Smith-Johnson Transitions to Manager of Treasury Management Group at WestStar Bank

El Paso-based WestStar Bank has announced the promotion of Giselle Smith-Johnson to vice president/treasury management group manager. She will lead a team of treasury management professionals in improving client experience, product development and risk management. Smith-Johnson has been leading and managing WestStar’s Paycheck Protection Program efforts since joining the bank in February 2021. “I am … Read more

A Comment on Implementing Section 1071 of the Dodd-Frank Act

BAILEY ALLEN, PhD Student, Rawls College of Business, Texas Tech University MIKE MAULDIN, Director of the Excellence in Banking Program, Texas Tech University DREW WINTERS, Pickering Chair in Finance, Texas Tech University The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (hereafter, Dodd-Frank Act) was created—according to the first paragraph of the act itself: “To … Read more

Understanding the Reach of the SBA and Community Banks in Texas

MARK GRIFFITHS, Adjunct Professor, University of Southern California MIKE MAULDIN, Director of the Excellence In Banking Program, Texas Tech University DREW WINTERS, Pickering Chair in Finance, Texas Tech University EDITOR’S NOTE: This research paper—part three of a comprehensive look at the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP)—was provided by the Excellence in Banking Program at Texas Tech … Read more

Texas Community Bankers Included in Independent Banker’s 2021 ‘40 Under 40’ List

Independent Banker, the flagship publication of the Independent Community Bankers of America, recently published its third-annual list of “40 Under 40: 2021’s Emerging Community Bank Leaders.” According to the magazine, “The competition highlights young community bankers who stepped up to help their banks navigate a chaotic year. They delivered economic relief. They introduced new technology. … Read more

FDIC-Insured Institutions Reported Net Income of $76.8 Billion in First Quarter 2021

Reports from the commercial banks and savings institutions insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC) reflect aggregate net income of $76.8 billion in first quarter 2021, an increase of $58.3 billion (315.3 percent) from a year ago. Aggregate negative provision expense, reflecting improvements in the economy and asset quality, drove the increase in quarterly … Read more

Building—and Rebuilding—the Texas Economy One Business at a Time

As COVID vaccinations increase and mask mandates subside, businesses are beginning to draw sighs of relief, hoping that the worst is behind us and the future brings some sense of normalcy. But there is no doubt that the past 14 months have been fraught with anxiety, not only for the health of our population, but … Read more

While You Were Taking Care of Your Customers

For more than a year, community bankers have been hard at work saving the nation’s small businesses via the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). The effort has been nothing short of heroic—and, from what I am hearing, PPP didn’t just provide short-term income for community banks in 2020; the relationships earned with new customers in the … Read more

IBC Bank Promotes Valdez to Bank Officer

On March 2, Laredo-based IBC Bank announced the promotion of Ernesto Valdez, commercial portfolio manager, to bank officer. As a bank officer in the commercial lending department, he will be responsible for maintaining a client loan portfolio of more than 300 accounts, as well as obtaining new loans. He will also be one of the … Read more

A Review of the 2021 Paycheck Protection Program

The 2021 release of the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) is part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act (CAA), which was signed into law on December 27, 2020. The new release of the program arrived at the right time, as the health of small businesses had deteriorated toward the end of 2020. In this report, we first … Read more

FDIC Issues Report on the Importance of Community Banks in Paycheck Protection Program Lending

An analysis of call report data from FDIC-insured banks finds that community banks are playing a vital role in supporting small businesses through the Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). Community banks hold nearly a third of all bank-held PPP loans, compared to holding only 15 percent of all bank loans, according to a … Read more