EXHIBIT 99.1
NEWS RELEASE
[BANCORPSOUTH LOGO]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Financial Contacts:
BancorpSouth: Nash Allen or Gary Bonds, 662-680-2330
The Business Bank: Larry Denison, 225-768-1100
Premier Bank of Brentwood: Jim Harris, 615-376-0001
Media Contacts:
BancorpSouth: Randy Burchfield, 662-620-4302
The Business Bank: Larry Denison, 225-768-1100
Premier Bank of Brentwood: Jim Harris, 615-376-0001
Online: www.bancorpsouth.com
BANCORPSOUTH COMPLETES ACQUISITIONS TO EXPAND
NASHVILLE, TENN., MARKET PRESENCE
AND ENTER BATON ROUGE, LA., BANKING MARKET
TUPELO, Miss. -- (Jan. 1, 2005) -- BancorpSouth, Inc., (NYSE:BXS) announced
today from its corporate headquarters in Tupelo the completion of its
acquisitions of Premier Bancorp, Inc., of Brentwood, Tennessee, and Business
Holding Corporation, Inc., of Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The mergers give
BancorpSouth a banking presence in the Baton Rouge metropolitan market and
expand BancorpSouth's market presence in the Nashville suburb of Brentwood.
BancorpSouth Chairman and CEO Aubrey B. Patterson said, "The mergers of Premier
Bank of Brentwood and The Business Bank in Baton Rouge with BancorpSouth allow
our bank to expand and move into two of the South's most dynamic economies.
BancorpSouth gains the benefit of an established presence in these two markets,
and the customers and employees of both banks reap the benefits offered by a
$10.6 billion, community-oriented banking system."
Jim Kelley, President and COO of BancorpSouth, said, "These partnerships are a
win-win situation. BancorpSouth immediately expands its presence in the
Nashville suburb of Brentwood to complement our existing banking facility we
opened two years ago. In Baton Rouge, where we already have the largest
insurance agency in Louisiana, now BancorpSouth offers our customers a complete
line of banking and other financial services."
-more-
BUSINESS HOLDING CORPORATION was the holding company for The Business Bank, a
$172 million asset commercial bank founded in 1998. The Business Bank provided
commercial banking services in East Baton Rouge Parish and contiguous
communities. Baton Rouge is Louisiana's state capital, and East Baton Rouge
Parish is the third-most populated parish in Louisiana.
Larry Denison, who assumes duties as President of BancorpSouth in Baton Rouge,
said, "We are very pleased to become a part of BancorpSouth today. This merger
gives us the opportunity to expand our business model with the strength of a
large, resourceful and very community-minded financial institution." Former
Louisiana governor Charles "Buddy" Roemer III, immediate past president and CEO
of The Business Bank said, "BancorpSouth's community style of banking will be a
good fit for the Baton Rouge market and Larry Denison will do a great job as our
community bank president." Roemer will continue with merger related
responsibilities as well as concentrating on strategic planning and development
for BancorpSouth.
PREMIER BANCORP was the holding company for Premier Bank of Brentwood, a $156.8
million asset commercial bank established in 1997. Premier operated two banking
locations in the Brentwood area of Williamson County. The county is one of the
top ranked areas in the U.S. for growth potential and prosperity.
Jim Harris, who assumes duties as President of BancorpSouth in Brentwood, said,
"The completion today of our merger with BancorpSouth gives us the opportunity
to grow more rapidly in the Brentwood and Williamson County areas as well as the
greater Nashville market."
Headquartered in Tupelo, Mississippi, BancorpSouth is a financial holding
company with $10.6 billion in assets operating 247 banking and mortgage
locations and approximately 230 automated teller machines in Arkansas, Alabama,
Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee and Texas communities. The Company also
provides investment services through its subsidiary, BancorpSouth Investment
Services, Inc., and insurance services through BancorpSouth Insurance Services,
Inc. BancorpSouth's common stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under
the symbol "BXS."
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements contained in this news release may not be based on historical
facts and are "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. These forward-looking statements may be
identified by their reference to a future period or periods or by the use of
forward-looking terminology, such as "anticipate," "believe," "estimate,"
"expect," "may," "might," "will," "would," or "intend." These forward-looking
statements include, without limitation, those relating to BancorpSouth's future
changes and the effects of the merger.
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We caution you not to place undue reliance on the forward looking statements
contained in this news release in that actual results could differ materially
from those indicated in such forward-looking statements, due to a variety of
factors. Those factors include, but are not limited to, inability to
successfully integrate the companies after the merger, materially adverse
changes in financial conditions, changes in economic conditions and government
fiscal and monetary policies, fluctuations in prevailing interest rates, the
ability of BancorpSouth to compete with other financial services companies,
changes in BancorpSouth's operating or expansion strategy, geographic
concentration of BancorpSouth's assets, the ability of BancorpSouth to attract,
train, and retain qualified personnel, the ability of BancorpSouth to
effectively market its services and products, BancorpSouth's dependence on
existing sources of funding, changes in laws and regulations affecting financial
institutions in general, possible adverse rulings, judgments, settlements and
other outcomes of pending litigation, the ability of BancorpSouth to manage its
growth and effectively serve an expanding customer and market base, and other
factors generally understood to affect the financial results of financial
service companies, and other risks detailed from time to time in BancorpSouth's
news releases and filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. We
undertake no obligation to update these forward-looking statements to reflect
events or circumstances that occur after the date on which such statements were
made.
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