Central Pacific Nears Deal for Hawaiian Electric's Bank.

Central Pacific Financial Corp. is in discussions to raise $1 billion from alternative asset managers, including Warburg Pincus, Centerbridge Partners, and Atlas Merchant Capital, to help acquire American Savings Bank FSB from Hawaiian Electric Industries Inc. The deal would provide capital to the combined entity and help Hawaiian Electric recover from significant losses incurred due to wildfires. While an agreement could be announced soon, it has not been finalized, and representatives from the involved parties declined to comment. This deal reflects a recent trend of private equity firms investing in US banking. [Extracted from the article]