The chief executive of Hope Bancorp in Los Angeles called the company's pending acquisition of Territorial Bancorp in Honolulu a "compelling combination." But during an earnings call Monday, he warded off inquiries about a competing offer and uncertainty about whether the deal would pass muster with the seller's shareholders.

"We will not be taking questions about the transaction, given that the purpose of this call today is to discuss our financial results for the third quarter," Chairman and CEO Kevin Kim said.

In the company's earnings release, Kim said the deal would "strengthen the Territorial franchise for the long term, providing many advantages for customers and employees as part of a larger organization with greater resources, enhanced technology platforms, and an expanded array of banking products and services."

The $17.4 billion-asset Hope agreed in April to an all-stock deal valued at $78.6 million to buy Territorial. Hope previously said its offer priced Territorial at $8.82 per share and that it expected to close the transaction by Dec. 31. It has not responded to requests for comment about the other offer and a looming shareholder vote on its proposed takeover of Territorial.

At issue: An investor group led by Blue Hill Advisors and former Bank of Hawaii CEO Allan Landon made a competing offer in August. Its initial cash bid valued Territorial at $12 per share. It has since upped that to $12.50 per share.

After that offer came in, Territorial postponed a shareholder vote on its pending sale to Hope to Nov. 6. In a letter to shareholders earlier this month, it said it remained committed to the Hope deal and rejected the Blue Hill offer, saying it was fraught with uncertainty.

The $2.2 billion-asset bank's board said that the offer was made on behalf of investors who are largely unidentified and without evidence that they have the financial wherewithal to follow through on their offer or the expertise to secure regulatory approvals.

Territorial's board said in the letter that the bank would have to pay Hope a $3 million termination fee to pursue the investor group's offer. The Blue Hill offer involved investors buying at least 70% of Territorial through a process that involved the group acquiring convertible preferred stock, then enabling Territorial to use the proceeds to commence a tender offer. If investors were unable to tender at least 70% of Territorial's stock, the deal would fall through, and the company would have to return the proceeds.