Miami Investors Syndicate Buys First Beverly Bank

A Miami investors syndicate said Tuesday that it has acquired control of First Beverly Bank, a troubled bank based in Beverly Hills that has $35 million in assets.

The purchasers, headed by Miami bankers Abel and Daniel Holtz, paid about $3.3 million to acquire 90% of First Beverly’s outstanding common and preferred shares. The group earlier had bought 28% of the bank’s shares in a friendly takeover effort that began last summer.

Abel Holtz, who is First Beverly’s new chairman and chief executive, said the investors planned to provide the California bank with an additional $1.5 million in capital to meet regulatory net-worth requirements. The bank has seen its assets and net worth shrink over the past several years because of bad loans.

Holtz controls Capital Bancorp, the parent of Miami-based Capital Bank, which has $600 million in assets and 16 south Florida offices.

He also is chairman of Capital Bank, an affiliate in Washington with $60 million in assets.

The new owners said they plan no major management changes below the level of chairman and expect to concentrate on international, real estate and other commercial lending.

“We are excited about the synergy which will be created by the interaction of our banking offices in south Florida, Washington and Los Angeles,” Holtz said.

“Through its affiliation with Capital Bank in Miami, First Beverly Bank will benefit from its ability to extend larger loans and lines of credit to its customers,” he added.