CITY NATIONAL BUYS VENTURA COUNTY BANK.

Byline: Christopher Noxon Daily News Staff Writer

The largest bank headquartered in Ventura County has been bought by Beverly Hills-based City National Bank in a deal that bank officers say may result in some layoffs but no branch closures.

Ventura County National Bancorp, which operates four branches in Ventura County, was acquired by City National for $47 million in stocks and cash. The deal, announced Monday morning to the bank's 129 employees, is the second acquisition in less than a year for City National, which is now the largest independent bank with headquarters in Southern California.

Bank officers promised that existing Ventura County National Bank customers will benefit from the new ownership. City National's presence will boost capital available in loans, introduce more branch choices and add international banking services, said Richard Cupp, president and chief executive officer of Ventura County National Bank.

``Ventura County is growing and we needed to grow along with it,'' said Cupp. ``This gives our customers a broad range of services we've been unable to provide. It's a win-win for all parties.''

Four branches in Ventura, Oxnard, Camarillo and Westlake Village will be restaffed and renamed as City National Bank within six months if the deal is approved as expected by government regulators. The bank's two branches outside the county, in Orange and Los Angeles counties, are also included in the deal.

Staffing will be reviewed in the coming months, said Russell Goldsmith, chairman and chief executive officer of City National Bank. While officers expect to maintain most bank employees, some may be laid off because of duplication of duties, he said.

Ventura County National Bank has total assets of about $274 million. City National has $3.9 billion in assets.

The acquisition is the second in less than a year for the bank, which acquired the 10 branches of First Los Angeles in an $86 million deal in September 1995. The bank has 23 branches in Orange, San Diego and Los Angeles counties, but has so far stayed out of Ventura County, said Goldsmith.

``This is a strategic move,'' Goldsmith said. ``It enables us to move into an area where we wanted to be and gives us access to key sectors of the economy.''

Goldsmith said the new ownership will concentrate on winning over customers who might be wary of a corporation from outside the county. City National is actually better equipped than most other ``mega-size monoliths located outside Southern California,'' he said.

The deal has been in the works for about three months, said Cupp. A court ruling earlier this summer for $2.5 million to a former Ventura County Bank president did not factor into the negotiations, Cupp said.

``That was a non-event for us,'' Cupp said.