ANOTHER NEW JERSEY BANK PAYS OFF TARP

By Richard Newman/The Record
October 20, 2011

Pascack Bancorp Inc., the holding company for Pascack Community Bank, said Wednesday that it has repaid the $3.9 million it received in 2009 from the federal government’s Capital Purchase Program, a component of the Troubled Asset Relief Program, or TARP.

The bank, which has seven offices in Bergen and Essex counties, said it used a portion of the $8 million it raised this summer through a private stock offering to repay the government.

The company paid 5 percent annual dividends to the Treasury while it held the funds, said Bruce Meisel, Pascack’s president and chief executive officer.

“The board and management believe this is the appropriate time for the company to exit the Capital Purchase Program, and thereby reduce the regulatory and reporting burden imposed on the company under TARP,” Meisel said. The capital infusion helped the bank fund nearly $45 million in new loans, he said.

Bankers have complained about the increased regulatory oversight that comes with TARP, and the 5 percent dividend payments are relatively expensive at today’s rates.