June 6, 2023
Banking & Finance
A History of Acquisitions
Seacoast Bank, founded at the onset of the Great Depression, is the stuff of homespun Florida. During World War II, the Stuart-based institution provided mothers of service members Blue Star flags.
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Published on 4/25/2023
Rising Interest
“Higher interest rates have definitely slowed down our incoming sales pipeline. However, we do think that buyers are coming to terms with the fact that this is the new norm for interest rates.”
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Published on 4/19/2023
Signs of Strength
VyStar Credit Union's acquisition of First Coast Federal Credit Union earlier this year reflects a trend of credit unions growing through acquisitions — something previously associated with banks, says Steven Kelley, an adjunct economics professor at Jacksonville University and director of downtown development for Jacksonville's Downtown Investment Authority.
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Published on 4/14/2023
Post-Merger Manager
Steve Fisher, a 20-year veteran of Central Florida's banking industry, joined Truist in 2021 as the area's middle market banking lead and became regional president last September when Sandy Hostetter retired from the position.
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Published on 4/13/2023
Funding Dreams
At age 22, Kortney B. Murray got an early business lesson when she opened a clothing boutique in California.
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Published on 4/12/2023
Florida's Fed Voices
New Florida voices are serving on branch boards of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, where their input will help shape monetary policy.
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Published on 4/12/2023
Setting goals
Hatch says many athletes still seek guidance and advice from him on everything from estate planning to real estate deals. “They say, ‘Hatch, can you take a look at this and let me know if this is on the up and up?' And I never charge anything because I've seen some of my friends and ex-teammates taken advantage of.”
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Published on 4/11/2023
The Futurist
By now, the usual reasons Wall Street types had for decamping to Florida during the pandemic are well-known: No income tax, an entrepreneurial spirit, welcoming policies and effusive politicians, high-growth potential and minimal regulation.
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Published on 3/15/2023
How a college injury put Brian Lamb on path to the Board of Governors
“How do you respond to that level of adversity that you haven't seen before? That really was a defining moment for me.”
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Published on 6/15/2022
Climate First Bank CEO forecasts a sunny outlook
CEO Ken LaRoe foresees a good year for banking.
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Published on 4/30/2022
Locality Bank in Fort Lauderdale stands out for being a rare bank startup
Locality Bank founders see an opening in the market.
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Published on 4/20/2022
Fairwinds Credit Union's COO forecasts more growth ahead
Fairwinds exec Phil Tischer looks ahead.
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Published on 4/20/2022
Pure optimism and momentum
When Jorge Gonzalez joined City National Bank in Miami 12 years ago, the community bank had about $3 billion in assets. Assets have since grown to nearly $22 billion, making CNB the second-largest bank based in Florida, with about 1,000 employees statewide.
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Published on 4/20/2022
The state of banking
Stephen A. LeMay is an associate professor at the University of West Florida's College of Business. He teaches both graduate and undergraduate courses in finance, marketing, banking and computer literacy and supply chain logistics. He spoke to FLORIDA TREND about the state's banking and finance industries...
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Published on 4/13/2022
TD Bank exec expects growth to continue despite challenges
Despite the specter of rising rates, growth in Florida is expected to continue.
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Published on 4/13/2022
Infrastructure: Critical strategies Florida can implement as it grows
Florida is projected to gain 2.5 million new residents by 2030. Here's what that means for schools, roads, homes and other infrastructure needs
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Published on 3/8/2022
Surety Bank finds niche serving clients that other banks shun
When Ryan James took the reins as CEO of Surety Bank, a small community bank in DeLand, in 2009, he planned to focus on marketing and growth...
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Published on 2/10/2022
Climate First Bank plans to supercharge solar loan products
After selling the first bank he started in 2006, Ken LaRoe and his wife bought a small motor home and traveled across country...
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Published on 5/26/2021
Florida financial planner's post-COVID-19 investment advice
Calling a year like 2020 a “free look” period, Michelle Barron advises her clients to examine their losses in early 2020 and adjust their portfolio if the figures were distressing.
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Published on 3/29/2021
2020 wealth management advice for Floridians
Florida Trend asked money managers around the state how investors should move forward during this extended bull market.
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Published on 3/25/2020
BB&T and SunTrust merger
In a recent interview, Sandy Hostetter talks about the $28-billion merger that “solidified” Truist as the biggest bank in Central Florida and the sixth-largest in the country.
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Published on 2/26/2020
JPMorgan Chase invests $250,000 in Palm Beach State College
Palm Beach State College has received a $250,000 investment from JPMorgan Chase to widen the reach of its Supply Chain programs and create a larger pipeline of skilled workers for Palm Beach County's growing distribution and logistics industry.
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Published on 11/14/2019
South Florida's Global Presence is Significant in Banking, Finance, and Professional Services
For years, Latin American and U.S. executives who sought bankers sophisticated in international finance bypassed Miami and went straight to New York.
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Published on 11/7/2019
Miami-Dade's largest accounting firms plan for tech changes
Accounting firms are adjusting as new tech takes over some traditional tasks.
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Published on 9/25/2019
Fort Lauderdale CPA Soneet Kapila is a numbers sleuth
Fort Lauderdale CPA Soneet Kapila got his introduction to forensic accounting in the mid- 1980s...
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Published on 9/25/2019
