Two start-ups, one in California and one in Tennessee, announced Thursday that they have raised record amounts of capital for new banks in their states.
California Republic Bank in Newport Beach said it opened Wednesday with $52 million of capital, the most ever raised for a start-up in the state without the help of institutional investors.
Its 300 investors are all local, and all have committed themselves to bank with California Republic, it said.
Robert Bulseco, its chief executive, was the president of the $110 million-asset Prime Bank in Los Angeles, which East West Bancorp in San Marino bought in 2001.
Jon Wilcox is California Republic's president, and John DeCero is a vice president; both were senior vice presidents at the $17 billion-asset Westcorp in Irvine, Calif., which Wachovia Corp. bought last year.
Robert Barth, a Beverly Hills real estate investor, is the chairman of California Republic.
In Nashville, organizers said they had filed an application with regulators to open CapStar Bank after raising $88 million of initial capital, the largest amount ever raised for a Tennessee bank in organization.
More than 70% of the capital came from local investors, CapStar said; the rest came from Corsair Capital Management LLC, a private-equity firm that invests exclusively in the financial services industry.
The state-chartered CapStar is expected to open in the first quarter.
Claire Tucker, its chief executive officer, said the bank is working to hire experienced bankers "who have a track record of providing a high level of personal service."
