Sep. 22--The largest bank owner based in the Charleston region is seeking to raise $50 million for its corporate war chest, saying some of the fresh capital could be used to bid on failed lenders.

First Financial Holdings Inc., owner of First Federal Savings and Loan Association of Charleston, launched an offering of its common stock Monday. The proposed sale of more than 2.84 million shares at $17.59 each is expected to be completed by the end of the month.

The company said the proceeds will be used "for general corporate purposes, which may include providing capital to support the growth of our subsidiaries and other strategic business opportunities," such as bidding on banks and bank assets seized by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.

Dee Bee Wright, First Financial's vice president of investor relations, said the company has no specific acquisition targets in mind.

"We're just looking to prepare ourselves to take advantage of these opportunities," Wright said Monday.

First Financial worked with the FDIC to acquire the assets of Cape Fear Bank of North Carolina earlier this year. In April, the FDIC took control of the Wilmington-based lender, which collapsed under the weight of soured real estate development loans.

That deal instantly gave First Financial eight retail banking locations, $300 million in deposits and about $380 million in loans in a part of coastal North Carolina it had been eyeing for years.

First Financial also said the stock-sale proceeds could be used to redeem some or all of the $65 million in preferred shares it issued to the U.S. Treasury under the Troubled Asset Relief Program, or TARP. That stock pays a 5 percent dividend to the

government.

Like most bank investors, First Financial's shareholders took a hit from the global financial crisis that erupted last September.

The stock has more than tripled since hitting a 52- week low of $4.95 in early March.

Shares of First Financial slipped 38 cents to close at $17.21 Monday.

Wright said the company felt the time was right to raise fresh capital. The stock sale would increase by 24 percent the number of common shares owned by First Financial investors.

"We did a lot of visiting with potential investors during the month of August," Wright said. "There's a lot of interest in our company right now. We feel like there will be a lot of opportunities with FDIC-assisted transactions."

The company's main First Federal unit has 63 banking offices and $3.6 billion in assets. First Financial also owns insurance and brokerage businesses. Its next quarterly earnings report is due out Oct. 27.

Reach John McDermott at 937-5572 or jmcdermott@postandcourier.com.

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