Carver Bancorp said it “definitively rejects” an investor’s offer to buy a 35% stake in the New York bank.
The $743 million-asset Carver said in a press release that its board determined that selling the stake to Dream Chasers Capital could cause “unacceptable reputational risks” to the bank’s standing and mission credibility.
The board also determined the Dream Chasers’ proposal was “wholly deficient” in regards to structural details, implied valuation, dilution and the “basic disclosure of financial and managerial resources.”
Carver also said it had doubts as to whether the investors could secure regulatory approval to form a bank holding company and complete the purchase.
Finally, Carver said the offer was “unrealistically low” based on its intrinsic value.
Dream Chasers, a New York-based minority-run investment fund, in November offered to pay $3.25 a share for the stake. The amount is 8% higher than what the investor offered in September.
Dream Chasers, which owns more than 5% of Carver’s stock, has said it wants to bring in new management and “more smartly take advantage of the bank’s designation” as a minority depository institution (MDI).