Sunshine Bancorp to Buy Community Southern in Florida

Sunshine Bancorp in Plant City, Fla., has agreed to buy Community Southern Holdings in Lakeland, Fla.

The $222 million-asset Sunshine will pay about $30.8 million in cash for the $246 million-asset Community Southern. The deal will add $165 million in loans, $186 million in deposits and result in Sunshine having $451 million in assets and nine branches around Tampa, Fla. The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter.

Andrew Samuel, Sunshine’s president and chief executive, told American Banker in a recent interview that the company is looking to grow with "compelling strategic acquisitions." Since joining Sunshine in October, Samuel has been using capital raised in the company’s second-step conversion to build the lender's staff, add directors and executives and hire loan officers.

"We are delighted to add Community Southern to our banking family," Samuel said in a press release Thursday. "This transaction is consistent with our strategy for selective acquisitive growth intro attractive contiguous markets."

As part of this deal, one Community Southern director will join Sunshine's board.

Sunshine was advised by Monroe Financial Partners and Luse, Gorman, Pomerenk & Schick. Community Southern was advised by Professional Bank Services and Igler Pearlman.

For reprint and licensing requests for this article, click here.
Community banking M&A Integrations Branch deals Florida
MORE FROM AMERICAN BANKER