UPDATE 1-Sterling Financial jumps as regulatory pressure eases

Sept 28 (Reuters) - Shares of Sterling Financial Corp (STSA.O) jumped as much as 23 percent Tuesday, a day after the capital-starved bank holding company said regulators terminated a cease and desist order for its banking unit.

"Sterling anticipates maintaining a Tier 1 capital ratio above 8 percent, which surpasses the current well-capitalized standard for banks and the proposed Basel III global banking standards," Chief Executive Greg Seibly said in a statement.

The termination of the order comes after the company clinched deals in August to raise $730 million in fresh capital from private equity and institutional investors. [ID:nSGE67J0FV]

Sterling shares, which have recovered 20 percent of their value in the past three months, were up 13 percent at 68 cents in morning trade on Nasdaq.

Last October, the U.S. Federal Deposit Insurance Corp (FDIC) and Washington Department of Financial Institutions directed Sterling to strengthen the financial condition and reduce the level of non-performing loans at its Sterling Savings Bank unit. [ID:nBNG435804] (Reporting by Abhinav Sharma in Bangalore; Editing by Gopakumar Warrier)