BUSINESS MEMO: THIRD LARGEST BANK

It's official. NationsBank is the third largest bank in the United States.

NationsBank, which agreed in August to buy Florida's Barnett Banks for $14.6 billion worth of stock, completed the industry's largest-ever acquisition with the closing of the Barnett deal Jan. 16, becoming Florida's largest banking franchise.

The acquisition makes NationsBank an even stronger powerhouse in the Southeast. Combined with Barnett, its Florida operations alone would rank as the country's 10th-biggest bank.

"This merger vaults us to a commanding position in the best growth markets in the United States," said Hugh L. McColl Jr., chief executive of the Charlotte, N.C.,-based NationsBank, following completion of the deal. "This makes NationsBank Florida's largest banking franchise, a franchise capable of meeting the needs of more than 3.9 households in one of the nation's fastest growing states."

The new Florida customers will have access to a franchise spanning 16 states and District of Columbia.

NationsBank now ranks behind Chase Manhattan and Citicorp, replacing BankAmerica as the No. 3 banking company in the country.