TEXAS BANKING NEWS, PEOPLE AND IDEAS
TEXAS BANKING NEWS, PEOPLE AND IDEAS
Neil Ferguson 
Abilene-based First Financial Bank NA has opened a new location in Frankin—its 80th Texas branch. The Franklin branch extends the bank’s reach in the Bryan/College Station region to six locations. Located at 100 W. Decherd, Suite C, the new walk-in facility is an expansion in services from the previous loan production office that opened earlier … Read more
On July 26, Arlington-based Susser Bank hosted a client appreciation event at McKinney’s family-owned Local Yocal BBQ & Grill. Janine Marshall, Susser Bank’s Frisco/McKinney market president, welcomed more than 30 guests and Susser team members to The Augustus, the venue’s event space in historic downtown McKinney. Guests enjoyed the venue’s elegantly rustic atmosphere, Chairman and … Read more
Jeff Austin III, chairman of the board of Jacksonville-based Austin Bank, recently announced that Patty Steelman has assumed the new position of community engagement officer and Rachel French has been named senior vice president and marketing director. Steelman, executive vice president, joined Austin Bank in 1999 as the bank’s first director of marketing and has … Read more
Kevin Wasson has joined the staff of Longview-based Texas Bank and Trust as vice president and data and business automation manager in its technology division in Longview. Wasson has worked in the financial services industry with a local credit union in various capacities since 1986. His experience includes consumer/mortgage lending, manager of IT operations and … Read more
On August 16, Texas City-based Texas First Bank and Texas First Insurance officially broke ground on a new facility in Conroe. It will be the first of its kind for Texas First, housing a full-service banking center, insurance staff and Small Business Administration (SBA) team all under one roof. The 5,300-square-foot facility is part of … Read more
On August 21, Jacksonville-based Austin Bank, The Woodlands Area Chamber of Commerce and the Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce held a ribbon-cutting ceremony to celebrate the opening of the new full-service banking center in Creekside Park Village in The Woodlands. The ceremony was attended by chamber and business leaders and the Austin Bank leadership team … Read more
Branches The OCC reports that it has approved an application by Woodforest National Bank, based in The Woodlands, to establish a branch in the HEB at 1621 Mason Rd. in Katy. The TDB reports that it has approved an application by Crossroads Bank, based in Yoakum, to establish a branch at 110 S. Main St. … Read more
Spence Bridges has been hired to serve as the new president at Houston-based Texas Gulf Bank NA. He succeeds Rich Jochetz, who is retiring after serving as president for the past 15-plus years. Over the first few months of 2023, the bank engaged Sudduth Search, a well-respected executive search firm, to aid in identifying the … Read more
Longtime Texas banker and Texas Longhorn Hall of Famer Jack Altman Collins passed away on August 9 at the age of 82. He was born in Beaumont, but the family moved to Dallas when Collins was in grade school. A graduate of Highland Park High School, he played on the 1957 state championship football team … Read more
On August 7, Choudrant, Louisiana-based Origin Bank announced the opening of its Northwest Freeway banking center in Houston, located at the intersection of W. 34th St. and Hwy. 290. The new location marks the bank’s entry into Houston’s Northwest corridor and is the 10th banking center Origin Bank has opened in the Houston area since … Read more