Ameris Bancorp announced Thursday two acquisitions that will greatly expand its market presence in North Florida and South Georgia, but only slightly in the Jacksonville market.
Ameris, which has 10 branches in the Jacksonville metropolitan area, said it is buying eight North Florida branches and 10 South Georgia branches from Bank of America Corp.
Ameris, headquartered in Moultrie in South Georgia, did not specify what branches it is buying but a map posted in an investor presentation showed the Florida branches are concentrated in North Central Florida.
The company also announced an agreement to acquire Gainesville-based Merchants & Southern Banks of Florida Inc.
Merchants & Southern has 12 banking offices, including one in the Jacksonville metropolitan area in Keystone Heights.
Ameris has $479 million in deposits in the Jacksonville metropolitan area, according to the most recent Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. data. That makes it the ninth largest bank in the market.
The company has a total of 73 banking offices in Georgia, Florida, Alabama and South Carolina.