Iberiabank Strikes Another Deal in Florida

Making good on its promise to continue to grow through acquisitions, Iberiabank Corp. in Lafayette, La., announced Monday that it is buying the $350 million-asset Florida Gulf Bancorp Inc. in Fort Myers for up to $48.1 million in stock and cash.

The $11.7 billion-asset Iberiabank said it would pay Florida Gulf shareholders the equivalent of $23 of its common stock for each of their shares, for a total of $43.7 million. It also said it would pay an additional $4.4 million in cash based on the resolution of certain loans over a three-year period after the deal is completed.

The deal is expected to close in the third quarter. William P. Valenti, Florida Gulf's president and chief executive, will be named executive vice president and market president for Iberiabank's Lee County franchise after the acquisition closes.

The deal would be Iberiabank's third in Florida and seventh overall since late 2009. Iberiabank has nearly 175 branches in six states and its deal for the 11-year-old Florida Gulf would give it eight more branches in southwest Florida.

"We are delighted to join forces with Florida Gulf Bank, a bank with excellent potential in the Fort Myers-Cape Coral market," Daryl G. Byrd, president and chief executive of Iberiabank, said in a news release on Monday. "We have great admiration for Bill Valenti, his leadership team, and Florida Gulf's board of directors. They established a well-managed de novo bank focused on commercial and industrial lending with a strong niche serving professionals and executives in Lee County."

Iberiabank has roughly doubled its assets over the last three years through acquisitions of both healthy and failed banks and has said that it to continues to eye opportunities in metropolitan markets stretching from Texas to Virginia.

Earlier this month it filed a shelf registration with Securities and Exchange Commission that would allow it to quickly raise capital for potential deals.

For reprint and licensing requests for this article, click here.
Community banking Louisiana
MORE FROM AMERICAN BANKER