Sale of First Place Financial expected to move forward today

December 14, 2012 at 10:54a.m.

YOUNGSTOWN

The sale of First Place Financial to Talmer Bancorp Inc. of Troy, Mich., is expected to move forward today after no qualified bidders were found.

According to federal court documents, the potential auction of First Place Financial, the parent company of First Place Bank, was cancelled after no qualified bidders came forward. The purchase agreement between First Place and Talmer Bancorp will be presented to U.S. Judge Brendan L. Shannon today for approval.

In conjunction with First Place’s bankruptcy filing there was an agreement made by the company to sell its assets to Talmer for $45 million. Talmer’s agreement was set at the minimum price for the bidding process as a stalking horse bid.

The potential sale was stalled after the U.S. Treasury Department filed an objection to the sale claiming the price was too low. The objection raised concerns the federal government will be left holding $72.9 million in debt paid to the bank in 2009 under the government’s Troubled Asset Relief Program, passed in 2008 at the height of the financial meltdown to rescue failing banks.

The lack of qualified bidders appears to justify First Place’s contention that prior to making a deal with Talmer Bancorp the company had attempted shop its holding to other companies and Talmer had the highest bid.

First Place filed for bankruptcy on Oct. 29.

Two days after the announcement of the bankruptcy shares of First Place Financial Corp. plummeted by more than 90 percent, as investors unloaded a record 2.7 million outstanding shares to close the stock at 7 cents.

First Place Bank stock was trading at 1 cent as of 9:30 a.m. today.