Credit Card Giant Buying Hibernia

Credit card giant Capital One Financial, McLean, Va., has agreed to buy Hibernia Corp., New Orleans, a top-50-ranked residential servicer, for $5.3 billion in stock and cash.Hibernia National Bank is the largest residential lender in the New Orleans metropolitan area, according to National Mortgage News' Home Mortgage Disclosure Act database. However, in the fourth quarter Hibernia's residential loan production fell dramatically, to $150 million, compared with $911 million a year earlier. At year-end, Hibernia serviced $11.5 billion in home loans, ranking 44th nationwide. Capital One services $79.9 billion in receivables -- most of it credit cards or auto loans. The purchase, once completed, will give Capital One 293 branches in Louisiana and Texas, and a foothold in the mortgage industry. As MortgageWire neared its deadline Monday afternoon, Hibernia's shares were trading up 21%, to $32.20.