Renasant Bank works hard to keep a small-business feel while still providing key financial services. Founded in 1904, the company has grown tremendously over the last 112 years. Originating in Tupelo, Mississippi, the bank now has locations throughout the southeast region including in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi and Tennessee. There are currently more than 175 locations, primarily located in smaller communities.
For David Wilson, Gainesville commercial manager and market president, that aspect is a huge asset. In his view, working in small communities is a big plus: “That’s one of the things that attracted me to the company.” He believes that if Renasant Bank were a larger company, it wouldn’t be the right fit for Gainesville’s tight-knit community and wouldn’t be able to cater as well to the needs of clients. “This is a hand-in-glove fit for Gainesville with the type of company we are and the size of company that we are,” explained Wilson.
The bank offers a plethora of services, including: traditional banking, asset-based lending, wealth management, insurance, mortgage lending and trust services. As an $8-billion-asset bank, Renasant is able to “out-big” the smaller banks with a full array of financial products and services and is able to “out-small” the giant banks with local control over pricing and structuring, Wilson said. Approximately 70 percent of the revenue generated by Renasant Bank is derived from communities the size of Gainesville or smaller. “There’s nobody too big or too small that we wouldn’t want to do business with,” he said. “So, everybody is our prospect.”
The branch in Gainesville is an efficient team of skilled employees who get to know their clients by name, understand their client’s needs and meet them where they are in their financial process. Wilson hopes that he and the team in Gainesville can build off of the solid platform established by the previous management. The team consists of Wilson and three commercial loan officers, Kevin Brown, Larry Finkel and Nancy Jordan. They are all seasoned professionals with a combined experience of more than 70 years in the financial industry.
For Wilson, the goal for the company is pretty simple: “Earn the respect of the business community over the next few years.”
Renasant Bank is currently a member of the Gainesville Chamber of Commerce and the Alachua County Chamber of Commerce, and the local branch also actively supports numerous charities such as Junior Achievement, Tyler’s Hope for a Dystonia Cure, the Boys and Girls Club of Alachua County and The Arc.
CLAIRE CAMPBELL is a journalism student at the University of Florida and graduates in fall 2016. She plans to enter the public relations field after graduation. Her main goal is to earn enough money to support her future dogs.