Illinois Investment Group to Buy 29% of Laguna Bank

A Chicago area investment group that includes a bank holding company said Thursday it has agreed to buy 29% of Laguna Bank for $857,000.

The deal could open the door to an acquisition of one-office Laguna Bank by Illinois-based First Oak Brook Bancshares in 1991, when new state laws will permit reciprocal bank ownership in the two states. Under current law, no out-of-state banking company can own more than 5% of any California based bank.

Laguna Bank, with $28.4 million in assets as of Oct. 31, is one of the smaller independent banks in the county. It opened for business in December, 1981, lost money its first three years, then began posting profits until bad loans caused a $430,000 loss for 1986. Figures for the first nine months of 1987 were not available late Thursday.

$7.17 Per Share Price

Neither the investor group nor officials at Laguna Bank could be reached for comment.

The letter of intent announced Thursday calls for the investor group--whose other members all are officers of First Oak Brook Bancshares--to buy 119,900 newly issued shares of Laguna Bank stock at a maximum price of $7.17 per share.

The new capital would boost Laguna Bank’s equity capital to $2.7 million, or 9.5% of total assets--well above the minimum requirements set by federal regulators.

In a prepared statement Thursday, the investment group said it expects to place a representative on Laguna Bank’s board of directors if the deal--still subject to regulatory approval--is completed.

First Oak Brook, with $300 million in assets, owns three banks with a total of six offices in suburban DuPage County just west of Chicago. The holding company reported a $2.66-million net profit for 1986 and net earnings of $2.1 million for the first nine months of 1987.