(Reuters) – PacWest Bancorp’s shares rose nearly 38% in premarket trading on Wednesday, a day after smaller rival Banc of California agreed to buy the lender for $1.1 billion.
PacWest was among the banks that were rocked by the collapse of three regional lenders earlier this year, prompting the worst industry turmoil since the 2008 financial crisis.
“We believe the sale of PacWest makes sense for shareholders given the numerous struggles the bank has faced since the March banking panic,” Raymond James analyst David Long said.
Shares of Banc of California were up nearly 13% at $16.50 before the bell.
(Reporting by Niket Nishant in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini Ganguli)
