First Bank Agrees to Purchase the Rockingham and Southern Pines Branches from Four Oaks Bank & Trust Company

First Bancorp is a bank holding company headquartered in Troy, North Carolina with total assets of approximately $3.3 billion.  Its principal activity is the ownership and operation of First Bank, a state-chartered community bank that operates 98 branches, with 82 branches operating in North Carolina, 9 branches in South Carolina, and 7 branches in Virginia, where First Bank does business as First Bank of Virginia.  First Bank also has a loan production office in Blacksburg, Virginia.  First Bancorp's common stock is traded on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the symbol "FBNC." First Bancorp's website is www.FirstBancorp.com.

About Four Oaks Fincorp, Inc.

With $904.2 million in total assets as of June 30, 2012, Four Oaks Fincorp, Inc., through its wholly owned subsidiary, Four Oaks Bank & Trust Company, offers a broad range of financial services through its sixteen offices in Four Oaks, Clayton, Smithfield, Garner, Benson, Fuquay-Varina, Wallace, Holly Springs, Harrells, Zebulon, Dunn, Rockingham, Southern Pines, and Raleigh, North Carolina. Four Oaks Fincorp, Inc. trades on the OTC under the symbol "FOFN".  Four Oaks Bank & Trust Company's website is www.fouroaksbank.com.

This press release contains statements that could be deemed forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, which statements are inherently subject to risks and uncertainties.  Forward-looking statements are statements that include projections, predictions, expectations or beliefs about future events or results or otherwise are not statements of historical fact.  Such statements are often characterized by the use of qualifying words (and their derivatives) such as "expect," "believe," "estimate," "plan," "project," "anticipate," or other statements concerning opinions or judgments of each company and its management about future events.  Factors that could influence the accuracy of such forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, the financial success or changing strategies of customers, the level of success in integrating acquisitions, actions of government regulators, the level of market interest rates, and general economic conditions.  Additional information about the factors that could affect the matters discussed in this paragraph is contained in each company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including their periodic reports under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.

SOURCE First Bancorp