First Republic willing to hear buyout offers

      The San Francisco-based holding company for First Republic Savings Bank of Las Vegas is looking for buyers and considering other ways to enhance stockholder values.
      First Republic Bancorp, a $2.2 billion-asset thrift, has hired Montgomery Securities of San Francisco to "assist in identifying, reviewing and assessing various strategic alternatives," according to the trade publication American Banker.
      A request for comment was referred to corporate headquarters in San Francisco and then to a New York public relations consultant who had no immediate comment.
      The move comes in the wake of other thrift mergers. Great Western Financial Corp. of Los Angeles earlier this month agreed to a $6.6 billion buyout by Washington Mutual Inc. of Seattle to thwart a hostile bid by Irwindale-based H.F. Ahmanson & Co. Washington Mutual also agreed to take over California Federal Bancorp.
      First Republic's Nevada thrift has been operating in Las Vegas since 1994. It has $120 million in assets and two offices.
      First Republic Mortgage Inc., a subsidiary of the San Francisco holding company, had originated financing for homes and apartments in Las Vegas.