Collects deposits in Florida and New York, then makes loans that bigger banks won't touch because they require deep local knowledge.
BankUnited gathers deposits across Florida and New York, then lends that money against coastal construction properties and rent-stabilised commercial buildings that national banks routinely pass on because underwriting them correctly requires knowing county flood maps in Miami-Dade or municipal rent-stabilisation rules in Manhattan. Because those two sets of rules have nothing to do with each other, the bank has to maintain two genuinely separate credit teams — one in each market — rather than centralising underwriting the way a larger competitor would. That staffing cost is offset by the fact that borrowers who need a lender with that local knowledge have nowhere obvious to go instead, since a replacement bank would have to rebuild the same on-the-ground expertise before it could even approve the first loan. The structure only holds, though, as long as Florida's construction cycle and New York's commercial real estate cycle don't both turn bad at the same time — if they do, there is no third market sitting behind them to absorb the losses.
How does this company make money?
The bank's main source of income is the gap between what it pays depositors and what it charges borrowers — it collects interest on loans in Florida and New York at rates higher than the interest it pays on deposits. When it arranges a commercial loan, it also charges origination fees and commitment fees on any portion of a credit line the borrower hasn't used yet. Business customers pay monthly fees for cash management and business checking services. And in Florida, the bank earns additional income by originating residential mortgages and selling them into the secondary market.
What makes this company hard to replace?
Commercial borrowers in both markets have built relationships with bankers who already understand their local zoning rules, flood zone requirements in Florida, and rent-stabilisation obligations in New York — a new bank would have to start that learning process from scratch, which slows approvals and raises the chance of a declined loan. Treasury management clients have connected their internal cash management systems to the bank's platforms, and unwinding those connections requires time and technical work. Existing credit facilities also come with personal guarantees and local collateral structures that a replacement lender would need to re-underwrite entirely before taking them on.
What limits this company?
Renting and staffing branches in the New York metropolitan area costs significantly more than in Florida. That means every dollar the bank spends on New York infrastructure brings in fewer deposits than the same dollar spent in Florida. If the bank pushes too hard to grow in New York, the extra cost eats into the profit margin that makes running two separate markets worthwhile in the first place.
What does this company depend on?
The bank cannot operate without its licences from the Florida Department of Financial Regulation and the New York Department of Financial Services. It relies on FDIC deposit insurance to reassure customers that their money is protected up to $250,000. Federal Home Loan Bank advances provide a backup source of cash when the bank needs liquidity. Core banking software systems handle transactions across both states. And commercial real estate appraisal networks in Miami-Dade, Broward, Palm Beach, Manhattan, Nassau, and Westchester provide the property valuations the bank uses to decide whether a loan is safe.
Who depends on this company?
Florida homebuilders who need construction-to-permanent financing rely on the bank to keep projects moving — without it, those projects face delays because national lenders won't do that work locally. Small businesses in the New York metropolitan area that need relationship-based commercial loans depend on the bank because they don't qualify for national bank credit programs. Florida commercial real estate developers also count on it for quick local decisions on acquisition and development loans that require someone who knows the market.
How does this company scale?
Back-office functions — compliance systems, treasury management platforms, and transaction processing — can serve both Florida and New York without much added cost as the bank grows. But credit underwriting does not scale the same way. Assessing a Florida tourism-related business loan or a New York rent-stabilised apartment building requires a relationship banker who knows that specific market. The bank cannot automate or centralise that work, so every new loan in either market still needs a trained local person on the ground.
What external forces can significantly affect this company?
Federal Reserve interest rate decisions are the most direct outside force: when the Fed raises short-term rates, the bank's deposit costs climb faster than the fixed yields on its existing long-term loans, squeezing the margin between the two. Hurricane risk in Florida is a permanent exposure — a major storm affecting coastal counties in Miami-Dade, Broward, or Palm Beach can force the bank to reserve money against potential losses on construction loans in those areas. In New York, changes to rent-stabilisation laws can reduce the rental income a building owner collects, which weakens the collateral backing the bank's commercial loans there.
Where is this company structurally vulnerable?
If the Federal Reserve keeps short-term interest rates high enough that deposit costs rise faster than what the bank earns on its long-term loans, the profit margin shrinks. If that happens at the same moment a Florida hurricane forces the bank to set aside money for losses on coastal construction loans, and a change in New York rent-stabilisation law reduces what borrowers can repay, both loan books are damaged simultaneously with no third market to make up the difference.
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