What a (bank) bargain

Fort Lauderdale-based Stonegate Bank told its shareholders it got a great deal when it bought Fort Myers-based Southwest Capital Bank and First Commercial Bank of Tampa Bay.

In a statement about its fourth-quarter earnings, Stonegate told investors that it recognized a “bargain purchase gain” of $18.8 million when it bought the two banks in 2011. The gain represents the difference between the purchase price and the fair-market value of the assets acquired.

Stonegate acquired Southwest Capital Bank in an open-market transaction and First Commercial Bank of Tampa Bay from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. after state regulators shut it down.