Gulf Capital Bank has received conditional approval from state and federal officials and could be up and running late this year or early next year, its organizers say.
An initial review determined that lax oversight at Enloe State Bank allowed for the origination of more than 100 allegedly fraudulent or fictitious loans.
Regulators may be willing to grant new charters, but economic uncertainties, capital hurdles and inexperience have led the organizers of numerous bank startups to give up in the last few years.
