Local bank merger | Business

Venice, FL -- A new deal involving a local bank may be a sign of more to come in the banking industry.

According to the Herald-Tribune, on Wednesday, Dec. 22, Hancock Holding Co. spent $1.5 billion in stock for Whitney Holding Corporation. Whitney Holding Corp. is based in New Orleans but has six offices in Manatee County with $201.5 million in deposits.

Southwest Florida is new territory for Hancock Bank, which now has 35 offices in the Panhandle and Central Florida that holds $1.7 billion in deposits.

Whitney had a loan production office in Sarasota, a trust office in Venice, and bought the 1st National Bank of Manatee in Bradenton in 2006.  

On Dec. 17, Bank of Montreal shelled out $4.1 billion for the parent of M&I Bank, which has 11 local branches.

For more on this story visit, herald-tribune.com.