June 17, 2015 - Home BancShares Inc. plans to buy Bay Cities Bank, one of the largest banks headquartered in the Tampa Bay area. Home BancShares will pay about $101.6 million to the shareholders of Florida Business BancGroup Inc., the parent company of Bay Cities Bank. About 80 percent of the purchase will be in Home BancShares (NASDAQ: HOMB) common stock, and about 20 percent will be in cash, a statement said. The deal would significantly boost the presence of Home BancShare’s Centennial Bank in Tampa Bay. Bay Cities, with $540.5 million in assets, currently operates six branch locations and a loan production office in the Tampa Bay area, including a newly opened office in Sarasota.