Encore hires Great Western banker to expand in Colo.
Encore Bank in Little Rock, Ark., has entered Boulder, Colo., after hiring a banker. The $1.8 billion-asset bank said in a press release that Gary Geis will serve as its market president. Geis previously served as Boulder market president for Great Western Bancorp, which was recently sold to First Interstate BancSystem. “Boulder is an attractive […]
New Peoples in Va. adds bank exec to its board
New Peoples Bankshares in Honaker, Va., has added a former banker to its board. The $813 million-asset company said in a regulatory filing Thursday that E. Stephen Lilly was selected to become a director on June 30. He is expected to be join the technology, audit and risk and compensation committees. Lilly will stand for […]
Live Oak expands roles of four executives
Live Oak Bancshares in Wilmington, N.C., has expanded the roles of several executives. The $8.6 billion-asset company disclosed in a regulatory filing Thursday that B.J. Losch, its chief financial officer, had added the title of chief banking officer. He is now in charge of lending, deposits and related operations. Stephanie Mann, who leads corporate strategy, […]
De novo activity is rising – not surging
I thought I’d talk about de novo activity since I noticed that there are currently four active applications with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. for deposit insurance, including one for Zenith Bank & Trust. A few months ago, I saw a headline announcing a ‘surge’ in de novo activity. While there are more applications, approvals […]
Appeals court deals setback to Vernon Hill
An appeals court has overturned a judge’s ruling that has kept Vernon Hill in power at Republic First Bancorp in Philadelphia. Judge Paul Diamond had previously blocked a group of directors from ousting Hill as chairman and CEO of the $5.7 billion-asset company. The judge appointed a custodian to schedule an election to fill a […]
RBB Bancorp in Los Angeles hires SBA team
RBB Bancorp in Los Angeles has hired a banker to oversee its Small Business Administration lending operations. The $4 billion-asset company said in a press release Wednesday that it had Edwin Oh is its new SBA manager. Oh brought two SBA-focused bankers over to RBB. Oh previously served as an credit department manager at VelocitySBA. […]
Fulton Financial to dial back NSF, some overdraft fees
Fulton Financial in Lancaster, Pa., will do away with fees for nonsufficient funds (NSF) and extended overdrafts during the fourth quarter. The $26 billion-asset company did not disclose the financial impact of the planned changes. An extended overdraft occurs when an account balance remains negative for more than five consecutive business days. “We’ve received consumer […]
USDF Consortium hires ABA exec as first CEO
The USDF Consortium has a new CEO. The group, created in January to build a bank network to mint and use stablecoins, said in a press release Wednesday that it had hired Rob Morgan to fill the post. Morgan previously served as senior vice president of innovation and strategy at the American Bankers Association. He […]
Newly formed credit union group rebrands as GoWest
A recently created credit union association has a new brand. The Mountain West Credit Union Association and Northwest Credit Union Association, which merged on June 30, are now collectively known as the GoWest Credit Union Association. The association serves more than 300 credit unions with 16.5 million members in Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Oregon, Washington and […]
Florence Bank CEO to retire in November
Florence Bank in Massachusetts is looking for a new CEO. The $1.9 billion-asset bank said in a press release Tuesday that Kevin Day will also retire as its president on Nov. 25. The bank said it is already searching for his successor. Day joined the bank in 2008 as its chief financial officer. He became […]
Encore in Ark. to bank community associations
Encore Bank in Little Rock, Ark., has hired a banker to create a business line geared toward community associations. The $1.8 billion-asset bank said in a press release that Patti DuBuque will oversee the new division as director of association banking. DuBuque “is a results-oriented leader with proven success in expanding orientations and surpassing business […]
Columbia in Wash. to enter Utah after banker hires
Columbia Banking System in Tacoma, Wash., will enter Utah after hiring commercial bankers in Salt Lake City. The $21 billion-asset company said in a press release Tuesday that it hired Jeffrey Thomas and James Divver to join its business lending division. The bankers will be responsible for building a team in the market. “Our expansion […]
‘The Girl Banker’ lands market president role in Arkansas
A banker well known for her advocacy for women in the financial services industry has landed a new job. First Community Bank in Batesville, Ark., said in a press release Tuesday that it had hired Natalie Bartholomew as its community president in Rogers, Ark. Bartholomew will be responsible for establishing the bank’s presence in the […]
Revolut promotes insider to run U.S. operations
Revolut has named an insider to oversee the neobank’s efforts in the United States. The company said in a press release that Sid Jajodia is its U.S. CEO. Jajodia will remain Revolut’s chief banking officer, a role he has held since joining the company a year ago. Revolut launched in the U.S. in March 2020, […]
How rising rates impacted pricing of a Fla. bank deal
Rising interest rates led Seacoast Banking Corp. of Florida in Stuart to reduce its offer for Drummond Banking Co. in Chiefland, Fla., by more than 10%. The $10.9 billion-asset Seacoast agreed in early May to buy the $985 million-asset Drummond for $173.2 million in stock. Seacoast proposed paying $194.4 million in cash and stock when […]
Pinnacle in Nebraska to buy Crockett National in Texas
Pinnacle Bancorp in Lincoln, Neb., has agreed to buy Crockett National Bank in San Antonio, Texas. The $7.6 billion-asset Pinnacle said that its purchase of the $630 million-asset Crockett National should close in the second half of this year. The price wasn’t disclosed. Crockett National has five branches and two loan-production offices. Todd Huckabee, Crockett […]
First Bank of Highland Park in Illinois rebrands
First Bank of Highland Park in Illinois has changed its name to First Bank Chicago. The $1.9 billion-asset bank said the change reflects a brand that it has been using with its commercial clients. The new brand “allows us to reach more clients and continue our growth throughout the Chicago metro area,” Eric Ephraim, the […]
Customers formally ending deposit servicing pace
Customers Bancorp in West Reading, Pa., has given formal notice to end its deposit servicing agreement with BM Technologies. The agreement, which has been in place since January 2021, is set to end on Dec. 31. The $19.6 billion-asset Customers announced in January that it planned to end the relationship, noting that the move should […]
BOK looking for new CEO for Texas operations
BOK Financial in Tulsa, Okla., is looking for a new leader for its Texas operations. The $46.8 billion-asset company said in a regulatory filing Friday that Norm Bagwell will step down as CEO of Bank of Texas on Dec. 31. Bagwell “will support the organization’s talent and business development activities on a part-time basis” after […]
BMO Harris takes bite out of overdraft, NSF fees
BMO Harris Bank in Chicago is reducing its overdraft and nonsufficient funds (NSF) fees for consumer and small business banking accounts. The $167 billion-asset unit of Bank of Montreal said in a press release Thursday that it will eliminate overdraft transfer fees on July 12 and do away with NSF fees on Aug. 23. Overdraft […]
Former Cape Cod CEO joins university’s board of trustees
Dorothy Savarese, who recently retired as president and CEO of Cape Cod Five Cents Savings Bank in Hyannis, Mass., has joined the board of trustees at Suffolk University in Boston. Savarese, who remains the $4.6 billion-asset bank’s chairman, was its CEO for more than 17 years. She was succeeded as CEO by Matt Burke and […]
ICBA reiterates stance against CBDC
The Independent Community Bankers of America has reiterated its opposition to a U.S. Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC). The trade association said in a comment letter to the Commerce Department that it wants the government to step up oversight of digital assets, including cryptocurrency. The ICBA made several arguments in the letter: Digital assets present […]
New Peoples in Va. discloses ‘cybersecurity incident’
New Peoples Bankshares in Honaker, Va., disclosed that its recent systems issues resulted from a cyberattack. The $813 million-asset bank disclosed on its website that it first experienced aninterruption to the operability of its computer systems on June 15. An investigation by a third-party cybersecurity firm found that an unauthorized person gained access to those […]
Western Alliance enters Utah with business banker hires
Western Alliance Bancorp. in Phoenix has entered Utah after hiring a team of business bankers. The $60 billion-asset company said in a press release Wednesday that the bankers will be based in Salt Lake City. The bankers have expertise in real estate, construction and equipment loans, SBA financing, lines of credit and working capital. Seth […]
NorthEast Community in N.Y. brings back former director
NorthEast Community Bancorp in White Plains, N.Y., has brought back a familiar face to its board. The $1.3 billion-asset company disclosed in a regulatory filing Wednesday that Linda Swan had become a director on June 23. She also joined the board of unit NorthEast Community Bank. Swan was a director of NorthEast Community Bancorp, a […]