Independent Bankers Association of Texas Honors 2020 Five*Star Award Winners

On September 8, the Independent Bankers Association of Texas (IBAT) announced the three winners of its coveted Five*Star Award: Fenimore, Kay, Harrison & Ford LLP (tier 1); CalTech (tier 2); and Fitech Payments (tier 3). Since 2002, IBAT’s Five*Star Award has recognized associate members that routinely provide excellent service and innovative solutions to help community … Read more

Texas Community Banks Honored with Best of Community Banking Awards

The Independent Bankers Association of Texas (IBAT) recently honored 17 Texas community banks with Best of Community Banking Awards. This year marks the 29th annual celebration of the outstanding accomplishments of IBAT member banks and the critical role they play in communities across Texas. “Community banks do so much for their customers, neighbors and employees, … Read more

In Memoriam: George William Berry

Educator and banking advocate George William Berry, 85, passed away on  June 19 in Austin. While serving on the faculty of Texas Tech University in the 1960s, he began working as an independent consultant in economics and served as an expert witness for financial institutions in depositions, hearings and administrative cases on more than a … Read more

IBAT Elects New Leadership Division Board Members

The Leadership Division of the Independent Bankers Association of Texas (IBAT) elected new board members during its quarterly board meeting in June. Founded in 1985, the IBAT Leadership Division is dedicated to the development of tomorrow’s leaders in community banking. The board’s executive committee will be led by Chairman Peter Smith, Lubbock market president at … Read more

Staying Socially Connected in a Socially Distanced World

Let’s be honest, COVID-19 is not going away. But social distancing is being replaced with reasonable reopening. As I write this, the news feeds report that 21 reopened states have increasing rates of infection. That means that businesses need to be smart about how they bring customers back in, but it is not likely that … Read more

Pandemic Banking: A Prologue to the Future

“What’s past is prologue.” —William Shakespeare, The Tempest I cannot see the future. Honestly, I am struggling to keep up with the present—but I am taking notes. These notes will serve as the prologue for a future in which there will be plenty of questions about what banks did or did not do to put … Read more

Taking a Swipe at Scammers: A Skimmer Primer

As the banking industry improves its security procedures, hardware and software, the bad guys are also stepping up their game. One of their weapons—skimmers—continue to get more sophisticated. At the same time, accountability on the part of businesses deploying unattended tellers has been hard to come by. The following is a quick look at some … Read more