First PacTrust to Raise Up to $40 Million

First PacTrust Bancorp (BANC) in Irvine, Calif., is planning to raise more than $40 million through a sale of preferred shares.

The $2 billion-asset company will offer up to $35 million of preferred shares paying an 8% interest rate, it said Thursday. It will use the proceeds to fund growth, possibly including acquisitions, and for general corporate purposes, it said.

The underwriters, Goldman Sachs and Keefe, Bruyette & Woods, will have the option of buying an additional $5.25 million worth of shares.

First PacTrust is the parent of Pacific Trust Bank.

On Monday, First PacTrust said it planned to sell eight Southern California branches and $477 million of deposits to AmericanWest Bank in Spokane, Wash. The sale would leave its bank unit with 10 branches, all in Southern California.