TEXAS BANKING NEWS, PEOPLE AND IDEAS
TEXAS BANKING NEWS, PEOPLE AND IDEAS
Harlingen-based Texas Regional Bank recently appointed Ben Fedorko trust division president. He will oversee the bank’s trust business statewide. Fedorko launched his career as a corporate lawyer with an international law firm based in Houston. He eventually narrowed his focus to specializing in trusts and estates. He holds a certification in estate planning and probate … Read more
This summer, Fort Worth-based Bank of Texas (a subsidiary of BOK Financial) expanded its operations into the San Antonio market, the first outside of the bank’s established operations in Dallas, Fort Worth and Houston. Longtime San Antonio banker Mark M. Johnson serves as chairman of the market. He started his banking career with Texas Commerce … 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
On July 14, David “Bubba” Hicks retired from Waco-based American Bank. He joined the bank in 2007 as senior executive vice president and was promoted to president and CEO in 2009. According to the bank’s Facebook page, “Hicks ‘semi-retired’ as president in 2018 and has since focused his time loaning money to some of his … Read more
Mikel Williamson, who served as president and CEO of Amarillo-based Happy State Bank until its 2022 merger with Conway, Arkansas-based Centennial Bank, has been named president of St. Louis, Missouri-based First Bank. He will also assume the role of CEO at the end of this year upon the retirement of Shelley Seifert, who has served … Read more
Oklahoma City-based Valliance Bank has named Cara McClain president of Valliance Bank McKinney. She brings a diverse banking background, as well as more than 25 years of banking experience to the McKinney team. For the past four years, McClain served as president of the private bank at Valliance McKinney. Prior to joining Valliance, she served … Read more
Longtime Lubbock banker James Michael Terrell passed away on April 19. He was 71. Better known as Mike, he previously served as president and CEO at Vernon-based Waggoner National Bank, then as vice chairman of the board starting in 2014. According to his obituary, Terrell was a teacher at heart. After serving several years as … Read more
Josh Burleson, director of commercial banking at Arlington-based Susser Bank, has been named president of the Tarrant County Bankers Association (TCBA). The organization fosters the leadership skills of bankers in the region and develops programs to build awareness of the Texas banking industry. TCBA also provides opportunities for members to get to know one another … Read more
On December 20, Odessa-based SouthWest Bank announced that Dewey Bryant, chief executive officer, will assume the role of CEO emeritus effective January 1, 2023. In this role, he will continue to serve on the SouthWest Bank board of directors and help execute a seamless leadership transition for the bank. The SouthWest Bank board has elected … Read more
The Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas has appointed Kari Mitchell to the bank’s El Paso branch board and Denise Rodriguez Hernandez to the San Antonio branch board. In addition, Von Washington has been reappointed to the El Paso branch board. All three are slated to serve a three-year term ending December 31, 2025. In their … Read more