(Bloomberg) --The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. was seeking buyers for Philadelphia regional bank Republic First Bancorp last week before it struck a deal to raise capital, according to people familiar with the matter.
The FDIC had sought bids for the bank on Oct. 23, but told potential buyers two days later that it would delay making a decision until this week, said the people, who asked to not be identified because the matter isn't public. Bidders haven't heard anything back since then from the FDIC, indicating that the process may be on hold, the people said.
On Friday, Republic First announced that it will raise $35 million from an investor group, pending regulatory approval.
Representatives for the FDIC and Republic First declined to comment. It's unclear whether the FDIC process will continue.
Republic First, with about $6 billion in assets, has been struggling with similar issues as other regional banks, though it's much smaller then lenders such as similarly named First Republic Bank. Rising interest rates have translated into big unrealized losses in securities and loan books across the industry.
Republic First delisted from the Nasdaq in August. The bank said on Friday that it would raise $35 million from a group of investors including George E. Norcross III, Gregory B. Braca and Philip A. Norcross, who had been feuding with the bank earlier this year before they agreed to work together to raise capital.
After that deal closes, Republic First plans to complete the rest of a previously announced capital raise of $75 million to $100 million.
