EXHIBIT 23.1




                          INDEPENDENT AUDITORS' CONSENT


The Board of Directors
Carolina First Corporation


We consent to incorporation by reference into the registration  statements (Nos.
33-82668,  33-  82670,  33-80822,  33-25424,  and  33-79668)  on  Form  S-8  and
registration   statement  (No.  333-  06975)  on  Form  S-3  of  Carolina  First
Corporation of our report dated January 22, 1999,  relating to the  consolidated
balance sheets of Carolina First Corporation and subsidiaries as of December 31,
1998 and 1997 and the  related  consolidated  statements  of income,  changes in
shareholders'  equity and comprehensive  income,  and cash flows for each of the
years in the three-year  period ended December 31, 1998, which report appears in
the December 31, 1998 annual report on Form 10-K of Carolina First Corporation.






                                                       /s/ KPMG Peat Marwick LLP

Greenville, South Carolina
March 26, 1999