Skadden is advising Hope Bancorp, Inc. and its bank subsidiary, Bank of Hope, on its definitive agreement under which Bank of Hope will acquire the Commercial Banking Unit of SMBC MANUBANK, a wholly owned subsidiary of SMBC Americas Holdings, Inc. and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC).
The transaction has been approved unanimously by the Boards of Directors of Hope Bancorp and Bank of Hope as well as SMBC Americas Holdings and SMBC MANUBANK. It is expected to close in the second half of 2026, subject to customary regulatory approvals and the satisfaction of other customary closing conditions.
Bank of Hope and SMBC also intend to enter into a collaboration and partnership agreement to provide commercial and consumer banking services to SMBC's Japanese midsize business and retail customers needing banking services in the United States.
The Skadden team includes Michael Reed, Jeffrey Brill, Nicholas Colombo, Mark Chorazak and Michael Wiseman.