American Banker | The Ploy to Get Bank Shareholders to Sell at Below Market Price

Alston & Bird represented Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida, the holding company for Seacoast National Bank, in its $710.8 million acquisition of Villages Bancorporation, parent company of Florida-based Citizens First Bank. The transaction structure includes a unique combination of cash, common stock, and non-voting preferred stock and represents Seacoast’s largest transaction to date.

Alston & Bird has received significant recognition in the 2025 edition of Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business, with 77 practice rankings and 164 leading lawyer listings.

Alston & Bird advised Texas-based pawnbroker FirstCash Holdings and its UK subsidiary Chess Bidco on their £351 million acquisition of H & T Group, a leading publicly traded UK-based operator of pawn stores.

Alston & Bird represented Texas-based Industry Bancshares and its six subsidiary banks in their acquisition by Cadence Bank, a Mississippi-based financial services company. Under the agreement, Cadence Bank will pay between $20 million and $60 million in cash for Industry Bancshares’ outstanding common stock.

Alston & Bird advised GoldState Music, a leading music rights investment platform, on raising $500 million in strategic capital, including a structured capital facility co-led by private equity firms Northleaf Capital Partners and Ares Management. Based in Florida, GoldState Music invests in music rights, emerging music technology, and enterprises in need of growth and expansion capital. This transaction underscores the ability of the Alston & Bird’s Investment Funds Group to provide proactive, holistic, and cutting-edge investment management expertise, ensuring clients like GoldState Music are well positioned in the ever-evolving marketplace.

Alston & Bird represented FB Financial Corporation, the Tennessee-headquartered parent company of FirstBank, in its $381 million acquisition of Alabama-headquartered Southern States Bancshares Inc., the parent company of Southern States Bank.

Alston & Bird represented T2S Solutions, a founder-led provider of advanced technologies that support U.S. defense, intelligence, and national security missions, on its acquisition of Blue Marble Communications, a leading provider of space-qualified communications and computing technologies. Headquartered in Belcamp, Maryland, T2S Solutions is a portfolio company of Madison Dearborn Partners.

Alston & Bird is pleased to announce that Stuart Rogers and Jeremy Silverman, partners in the firm’s Corporate & Business Transactions Group, have been recognized by MergerLinks in its annual list of leading lawyers who have advised on the most valuable M&A deals in North America.

Alston & Bird’s Intellectual Property Group has been named as a finalist in the “Department of the Year, Specialty Practice Intellectual Property” recognition in Daily Report’s 2025 Southeastern Legal Awards. 

Alston & Bird advised Lightspeed Systems, a global leader in online security, safety, and educational technology management solutions, on its acquisition of STOPit Solutions, a pioneer in anonymous reporting and crisis management platforms. Based in Austin, Texas, Lightspeed Systems is a portfolio company of Madison Dearborn Partners and Genstar Capital.