Jerry Divers grew up in Clearwater where his father ran a small plant that froze fish. As a child, he loved boats and fishing. Divers graduated from Clearwater High School, the University of Florida and the Graduate School of Banking of the South, Louisiana State University.  He enlisted in the Navy in 1953 and retired from the Naval Reserve in 1968 with the rank of lieutenant commander.

Divers’ first banking job was at Tampa’s Exchange National Bank where he worked in almost every position during his 15-year tenure: bookkeeper, loan clerk, analyst in the credit department, and executive vice president.

He then moved to First National Bank of Florida for four years, until landing his first bank president's position at Flagship National Bank. He was the CEO of Flagship Bank of Tampa in 1983 when it was bought by what is now Atlanta-based SunTrust Bank. He joined a group of investors who bought the Independent Florida Bank in 1984 and renamed it The Bank of Tampa.    He has been President, CEO and Director of The Bank of Tampa, Tampa’s largest independent bank, since 1984.