Two banking companies with a presence in the Wilmington market announced Thursday the signing of a definitive merger agreement.

South State Corp., based in Columbia, South Carolina, plans to merge with Charlotte-based Park Sterling Corp. The two companies combined would create a franchise with $14.5 billion in assets operating in North and South Carolina, Virginia and Georgia, according to the two entities’ joint news release.

Under the terms of the agreement, shareholders of Park Sterling Corp. would receive 0.14 shares of South State common stock for each share of Park Sterling common stock. The aggregate purchase is valued at nearly $691 million.

The deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter of this year, pending regulatory and shareholder approvals, the release stated, with the systems converting over early next year. Under the agreement, Park Sterling Corp. would be merged into South State Corp., and Park Sterling's bank subsidiary, Park Sterling Bank, would be merged into South State's bank subsidiary, South State Bank, when the deal closes.

Park Sterling operates one branch in Wilmington, located at 3701 Shipyard Blvd. South State Bank has two branches in Wilmington, one in Hampstead, one in Leland and one in Sunset Beach.

There have been no decisions about South State Bank and Park Sterling Bank branches. Those decisions will be made later in the transition process, South State spokeswoman Donna Pullen said Thursday.

“Our partnership with Park Sterling is a natural next step. We both have a common vision for building a quality regional bank in the Southeast, and this is a significant step forward in accomplishing that goal,” Robert R. Hill Jr., CEO of South State Corporation, said in the release. “We are fortunate to have two great teams that operate in dynamic markets and we are excited about the opportunities this merger creates.”