Sterling Bank, Lantana, Florida

Sterling Bank, Lantana, Florida, was shut down and it’s deposits served up to IBERIABANK, Lafayette, Louisiana. Sterling Bank becomes the 97th bank to be closed nationwide this year. The agency estimates that the cost to the Deposit Insurance Fund (DIF) will be $45.5 million.

Sterling Bank, Lantana, Florida, was closed today by the Florida Office of Financial Regulation, which appointed the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) as receiver. To protect the depositors, the FDIC entered into a purchase and assumption agreement with IBERIABANK, Lafayette, Louisiana, to assume all of the deposits of Sterling Bank.

The six branches of Sterling Bank will reopen on Monday as branches of IBERIABANK. Depositors of Sterling Bank will automatically become depositors of IBERIABANK. Deposits will continue to be insured by the FDIC, so there is no need for customers to change their banking relationship in order to retain their deposit insurance coverage. Customers of Sterling Bank should continue to use their existing branch until they receive notice from IBERIABANK that it has completed systems changes to allow other IBERIABANK branches to process their accounts as well.

This evening and over the weekend, depositors of Sterling Bank can access their money by writing checks or using ATM or debit cards. Checks drawn on the bank will continue to be processed. Loan customers should continue to make their payments as usual.

As of March 31, 2010, Sterling Bank had approximately $407.9 million in total assets and $372.4 million in total deposits. IBERIABANK did not pay the FDIC a premium for the deposits of Sterling Bank. In addition to assuming all of the deposits of the failed bank, IBERIABANK agreed to purchase essentially all of the assets.

The FDIC and IBERIABANK entered into a loss-share transaction on $244.3 million of Sterling Bank’s assets. IBERIABANK will share in the losses on the asset pools covered under the loss-share agreement. The loss-share transaction is projected to maximize returns on the assets covered by keeping them in the private sector. The transaction also is expected to minimize disruptions for loan customers. For more information on loss share, please visit: http://www.fdic.gov/bank/individual/failed/lossshare/index.html.

Customers who have questions about today’s transaction can call the FDIC toll-free at 1-800-523-8275. The phone number will be operational this evening until 9:00 p.m., Eastern Daylight Time (EDT); on Saturday from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., EDT; on Sunday from noon to 6:00 p.m., EDT; and thereafter from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., EDT.

If you should have any further questions, please do not hesitate to visit the FDIC’s website for Sterling Bank.