March 29, 2024

TopRank Florida

Influentials - Top 150 Public Companies

| 6/1/2010

Banking

Bill Smith
“We ask our folks to take active roles in the community,” says Capital City Bank Group CEO Bill Smith. [Photo: Roger Tully]
Once, executives of most big banks in Florida — like SunTrust’s Joel Wells, Southeast’s Charles Zwick, Barnett’s Charlie Rice and Allen Lastinger — occupied passionate leadership positions, fully engaged in the state’s public life. Today, amid turmoil in the industry and more rapid turnover in corner offices, the big banks’ influence tends to come from their pure heft.

Though none is based in Florida, all four members of “the League of Trillionaires,” as Miami-based banking authority Ken Thomas calls them, now are in Florida thanks to the recent additions of Wells Fargo (through its takeover of Wachovia) and JPMorgan Chase (via WaMu), joining Citi and Bank of America. Wells Fargo has 16,361 Florida employees, who last year tallied a cumulative 85,867 volunteer hours. Wells also made $9.3 million in grants, employee donations and company matching last year and $1 billion in home loans to low- and moderate-income people as well as $3.65 million in purchases from Florida-based minority- or women-owned businesses. Shelley Freeman is regional president.

» Bank of America made more than $14 million in grants and statewide sponsorships, not counting giving by Merrill Lynch and U.S. Trust. BofA was named “Corporation of the Year” from 2006 to 2008 by the Florida Minority Supplier Development Council. Mike Fields serves as state president.

» Regions’ 3,200 employees in Florida annually put in 6,000 volunteer hours for approximately 200 organizations. Brett Couch is regional president.

» BB&T employs 3,187 in Florida. Its foundation gave $155,000 over five years to five non-profits. Bill Klich is the bank’s Florida president.

» Citi employs 9,500 in Florida and gave $6.5 million last year.

» JPMorgan Chase employs 14,384 in Florida and gave approximately $2.3 million to Florida charities.

» Another standout in terms of statewide influence is Atlanta-based SunTrust. Thomas Kuntz is the bank’s Florida CEO.

» Notable among community banks is Tallahassee-based Capital City Bank Group (Public No. 84), “We have as sort of one of the mantras around here, ‘Build a good community and you’ll build a good bank.’ We ask our folks to take active roles in the community,” says Chairman and CEO Bill Smith. Indeed, all Capital City’s 1,000 employees must do 10 hours of community service, Smith says. Keep in mind that with the exception of Tallahassee and Gainesville, Capital branches are in small towns, where the local bank is a hub. Spread a minimum of 10,000 hours of service through those places and “it’s something that ought to help your community move ahead.” Smith is on the Council of 100.

» Fort Lauderdale-based BankAtlantic (Public No. 68) ranks first in Florida in customer satisfaction, according to J.D. Power and Associates, with SunTrust and Regions just behind. Jarett Levan is CEO. — Mike Vogel

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