Texas Bank Grows Fast with a Pan-Asian Strategy

For a small, niche bank, United Central Bank in Garland, Tex., has big plans.

The unit of Central Bancorp Inc. targets Asian-Americans, and in the last two years it has sprinkled loan production offices around Asian-American communities in eight states. Now, several of the business loan offices have matured, and the bank is converting some of them into full-service branches and looking to bulk up in Atlanta by acquiring a bank there.

United has more than doubled its asset size in the last three years, to $750 million, and president and chief executive officer Keith Ward said its goal is to have $1 billion of assets by the end of next year.

Mr. Ward said he believes the bank can reach this goal …