Two esteemed banking executives retired this spring from Mt. Pleasant-based Guaranty Bank & Trust.
Clifton A. “Cappy” Payne has retired after 40 years with Guaranty Bank & Trust. He joined the bank in 1984, became controller in 1988 and was elected to the board of directors of both the bank and the holding company in 1995. Payne was promoted to executive vice president and chief financial officer for both the bank and the holding company in 1996. He is a graduate of Baylor University and is a certified public accountant.
“While we have been planning for this transition for a number of years and wish Cappy well in his upcoming retirement, he will certainly be missed,” Ty Abston, the company’s chairman and chief executive officer, said last fall upon the announcement that Payne was retiring. “Cappy has not only been a significant contributor to our company’s growth over the past 40 years, he’s been instrumental in the development of our strong culture, leading to many years of success for the bank.”
“I am proud to have had the opportunity to be a part of the strategic guidance and financial leadership for Guaranty as we grew the bank, customer confidence and shareholder value,” Payne said last fall. “It’s been rewarding over the years to be part of a team that shares the same vision and values as owners of the company and to gain the trust and confidence of our employees and shareholders.”
Charles A. “Chuck” Cowell has retired after more than 50 years in banking and nine years with Guaranty Bank & Trust. He served as an executive vice president since 2015 and has sat on the bank’s board of directors since 2016. At the time of his retirement, he was serving as vice chairman.
According to S&P Global Market Intelligence, Cowell served at Guaranty Bank & Trust with extensive lending and administrative oversight of all Dallas/Fort Worth metrolplex locations, as well as the bank’s trust, mortgage lending, mortgage warehouse lending, SBA lending, credit administration, loan review and marketing divisions. Prior to joining Guaranty Bank & Trust, Powell served as president and CEO of Preston State Bank and DCB Financial in Dallas from 2009 until 2015. His career experience included executive positions for both privately held and publicly traded institutions in the Midland, Graham, Abilene and Houston markets.
Cowell received his undergraduate degree in finance from Texas Tech University and is a graduate of the National Installment Lending School in Norman, Oklahoma, and the SW Graduate School of Banking at Southern Methodist University.
Established in 1913, Guaranty Bank & Trust NA has 34 offices in the East Texas, Dallas/Fort Worth, Houston and Central Texas regions of the state.
