Barnett Banks Inc. is selling a portion of its recently acquired data processing operations for correspondent banks to Marshall & Ilsley Corp. for an undisclosed amount.
Barnett acquired the operations last year when it purchased First Florida Banks. It is selling only the Tampa operations of the unit, which is now called Financial Processors Inc. and is part of Barnett Technologies Inc. Barnett retains FPI's operations in Miami and Jacksonville.
A M&I spokesman said the company is in a better position to build the business than Barnett was due to the Milwaukee bank's broader range of account-processing services. As part of the deal, M&I Data Services Inc., M&I's processing unit, will take on responsibility for current contracts, equipment, and 160 employees.
The deal gives M&I its first facility based in the Southeast. M&I eventually may move processing for its existing customers in the Southeast from its Milwaukee data center to Tampa, the spokesman said.
