxIMC Acquisition
Corp., Phoenix Investment Management Company, Inc., Gerald J. Fogarty
and Marie J. Langlois (excluding exhibits and schedules). Incorporated
herein by reference to the Registrant's Form 8-K filed May 5, 2000.
99.1 Press release of Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc. issued June 26, 2000.
<PAGE>
Exhibit 99.1
Contact: Elizabeth B. Eckel,
Senior Vice President, Marketing
Telephone (401) 348-1309
Date: June 26, 2000
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Washington Trust Completes Acquisition of Phoenix Investment Management Company
Westerly, Rhode Island...Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc. (Nasdaq National Market;
symbol: WASH), parent of The Washington Trust Company, today announced that it
has completed its acquisition of Phoenix Investment Management Company, Rhode
Island's largest independent investment advisory firm. Phoenix will continue to
operate under its own name as a division of Washington Trust.
John C. Warren, Washington Trust's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, stated,
"This is a major acquisition for us. It significantly increases the size of our
Trust and Investment Services group and solidifies our recent move into the
Providence area." Washington Trust opened a Trust and Investment Services office
at 66 South Main Street in Providence early this year. Warren added, "The
acquisition also enables Phoenix clients to utilize Washington Trust's full line
of trust, personal and business banking services."
Gerald J. Fogarty, Jr. and Marie J. Langlois, who founded Phoenix in 1988, have
joined Washington Trust as Managing Directors of Phoenix. Warren noted, "Phoenix
has a talented group of investment professionals and we're thrilled to have them
join the Washington Trust team."
Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc. is the parent of The Washington Trust Company, a
Rhode Island state-chartered bank founded in 1800. The Bank offers a full range
of financial services, including trust and investment management, through its
offices in Rhode Island and southeastern Connecticut. Washington Trust Bancorp,
Inc.'s common stock trades on The Nasdaq Stock Market(R) under the symbol WASH.
Web site address: www.washtrust.com.
# # #
This report contains certain statements that may be considered forward-looking
statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as
amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. The
Corporation's actual results could differ materially from those projected in the
forward-looking statements as a result, among other factors, of changes in
general national or regional economic conditions, changes in interest rates,
reductions in deposit levels necessitating increased borrowing to fund loans and
investments, changes in the size and nature of the Corporation's competition,
changes in loan default and charge-off rates, and changes in the assumptions
used in making such forward-looking statements.
