First NBC Bank in New Orleans is now considered significantly undercapitalized by one of its regulators.
The $4.9 billion-asset company
The order requires the company to boost capital to get its bank back to “adequately capitalized” status or find a buyer. First NBC said it is “committed to exploring all feasible alternatives in order to comply.”
The filing noted that the FDIC has the authority to take additional action if it is unable to meet the order’s requirements.
First NBC did make some progress raising capital, completing the sale of nine branches and $1.3 billion in loans to Hancock Holding in Gulfport, Miss. That deal, which closed last week, also included $400 million in deposits and $600 million in Federal Home Loan Bank borrowings.
Hancock paid $320 million in cash, including a $42 million transaction premium.
First NBC, which recently agreed to hire former Hancock CEO Carl Chaney for the same role, has a multitude of challenges, including issues in its tax-credit business and rising delinquencies in its commercial loan book.
Chaney has said that he aims to salvage First NBC, not sell it.
