Wilbur L. Ross, who made billions buying and fixing troubled steel and coal assets, unveiled his first U.S. bank investment deal last week, in which he would gain a majority stake in a Florida banking company.
Mr. Ross, the head of New York private-equity firm W.L. Ross & Co. LLC, agreed to buy a 68.11% stake in the $83 million-asset First Bank and Trust Co. in Indiantown. The price was not disclosed.
In April he said he would like to raise $4 billion to purchase stakes in small and regional U.S. depository institutions reeling from the mortgage meltdown.
Mr. Ross, who did not return a call for comment, said in a press release Friday that he has "a strong commitment to investing in the financial industry not only in Florida, but throughout the nation."
