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After more than a decade of absence, Hibernia National Bank is returning to Austin with plans to open 10 to 12 branches in a one- to two-year span.
New Orleans-based holding company Hibernia Corp. [NYSE: HIB] has allocated $100 million to open branches in Austin, Dallas and Houston.
John Laing, Texas regional chairman of Hibernia, says the expansion already has started in Dallas, with the bank planning to open one branch before the end of 2003.
In each of the three target cities, the bank plans to open 10 to 12 freestanding branches that measure 6,500 square feet each. Laing expects to begin selecting sites in Austin in about a year and hopes to build about three branches a quarter.
"We like the metrics we see in the Austin market and growth rates," Laing says. "We are not afraid of the current rates of the...