NBH Holdings Corp. Agrees to Acquire Branches of Community Banks of Colorado

GREENWOOD VILLAGE, Colo. and BOSTON, Aug. 8, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- NBH Holdings Corp. (NBH) and Community Bankshares, Inc., the holding company for Community Banks of Colorado, today announced they have reached an agreement for NBH to acquire 16 Community Banks of Colorado banking centers, as well as the Community Banks of Colorado name. The remaining branches of Community Banks of Colorado will be retained by Community Bankshares, Inc. and will be renamed.

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NBH will continue to operate the 16 banking centers it is acquiring under the Community Banks of Colorado name. When the transaction is completed, the current Community Banks of Colorado associates working in the 16 banking centers are expected to continue to do so.

"We are very pleased to reach this agreement with Community Bankshares to expand our presence in the Colorado banking market," said Tim Laney, president and chief executive officer (CEO) of NBH. "We are confident that we can build on the foundation provided by this transaction – and our recent acquisition of Bank of Choice in Colorado – to demonstrate our commitment and offer high-quality service to our clients, associates and the community. The new Community Banks of Colorado will be very well capitalized and poised for growth throughout the state."  

"We believe this transaction is a win-win for all parties," said Donald McG. Woods, Chairman of the Board, President and CEO, Community Bankshares, Inc. "The 16 branches involved in this transaction will be in very good hands and our remaining branches will be renamed and, with our enhanced capital resources, we will continue to improve the bank's performance and maintain our ability to meet and exceed our customers' expectations and needs."

"Colorado is an extremely important market to us," said Laney. "Colorado is performing better than the national average in terms of population growth, job growth forecast and median household income. By growing our community banking franchise in Colorado, we look forward to playing a role in helping Colorado realize its economic potential."  

NBH engaged Keefe Bruyette and Woods and Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz as advisors for this transaction. Community Bankshares, Inc. engaged Stifel Nicolaus & Company, Inc. and Schiff Hardin LLP as their advisors on the transaction.

About NBH

NBH Holdings Corp. is a bank holding company created to build a leading community bank franchise delivering high quality client service and strong shareholder results. NBH raised in excess of $1.0 billion through the sale of common stock in a private placement in late 2009, making it one of the best-capitalized holding companies in the U.S. In 2010 NBH acquired two banks in the Kansas City, Mo. market: Bank Midwest and Hillcrest Bank. NBH recently added Bank of Choice in Greeley, Co. to the company's current community banking assets. This bank holding company is led by a highly experienced and accomplished management team with a successful track record of operating large and complex financial institutions. For more information on NBH, visit www.nationalbankholdings.com.

About Community Bankshares, Inc. and Community Banks of Colorado

Community Bankshares, Inc. and Community Banks of Colorado, formed in 1989 with the purchase of the Rocky Ford National Bank, relies on top-flight associates to support the banking needs of the communities served.  Community Bankshares, Inc. has grown significantly and currently has over $1.5 billion in assets and serves over 30 communities in Colorado and 3 in northern California and operates as Community Banks of Colorado, Community Banks of Northern California and Citizens State Bank of Cortez. 

Not an Offer.  This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy securities in any state or jurisdiction.

Forward-Looking Statements.  This press release contains forward-looking statements. Any statements about our expectations, beliefs, plans, predictions, forecasts, objectives, assumptions or future events or performance are not historical facts and may be forward-looking. These statements are often, but not always, made through the use of words or phrases such as "anticipate," "believes," "can," "could," "may," "predicts," "potential," "should," "will," "estimate," "plans," "projects," "continuing," "ongoing," "expects," "intends" and similar words or phrases.  Accordingly, these statements are only predictions and involve estimates, known and unknown risks, assumptions and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in them. Our actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in such forward-looking statements, including as a result of factors outside NBH and Community Bankshares's control, such as economic and other conditions in the markets in which NBH, Bank Midwest, Community Bankshares, Community Banks of Colorado and their respective related affiliates operate; inability to complete the transaction announced today; managements' ability to effectively execute their respective business plans; regulatory enforcement actions to which NBH and/or Bank Midwest and Community Bankshares and/or Community Banks of Colorado and their respective affiliates are currently and may in the future be subject; changes in capital classification; changes in the economy affecting real estate values; inability to attract and retain deposits; changes in the level of non-performing assets and charge-offs; changes in the financial performance and/or condition of borrowers; inflation, interest rate, cost of funds, securities market and monetary fluctuations; changes in laws and regulations; and competition. All forward-looking statements are necessarily only estimates of future results, and there can be no assurance that actual results will not differ materially from expectations, and, therefore, you are cautioned not to place undue reliance on such statements. Further, any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which it is made, and we undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statement to reflect events or circumstances after the date on which the statement is made or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.

SOURCE NBH Holdings Corp.