Professional Bank, a subsidiary of Professional Holding Corp. (NASDAQ: PFHD), will open a New England Loan Production Office in Bedford, New Hampshire specializing in a niche business opportunity associated with M&A lending nationwide. The office will focus on the search fund community and related sponsors that provide equity and seek debt to finance acquisitions of small businesses.

The office will be led by Zach Duprey, Senior Vice President, Director of Search Fund & Sponsor Finance. Duprey joins Professional Bank from BankProv where he was the driving force behind its Search Fund Lending Center. As director of the lending group, he grew the search fund portfolio by financing over 60 acquisitions and $250 million in loan closings.

Duprey has been in commercial banking for more than a decade and has carved out a niche in lower- middle-market acquisition financing. His move to Professional Bank is welcome news to the search fund community, and he plans to build upon his success.

“Professional Bank has the best platform to enable me to continue supporting the search fund community via acquisitions, growth and ongoing service,” Duprey said. “I’m excited to continue working with searchers and investors on acquisition opportunities with Professional Bank’s ability to provide meaningful capital to this niche market.”

Search funds originated in the MBA programs at Harvard Business School and the Stanford Graduate School of Business with the concept of Entrepreneurship Through Acquisition. Today, a number of elite business schools throughout the country teach the strategy to its students.

Under this model, students who’ve earned their MBAs look for stable, existing businesses that may be in a state of transition, such as succession issues or inability to scale. The MBAs then bring their acquisition opportunities to investors inside the search community who will support them in buying the business and help them transition into a CEO role. These deals come with a higher level of corporate governance and institutional-grade reporting beyond what is typically found at similarly sized local businesses. Deals are originated nationwide across many industries.

“We are excited about entering the search fund space,” stated Daniel R. Sheehan, Professional Bank’s Chairman and CEO. “Zach is a great addition to the Professional Bank team, and we look forward to being an active capital provider within this talented community.”

About Professional Holding Corp. and Professional Bank:

Professional Holding Corp. (PFHD: NASDAQ), is the financial holding company for Professional Bank, a Florida state-chartered bank established in 2008. Professional Bank focuses on providing creative, relationship-driven commercial banking products and services designed to meet the needs of small to medium-sized businesses, the owners and operators of these businesses, other professional entrepreneurs and high net worth individuals. Professional Bank currently operates through a network of nine locations in the regional areas of Miami, Broward, and Palm Beach counties. It also has a Digital Innovation Center located in Cleveland, Ohio. For more information, visit www.myprobank.com. Member FDIC. Equal Housing Lender.