BB&T to Acquire Texas-based Nonprime Auto Finance Company

BB&T Corporation said yesterday it plans to acquire the assets of nonprime auto finance company FSB Financial Ltd. of Arlington, Texas.

One of the nation’s most active buyers of automobile portfolios, FSB Financial would become part of Greenville, N.C.-based Regional Acceptance Corp., a wholly owned sub-prime auto lending subsidiary of BB&T Corp.

The transaction is expected to be completed March 1. Terms were not disclosed.

FSB Financial buys nonprime automobile lending portfolios from banks, credit unions and finance companies from across the country. FSB is a subsidiary of Southwest Securities FSB, a federally chartered savings bank of Dallas-based financial holding company SWS Group Inc.

“We’re excited about adding a growing firm with a highly trained and focused management team with more than 40 years of experience in the automotive finance industry,” said Mike Goodman, president and chief executive officer of Regional Acceptance Corp. “FSB Financial is a firm that is clearly passionate about customer service and cultivating long-term relationships. They will move us closer to our goal of becoming America’s premier auto finance company.”

FSB Financial has 78 employees, led by Chief Executive Officer Steve Burke, who will join Regional Acceptance as a senior vice president and manager of portfolio acquisitions. Burke’s father, Ken, founded FSB Financial in 1997.

“Like Regional Acceptance and BB&T, we’ve built our reputation on superior client-centric service and adherence to core values,” Steve Burke said. “We stress service, integrity, communication and innovation above all else. With this new relationship, we’ll be able to take advantage of many additional resources which will enable us to scale our business and provide an even higher level of service to our growing client base.”

With $4.6 billion in assets, SWS Group processes securities transactions for correspondent brokerage firms and provides securities brokerage, investment banking, commercial banking and other financial services to individual, corporate and public clients.

Founded in 1978, Regional Acceptance operates 38 branch offices in the Carolinas, Virginia, Maryland, Tennessee, Kentucky, Georgia, Florida, Texas, Oklahoma, Delaware, Ohio and Michigan. BB&T Corp. acquired Regional in 1996.

Regional Acceptance was named the No. 1 sub-prime auto lender in the nation last year in a survey by Auto Dealer Monthly magazine. Lenders were rated on their market niche and consistent buying, funding and efficiency, and the overall value of the lending program to their dealership.

Winston-Salem-based BB&T Corporation and its subsidiaries offer full- service commercial and retail banking and additional financial services such as insurance, investments, retail brokerage, corporate finance, consumer finance, treasury services, international banking, leasing and trust.

BB&T operates more than 1,400 financial centers in the Carolinas, Virginia, Maryland, West Virginia, Kentucky, Tennessee, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Indiana and Washington, D.C.

With $109.2 billion in assets, BB&T Corporation is the nation’s ninth largest financial holding company. More information is available at http://www.BBandT.com.