Abilene-based First Financial Bankshares Inc. has announced that its subsidiaries, First Financial Bank NA and First Financial Trust and Asset Management Co. NA, have each filed applications with the Texas Department of Banking to convert to a Texas state banking association and a Texas-chartered trust company, respectively. The bank has been a national bank since its inception in 1890 and the trust company has been a national trust company since its inception in 2003. The companies expect to complete the conversions during the fourth quarter of 2023.
“We will continue to put the customer first and to operate under our ‘One Bank, 12 Regions’ concept,” says F. Scott Dueser, chairman and CEO. “We think the charter conversions, for simplification reasons, are in the best interest of operating the company. We expect the conversions will lead to better communication with our regulators. We also anticipate that, as a result of the conversions, we will have meaningful savings each year based on reduced examination fees.”
Upon completion of the conversion, the bank will be regulated by the Texas Department of Banking and the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, rather than the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC). Likewise, the trust company will be regulated by the Texas Department of Banking rather than the OCC.
Established in 1890, First Financial Bank NA operates multiple banking regions with 80 locations in Texas.
