In Brief: Republic of Florida In $11M Thrift Deal

Republic Bancshares of St. Petersburg, Fla., continued its Florida buying spree, announcing plans to buy Bankers Savings Bank, Coral Gables, for about $11 million in stock.

Republic is one of the largest independent commercial banks in Florida, with $1.6 billion of assets and 46 branches in nine counties. On Dec. 15, it agreed to buy seven branches in Florida and one in Georgia from NationsBank Corp. and Barnett Banks Inc.

Included in the seven were three branches in the Florida Keys, giving Republic its only presence in south Florida. John W. Sapanski, chairman and chief executive officer of Republic, said the need to support those branches made the Bankers Savings deal attractive.

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