It didn’t take long for Alex Sanchez to find his second act. Sanchez, who retired on Dec. 31 and CEO of the Florida Bankers Association, announced in a LinkedIn post that he had become president and CEO of Salva Financial Group of Florida.  “Heading up Salva Financial allows me to continue my involvement in the financial services sector and I am so excited about that,” he said in the post.

First National Bank of Granbury in Texas has a new leader. The $876 million-asset bank said that James Hodges had retired as its president and CEO. Hodges, who joined the bank in 1971 as a teller, has been at the helm since 2015, according to the Hood County News. Hodges was succeeded by Mark Webb, who had been chief lending officer. Webb joined the bank in 1995 as a loan

Citizens First Bank in The Villages, Fla., has a new CEO. The $3.7 billion-asset bank announced that Jay Bartholomew also succeeded Lindsey Blaise as president, according to The Villages-News. Bartholomew was the bank’s chief banking officer. Blaise, who had run the family-owned bank for seven years, cited a desire to spend more time with her children. She will remain on the board.

Esquire Financial Holdings in Jericho, N.Y., has added an expert in artificial intelligence to its board. The $1.5 billion-asset company said in a press release that Rena Nigam became a director on Jan. 3. Nigam is the founder and CEO of Meytier, which uses AI to enable and assist in assessing and hiring employees. The company works with more than 60 companies across multiple sectors. Nigam’s “entrepreneurial spirit and extensive

A higher premium and a stronger dividend history helped Old National in Evansville, Ind., secure the winning bid to buy CapStar Financial Holdings in Nashville, Tenn. The $49 billion-asset Old National agreed on Oct. 26 to buy the $3.3 billion-asset CapStar for $344.4 million in a deal expected to close in the second quarter. The deal was among the five biggest bank mergers announced in 2023. CapStar's strategic alternatives committee

Organizers of the proposed BankMiami plan to raise $32.5 million of initial capital. The group said in its application with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. that the bank will focus primarily on small to midsize businesses offering retail and commercial banking services. The bank will focus on relationship banking through in-person services and a secure, cloud-based platform. BankMiami is expected to have $390 million of assets, $354 million of deposits

The bank unit of Finward Bancorp in Munster, Ind., is operating under a consent order requiring it to bulk up its Bank Secrecy Act compliance. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and the Indiana Department of Financial Institutions flagged the $2.1 billion-asset Peoples Bank for “unsafe and unsound banking practices.” Finward agreed to the order without "admitting or denying the charges.” The order gives the bank 90 days to develop, adopt

ES Bancshares in Staten Island, N.Y., announced a collaborative agreement with one of its investors. The company said in a press release that it appointed Tom Thiel, a principal at JWTT, to its board. He also joined the board of the $630.5 million-asset Empire State Bank. JWTT is a broker-dealer that specializes in financial services companies. Thiel and JWTT agreed to support the ES Bancshares board through the 2025 annual