Bankers Financial Group, a nearly $500 million Pinellas County-based financial services firm, is moving its headquarters to downtown St. Pete.

The firm, founded in St. Petersburg 50 years ago, recently announced it has signed a 10-year lease to occupy 54,000 square feet of Class A office space in Duke Energy's building at 299 First Avenue North.

Bankers Financial is currently located in a 100,000-square-foot space at 11101 Roosevelt Boulevard North in St. Petersburg’s Gateway area. The firm will move to the 16-story tower in downtown St. Pete in June 2025.

Duke Energy previously occupied the entirety of the 220,000-square-foot building but decided to sublease it’s underutilized space.

“We are really excited about returning to downtown,” Bankers Chairman and CEO John Strong said in a prepared statement.

"We previously had our offices in downtown until 2007, so this move represents both a return to our roots and a step into the future. We will be placing our employees into an exciting modern-designed office right in the heart of St. Pete’s vibrant downtown. And because we stress a culture of community involvement, this will create more opportunities for our people to engage with the community.”

Bankers Financial opened its first office on 34th Street in St. Petersburg, where the “company proudly stood as the sole insurance company within an 80-mile radius.”

Over the years, Bankers Financial has moved its offices several times before eventually moving to its existing offices on Roosevelt Boulevard.

It has evolved to one of the largest privately held companies in the Tampa Bay region, primarily known for providing property insurance for commercial real estate, professional employer services, and insurance and financial services for homebuilders.

At the St. Pete tower, nearly 150 employees will work out of the offices on the 9th, 10th, and 11th floors.

“We selected Gensler, one of the top architecture firms in the world, to design an exciting and stimulating work environment for our employees,” Bankers President Robert Mencke said in a statement. “And downtown St. Pete is a great environment to be in right now.”

The company noted downtown St. Pete’s thriving retail and restaurant scene and walkable neighborhoods as major draws for relocating to the urban core.

Chris Butler of Franklin Street represented Bankers Financial in the lease agreement.

David Green and Brent Miller of JLL Inc. represented Duke Energy.