BLUEFIELD, Va.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
First Community Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCBC) (www.fcbinc.com)
announced today that its wholly-owned insurance subsidiary, GreenPoint
Insurance Group, has acquired Carr & Hyde Insurance based in Warrenton,
Virginia. The transaction closed on December 16, 2008.
Carr & Hyde is a full-service insurance agency providing a wide range of
both commercial and personal insurance products. Carr & Hyde has been in
existence since 1966, but its roots through prior ownership go back to
the 1800's.
The agency operates two offices in Warrenton and Marshall, Virginia and
has a staff of eighteen. The principals of the agency, G. Wayne Eastham
and Tab L. Vollrath, will remain with the agency and manage its
day-to-day operations and spearhead future growth in the state of
Virginia. While the agency will be part of the GreenPoint Insurance
Group, it will continue to operate under the name of Carr & Hyde.
John M. Mendez, President and Chief Executive Officer of First Community
Bancshares, Inc. commented, "We are extremely pleased to have Carr &
Hyde Insurance as a member of our GreenPoint Insurance Group. Carr &
Hyde is a well established agency with an outstanding staff of insurance
professionals and excellent growth record in the Warrenton, Virginia
area. Carr & Hyde Insurance has an excellent reputation and their
philosophy of providing quality insurance products with impeccable
service blends very well with GreenPoint and our bank."
According to Mr. Eastham and Mr. Vollrath of Carr & Hyde, "We are proud
to be the first Virginia agency to become part of the GreenPoint
Insurance Group and its parent First Community Bancshares, Inc. We
strive to provide the highest levels of customer service and know that
their affiliation will enable us to do even more. We have been a
mainstay in our community for over forty years and we look forward to
continued growth in our immediate marketplace and throughout the state."
Shawn Cummings, President of GreenPoint Insurance Group, said, "The
addition of Carr & Hyde provides us with an excellent entrance to the
Virginia insurance market. Carr & Hyde's location is excellent and
provides us access to not only the Warrenton area but also the
metropolitan northern Virginia market as well as central Virginia. I
look forward to working with Wayne Eastham and Tab Vollrath in growing
our business in Virginia and I feel that we have excellent opportunities
for expansion going forward."
First Community Bancshares, Inc. entered the insurance agency business
in September 2007 with the acquisition of GreenPoint. With the addition
of Carr & Hyde, the insurance subsidiary will generate approximately $54
million in annual insurance premium billings and have approximately $7
million in commission revenue.
First Community Bancshares, Inc., headquartered in Bluefield, Virginia,
is a $2.13 billion financial holding company and is the parent company
of First Community Bank, N. A. First Community Bank, N. A. operates
through fifty-nine locations in the five states of Virginia, West
Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee. First Community
Bank, N. A. offers wealth management services through its Trust &
Financial Services Division and Investment Planning Consultants, Inc., a
registered investment advisory firm which offers wealth management and
investment advice. The Company's wealth management group managed assets
with a market value of $897 million at September 30, 2008. First
Community is also the parent company of GreenPoint Insurance Group,
Inc., a full-service insurance agency located in High Point, North
Carolina. First Community Bancshares, Inc.'s common stock is traded on
the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the symbol, "FCBC". Additional
investor information can be found on the Internet at www.fcbinc.com.
This news release may include forward-looking statements. These
forward-looking statements are based on current expectations that
involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions. Should one or more
of these risks or uncertainties materialize or should underlying
assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may differ materially. These
risks include: changes in business or other market conditions;
the timely development, production and acceptance of new products and
services; the challenge of managing asset/liability levels; the
management of credit risk and interest rate risk; the difficulty of
keeping expense growth at modest levels while increasing revenues; and
other risks detailed from time to time in the Company's Securities and
Exchange Commission reports, including but not limited to the Annual
Report on Form 10-K for the most recent year ended. Pursuant to
the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, the Company does
not undertake to update forward-looking statements contained within this
news release.
Source: First Community Bancshares, Inc.
Contact: First Community Bancshares, Inc.
Robert L. Buzzo, 276-326-9000