Universal Savings Bank in Orange has removed...

Universal Savings Bank in Orange has removed its president, George C. Hale, to make the savings and loan more “efficient” and to make it easier for its Australian owner to sell the institution, according to a spokeswoman for the S&L.; Universal Chairman Lawrence Grill Friday took over Hale’s positions as president and chief executive. Hale could not be reached for comment. Owner APA Holdings Ltd. made the move “because it was most efficient for the company at this time,” spokeswoman Rivian Bell said. She said “several parties” ranging “from multibillion-dollar companies to individual investors” are interested in buying Universal. A tentative deal for Guardian Savings & Loan in Huntington Beach to acquire Universal fell through a month ago. APA and its parent, Unity Corp. Ltd. in Sydney, “don’t want to be in a regulated industry,” Bell said in explaining why the company wants to sell Universal. “It’s not in their best interests.”