Statewide bank to surpass $4.5B in assets with new deal

Florida Community Bank, a fast-growing lender with offices in several Gulf Coast markets, signed a deal to buy Miami Lakes-based Great Florida Bank for about $42.5 million.

The acquisition, pending regulatory and shareholder approval, will create a $4.5 billion institution and Florida's fourth-largest independent bank, according to a release. Weston-based Florida Community Bank, a subsidiary of Miami-based Bond Street Holdings, will pay Great Florida Bank stockholders $3.24 a share in the deal, the release states. Great Florida Bank's shares recently traded for $3 a share, so FCB will pay an 8% premium to the current share price.

Great Florida has $1.14 billion in assets, according to Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. data, while FCB has more than $3.4 billion in assets.