May 29 (Reuters) - U.S. regional lender Seacoast Banking

Corporation of Florida ( SBCF ) said on Thursday it has agreed

to buy smaller rival Villages Bancorporation (VBI) in a deal

valued at $710.8 million.

A flurry of dealmaking among regional banks in the U.S.

signals a renewed push for consolidation in the sector, as the

industry grapples with stiff competition, higher funding costs

and tighter regulatory scrutiny.

The trend, which gathered pace in 2024, slowed in recent

months due to uncertainty around U.S. tariff policies at a time

when the global economic environment remains volatile.

But analysts expect activity to pick up again as regulatory

clarity improves and pressure on dealmaking begins to ease.

Seacoast, which has $15.7 billion in assets and $12.6

billion in deposits, said it expects the deal to be accretive by

roughly 22% to its 2026 earnings per share.

Founded in 1992, VBI operates 19 branches with deposits of

around $3.5 billion and loans of roughly $1.3 billion as of

March 31.

Piper Sandler served as financial adviser to Seacoast on the

transaction, which is expected to close in the fourth quarter of

2025, while Hovde Group advised VBI.