A group of Atlanta attorneys from Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker advised a struggling Florida bank on its acquisition by a private equity group after it was shut down by federal regulators.
In the deal, BankUnited Financial Corp. of Coral Gables, Fla., was acquired by a consortium of private equity funds, including WL Ross & Co., Carlyle Investment Management LLC, Blackstone Capital Partners and Centerbridge Capital Partners LP. Former North Fork Bancorp Chief Executive Officer John Kanas was also an investor and will become BankUnited’s new CEO.
The WL Ross/Kanas group beat out a competing offer by Goldman, Sachs & Co. and TD Bank, according to newsletter The Deal.
BankUnited had assets of $12.8 billion and deposits of $8.6 billion as of May 2. BankUnited’s failure will cost the FDIC about $4.9 billion.
The reorganized BankUnited will retain its status as the largest banking institution with a Florida headquarters, according to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. It operates 86 branches primarily in south Florida.
Paul Hastings partner Walter Jospin was lead adviser to BankUnited’s board of directors. The Paul Hastings group was also regulatory and bankruptcy counsel to BankUnited’s holding company. Paul Hastings banking partner John Douglas and corporate partner Erik Belenky in Atlanta, and bankruptcy partner Richard Chesley in Chicago worked with Jospin.
Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom partners David Ingles and William Rubenstein in New York and William Sweet in Washington advised Kanas and WL Ross, Carlyle, Blackstone and Centerbridge. Simpson Thacher & Bartlett also advised Blackstone, Carlyle and Centerbridge. Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz also advised WL Ross.
The BankUnited deal is the second acquisition of a bank by private equity investors this year. Banks have been failing in the U.S. at a rapid pace; BankUnited is the 34th bank insured by the FDIC to be closed this year.