One of Texas' fastest-growing cities is getting its first new bank in 10 years.
First Independent National Bank is slated to open in Plano-Collin County's largest city-in early 1998, said G. Charles Floyed, president. He said organizers chose Plano for two reasons: its expanding deposit base and the presence of only one other independent bank.
"We're finding that most small businesses prefer to deal with independent banks if they can," said Mr. Floyed, currently a senior vice president at First International Bank in Dallas.
The bank's team of investors is led by Mitchell Rasansky, a Dallas real estate investor who was chairman of the former FWNB Bancshares, Dallas, until it was sold to Texas' Compass Bank in 1992. Mr. Rasansky will be the new bank's chairman.
Unlike other southern states, Texas hasn't seen a rash of start-ups.
Though the state lost nearly 1,100 banks to mergers and failures from 1986 to 1993, only 17 new nationally chartered banks were opened in the Lone Star State from 1991 to 1996, according to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. New state-chartered banks opened at an even slower rate, about one per year.
First Independent got approval from the OCC Sept. 17.
"There are already plenty of banks in Texas, so from a practical standpoint it's still pretty difficult to break into a new market," said Catherine A. Ghiglieri, commissioner of the Texas Department of Banking.
Still, organizers said Plano seemed ripe for a new bank.
Home to the world headquarters of companies such as Electronic Data Systems Inc. and J.C. Penney Inc., Plano ranks among the fastest-growing cities in Texas. The population within five miles of First Independent Bank is expected to grow 17% by 2001. What's more, about half of Plano's residents live in households with annual income of $50,000 to $100,000.
First Independent's main competition will come from Plano Bank and Trust, an independent bank with $343 million of assets. Other banks in the city of 128,000 include branches of Compass Bank, NationsBank Corp., and Wells Fargo Bank.
First Independent's new market is within the so-called Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, where the bulk of new banking activity is taking place.
In the past year, five banks have opened in greater Dallas, including Resource Bank, a federally chartered bank that opened in Dallas two weeks ago.
David L. Cargill, president and chief executive officer at Resource Bank, said industry consolidation had opened the way for new community banks. Like First Independent Bank, Resource Bank plans to target small- business customers, who Mr. Cargill believes are being ignored by the larger banks.
"We're not trying to compete with larger banks in terms of locations and ATMs," said Mr. Cargill, former president of Riverside National Bank in Grand Prairie, Tex. "You can have one commercial account that's equal to" 50 consumer accounts.
