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Huntington grows its insurance presence
By JEFF HARRINGTON © St. Petersburg Times, published August 25, 2000 Huntington Bancshares is buying the third-largest independent property and casualty insurer in Florida, jump-starting the bank's quest to become a strong player in the insurance market. The Columbus, Ohio, bank, which is active throughout Florida, is buying a general insurer near its own state headquarters in Orlando: J. Rolfe Davis Insurance Agency Inc. of Maitland. The deal, announced Thursday and expected to close next week, brings into the Huntington fold an agency with 100 staff members, about $14-million in annual revenue and more than $140-million in annual premiums. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Among major banks operating in Florida, Huntington has long been one of the most vocal about embracing recent changes in federal law that allow banks to own insurance agencies and vice versa. Like others, it views so-called financial modernization as a way to peddle insurance products in its branches and broaden its financial relationship with customers. Jim Dunlap, president of Huntington's Southern region, said before talking to J. Rolfe Davis that he had had trouble finding a Florida agency with a culture that matched the bank's. As he searched, Dunlap hired an insurance executive from rival First Union to develop Huntington's insurance business from a base in Tampa. About 80 Huntington employees are licensed to sell insurance in Florida. Dunlap said he is looking for more agencies to buy. David McKinney, president and chief executive of J. Rolfe Davis, will run the operation. Huntington plans to keep the Rolfe Davis name, operating it as a unit of Huntington Insurance Agency Services. McKinney said he thinks banks want to expand into his line of work even though the moves have been gradual so far in Florida. When approached by Huntington seven months ago, McKinney initially rejected the bank outright. "I said, "We're not for sale,' " he said. "These guys are good salesmen."
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From the Times Business report
From the AP
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