Florida

The commercial-and-industrial loan space is overheated, higher rates could stifle mortgage refinancings, and subprime auto delinquencies are on the rise. Bankers could be fighting these fires and more in the new year.

Regions Financial President and CEO Grayson Hall and the CEO of a Miami bank have been elected to the board of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta.

Two former executives of the failed GulfSouth Private Bank in Destin, Fla., and another man have been indicted on federal charges of defrauding the Troubled Asset Relief Program of $7.5 million.

Gene Bruyette, a co-founder of Keefe, Bruyette & Woods, the investment bank that became one of the most prolific advisors on bank merger deals, has died. He was 90.

EverBank Financial's biggest investor is cashing out ahead of the Jacksonville, Fla., company's sale to TIAA.

IBM Southeast Employee Credit Union in Delray Beach, Fla., has reportedly filed an application to buy Mackinac Savings Bank in Boynton Beach, Fla.

Home BancShares in Conway, Ark., said in a press release Thursday that its bank has been declared the winning bidder for Bank of Commerce in Sarasota, Fla., as part of a bankruptcy auction.

Voters in Florida, North Dakota, Montana and Arkansas approved medical marijuana measures on Tuesday, while their counterparts in California, Massachusetts and Nevada approved recreational pot initiatives.

HomeBancorp in Tampa, Fla., has appointed several executives to expanded roles, all to take effect at the start of the year.

Seacoast Banking Corp. of Florida recently announced another bank deal just months after its biggest shareholder complained of subpar performance. The bank insists it is sticking to a long-term plan to build value.

Home BancShares in Conway, Ark., has agreed to buy the parent of Landmark Bank in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

The $408 million-asset company said in a press release that it completed a private placement of subordinated debt to accredited institutional investors.

As voters in California, Florida and nine other states decide whether to legalize marijuana, the results may force Congress to resolve differences between federal and state laws that have paralyzed much of the banking industry.

Gulf Coast Community Bank in Florida agreed to sell itself last month after spending six frustrating years trying to tackle credit issues and angling for a settlement tied to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

Seacoast Banking Corp. of Florida in Stuart has agreed to buy GulfShore Bancshares in Tampa, Fla.

Regulators have pressed banks to watch out for rising concentrations of commercial real estate loans. Some banks have paid heed, but others are skyrocketing past recommended thresholds.

OptimumBank Holdings in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., has appointed a former Florida credit union CEO, John H. Clifford, to its board.

CenterState Banks in Davenport, Fla., has agreed to buy Platinum Bank Holding Company in Brandon, Fla., in a $83.9 million cash-and-stock deal.

First Bancshares in Hattiesburg, Miss., has agreed to buy two banks in Alabama and Florida and it announced plans for a capital-raise to fund the deals.

Bank of Commerce in Sarasota, Fla., will change hands following a bankruptcy auction.