The Morse family sold off Citizens First Bank for $829 million in 2025, making it the No. 5 story of the year.
Earlier this year, Seacoast National Bank completed its acquisition of Citizens First Bank.
Seacoast officials indicated that the future growth of The Villages, combined with Citizens First Bank’s stellar reputation, made it the perfect fit. Seacoast, which dates back to 1926 in Stuart and survived the hardscrabble days of the Depression, found the people at Citizens First Bank shared the same set of values…