Ameris in Georgia Agrees to Buy Coastal Bankshares

Ameris Bancorp (ABCB) in Moultrie, Ga., has agreed to buy Coastal Bankshares in Savannah, Ga.

Ameris will pay about $37 million in common stock for the $433 million-asset Coastal.

Coastal has six branches, including five around Savannah. The deal will make the $3.7 billion-asset Ameris the fifth-biggest bank in the city. Coastal also has $295 million in loans and $364 million in deposits.

"We are... looking forward to welcoming the Coastal team to Ameris," Edwin Hortman Jr., Ameris' president and chief executive, said in a press release Tuesday. "We believe our combined efforts in the Savannah market will result in even greater service for our customers."

Ameris said it expects to complete the acquisition in the third quarter. Ameris was advised by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods and Rogers & Hardin. Coastal was advised by Banks Street Partners and Troutman Sanders.

Ameris bought Prosperity Banking in St. Augustine, Fla., last year. The company received regulatory approval last month to buy back its remaining preferred stock tied to the Troubled Asset Relief Program.