September 23, 2013 (Shareholders Foundation) - An investigation on behalf of investors, who currently hold shares of MetroCorp Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:MCBI) shares, was announced concerning whether the takeover of MetroCorp Bancshares, Inc. by East West Bancorp, Inc. is unfair to NASDAQ:MCBI stockholders.

The investigation by a law firm concerns whether certain officers and directors of MetroCorp Bancshares, Inc. breached their fiduciary duties owed to NASDAQ:MCBI investors in connection with the proposed acquisition.

On September 18, 2013, East West Bancorp, Inc. (Nasdaq: EWBC), parent company of East West Bank, and MetroCorp Bancshares, Inc. (Nasdaq: MCBI), parent of MetroBank, N.A. and Metro United Bank, announced that they have entered into an agreement for the merger of MetroCorp Bancshares into East West Bancorp.
Under the terms of the agreement, East West Bancorp will acquire the outstanding shares of MetroCorp Bancshares for the lesser of $14.60 per share and 1.72 times the per share tangible equity, as adjusted, for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $273 million based on the 18,699,638 shares currently outstanding.

However, the investigation concerns whether the offer is unfair to NASDAQ:MCBI stockholders. More specifically, the investigation concerns whether the MetroCorp Bancshares Board of Directors undertook an adequate sales process, adequately shopped the company before entering into the transaction, maximized shareholder value by negotiating the best price, and acted in the shareholders' best interests in connection with the proposed sale.

MetroCorp Bancshares, Inc. reported that its annual Net Loss of $7.07 million in 2009 turned into a Net Income of $11.12 million in 2012.

Shares of MetroCorp Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:MCBI) grew from $2.47 per share in late 2010 to as high as $11.37 per share in July 2013.

On September 23, 2013, NASDAQ:MCBI shares closed at $13.80 per share.