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Huntington Bancshares Incorporated CONTACT:
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- March 1, 2005 --
Huntington Bancshares Incorporated (Nasdaq: HBAN) (http://www.huntington.com)
announced it has entered into formal written agreements
with its banking regulators, the Federal Reserve Bank of
Cleveland and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. These formal written agreements provide for
a comprehensive action plan designed to enhance Huntington's
corporate governance, internal audit, risk management, accounting
policies and procedures, and financial and regulatory reporting.
They call for independent third-party reviews, as well as
the submission of written plans and progress reports by management.
The formal written agreements remain in effect until terminated
by the banking regulators. "Entering into these formal written agreements
is consistent with our expectations announced last November
and in line with steps that we have been taking to ensure
that our corporate governance and controls are best in class,"
said Hoaglin. "As previously indicated, we have been
working extensively with our banking regulators over the past
several months. While there is work yet to be done, we have
devoted significant resources in order to address the issues
raised. We are confident that we are on the right path to
address fully and comprehensively all of their concerns in
a timely manner. We also believe that the changes we have
made, and are in the process of making, are positive for our
organization and will position us to be a stronger company
in the future." "No fines or monetary penalties will be
assessed against the company as a result of the bank regulatory
actions, and we reaffirm the earnings guidance provided on
January 21, 2005," he concluded. Securities and Exchange Commission Formal
Investigation As previously announced, Huntington continues
to have ongoing discussions with the staff of the Securities
and Exchange Commission (SEC) regarding resolution of its
previously announced formal investigation into certain financial
accounting matters relating to fiscal years 2002 and earlier
and certain related disclosure matters. It is anticipated
that a settlement of this matter, which is subject to approval
by the SEC, will involve the entry of an order by the SEC
requiring Huntington to comply with various provisions of
the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the Securities Act
of 1933, along with the imposition of a civil money penalty.
At year end, the company had reserves related to the expectation
of the imposition of a civil money penalty, which the company
viewed as sufficient given negotiations with the SEC. However,
no assurances can be made that any assessed penalty may not
exceed this amount. Unizan Financial Acquisition As announced November 12, 2004, Huntington and
Unizan Financial Corp. (Nasdaq: UNIZ) have entered into an
amendment to their January 26, 2004 merger agreement extending
the term of the agreement for one year from January 27, 2005
to January 27, 2006, and Huntington has withdrawn its application
with the Federal Reserve to acquire Unizan. Huntington intends
to resubmit the application for regulatory approval of the
merger once the regulatory concerns have been resolved. No
assurances, however, can be provided as to the ultimate timing
or outcome of these matters. Additional Information The bank regulatory formal written agreements
will be filed with the SEC as exhibits to Huntington's Current
Report on Form 8-K. The Form 8-K can be accessed at http://www.sec.gov
or on the investor relations page of Huntington's web site
at http://www.huntington.com . A copy of the Federal Reserve
agreement will be available at http://www.federalreserve.gov
, and a copy of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency
agreement will be available at http://www.occ.treas.gov. Forward-looking Statement This press release contains certain forward-looking
statements, including certain plans, expectations, goals,
and projections, which are subject to numerous assumptions,
risks, and uncertainties. A number of factors, including but
not limited to those set forth under the heading "Business
Risks" included in Item 1 of Huntington's Annual Report
on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2003, and other
factors described from time to time in Huntington's other
filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, could
cause actual conditions, events, or results to differ significantly
from those described in the forward-looking statements. All
forward-looking statements included in this news release are
based on information available at the time of the release.
Huntington assumes no obligation to update any forward- looking
statement. About Huntington Huntington Bancshares Incorporated is a $33 billion regional bank holding company headquartered in Columbus, Ohio. Through its affiliated companies, Huntington has more than 139 years of serving the financial needs of its customers. Huntington provides innovative retail and commercial financial products and services through more than 300 regional banking offices in Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and West Virginia. Huntington also offers retail and commercial financial services online at huntington.com; through its technologically advanced, 24-hour telephone bank; and through its network of approximately 700 ATMs. Selected financial service activities are also conducted in other states including: Dealer Sales offices in Florida, Georgia, Tennessee, Pennsylvania, and Arizona; Private Financial Group offices in Florida; and Mortgage Banking offices in Florida, Maryland, and New Jersey. International banking services are made available through the headquarters office in Columbus and an office located in the Cayman Islands and an office located in Hong Kong.
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®, Huntington®, and A bank invested in people®
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