- Key Insight: Echelon Bank is set to join the small number of new banks emerging in Florida, which, like much of the United States, has seen a drought of de novo charters.
- Supporting Data: In 2007, there were 176 new charters for U.S. commercial banks insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. In 2025, there were four.
- Expert Quote: "Most definitely, there's a need for new bank charters," said Ken Thomas, founder of the bank consulting firm K.H. Thomas Associates in Miami.
It's not easy to start a new bank. In recent years, a combination of regulatory hurdles and business consolidation have slowed the creation of de novo lenders to almost a halt.
Rob Shaw, CEO of the soon-to-open Echelon Bank in Clearwater, Florida, sees that shortage as an opportunity.
"There really is a vacuum in the market for what I would describe as a well capitalized, innovative, dynamic, growing local bank that serves the entire Tampa Bay region," Shaw told American Banker.
After hitting a number of
If all goes well with the regulatory checkboxes still remaining, Echelon expects to open its doors to the public in late May. And just getting through that rigorous process, Shaw believes, will set the bank apart.
"Having high barriers to entry is a double-edged sword," said Shaw, a 22-year industry veteran with experience at
Since the 2008 financial crisis, which cratered the economy and spurred a raft of new banking regulations, the number of new American banks has plummeted. Nationally, in 2007 there were 176 new charters for commercial banks insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. In 2025, there were four.
That trend has also held true In Florida, where new charters dropped from 24 in 2007 to just one in 2025.
"Most definitely, there's a need for new bank charters," Ken Thomas, founder of the bank consulting firm K.H. Thomas Associates in Miami, told American Banker. "We need more locally based banks."
Of course, the consolidation of banks through mergers and acquisitions has brought down the number of lenders in general. In 2007, the United States was home to more than 7,200 FDIC-insured banks. In 2025, there were about 3,800.
In Shaw's view, that consolidation has particularly shrunk the number of what he calls "high-touch" community banks. That leaves an opening for banks like Echelon, which plans to focus on local, personal relationships with commercial clients.
"We want to bring the decision-making as close to the customer as possible," Shaw said. "That's really what we're trying to provide, and fortunately there is very little of that in the market today, so we think there's a tremendous opportunity to stand out."
Thomas agreed that Tampa Bay could use a new community bank. But he lamented Echelon's latest choice of office space, located in Tampa's upscale Palma Ceia neighborhood, which he believes indicates a focus on high-income clients.
"It's good news that we have a new bank," Thomas said. "I'd love to see more banks chartered, but I need to see them serving the entire community, including low- and moderate-income areas. This is the furthest thing."
Shaw responded that he appreciated that concern, but Echelon would not neglect any income group.
"Serving the full community is something we take seriously, and it's foundational to who we are," Echelon's CEO said in an email. "Our assessment area extends well beyond any single branch location, and we're building a [Community Reinvestment Act] program that reflects a genuine commitment to lending across all segments of Tampa Bay, including low- and moderate-income neighborhoods."
In some ways, Echelon is a test case of the regulatory environment under the second Donald Trump administration, which has vowed to make it easier for new banks to get chartered. Just last month, FDIC Chairman Travis Hill
According to Shaw, that commitment has not yet translated into concrete regulatory changes. But both state and federal regulators, including at the FDIC, have been "supportive," he said, and the change in attitude has been helpful.
"There hasn't been any tangible change to the actual requirements. The process is still the process," Shaw said. "It's more the culture or the recognition that local banks are needed in our economy. … That carries the ball quite a long way."
Meanwhile, Florida has begun to see a pickup, however small, in de novo activity. Gala Bank opened in Ocala at the end of 2024, BankMiami opened in March 2025 and
So is Echelon part of a broader change, bringing the de novo drought to an end? Shaw isn't so sure.
"By no means is it going to be a massive deluge of new banks, because it is still such a difficult process," he said. "Turning of the tide is probably too strong a word, but I think it could be a trickle."
