WesBanco city president Jeff Koonce says the bank's move to 400 East Vine St. will help raise its profile locally, as well as better serve its clients.
WesBanco will be celebrating a new Kentucky home this fall, as the company relocates its downtown Lexington office to the former CMW building at 400 East Vine St. The move should be complete by Sept. 15.
The larger location, 7,500-square-feet in all, will enable the bank to increase its staff and expand its local services, said Jeff Koonce, WesBanco city president. In addition to offering added convenience for customers, the new office, on a busy corridor near a redeveloping gateway to downtown, is intended to increase WesBanco’s visibility and reinforce its growing commitment to the local market, Koonce said.
WesBanco merged with Your Community Bank in September 2016, more than three years after Your Community Bank entered into an agreement with the FDIC to acquire the assets of the recently closed First Federal Bank. Since then, WesBanco has focused on steadily building its business in the Lexington market.
The new downtown site will allow the company to bring on additional staff to accommodate its growing business, Koonce said. The bank also plans to expand its commercial lending, trust and investment, private banking and insurance services at the new location as well.
The office will also include a retail presence, Koonce said, with added technology for the convenience of WesBanco’s customers. One planned upgrade will be the installation of an interactive teller machine, or ITM, which will allow customers to speak with a real person live-linked through video while conducting bank transactions. Such machines offer quick and convenient automated service with an added human component to aid customers, for example, if a bankcard is lost or stolen, or if the customer prefers to receive cash withdrawals in specific denominations.
“It’s a big investment, but we think it will allow for more flexibility and access at our new location,” Koonce said.
New office, new people
In addition to the move to a larger location, WesBanco also has been adding key staff to its team, Koonce said. Abdul Mohammad was brought on board as vice president and regional sales manager to lead the bank’s residential lending team, and WesBanco also recently hired longtime local commercial banker George Wallace in the role of vice president.
“We are still selectively growing our team and continuously looking for seasoned talent,” Koonce said.
WesBanco has also been bringing more mortgage lenders on board, Koonce said, in an effort to grow the bank’s presence in the Bluegrass home mortgage market. The company currently employs about 25 people in Lexington, Koonce said, and it plans to add more over time after the move.
Competitive market
Koonce said that with so many banks vying for market share, the banking industry in the Bluegrass remains highly competitive. According to the FDIC website, 37 FDIC-insured institutions were operating in the Lexington-Fayette metropolitan statistical area as of June 30, 2016.
Koonce said that WesBanco’s positioning as a larger community bank enables it to stay competitive with larger entities while still remaining flexible and community-centered. Based in Wheeling, West Virginia, WesBanco operates 173 offices across a five-state footprint, with roughly $9.8 billion in assets.
We have the best of both worlds. We are big enough to do just about anything any other regional bank can do, but we are small enough that we can be nimble.”
“That’s the perfect sweet spot to be in banking,” said Koonce, a Lexington native with 32 years of experience in Central Kentucky’s banking industry. “We have the best of both worlds. We are big enough to do just about anything any other regional bank can do, but we are small enough that we can be nimble.”
Koonce said that while regulatory constraints still create a significant challenge for many community banks looking to grow their business, commercial lending in the Bluegrass and elsewhere has been on the upswing. The strong stock market, Koonce said, is one factor that has helped to spur more community investment.
“We are seeing steady growth in our new commercial loan pipelines,” Koonce said. “Central Kentucky is a strong growth market with much more potential left in it.”
Community commitment
To further reinforce its commitment to the local market, WesBanco has also moved to support multiple philanthropic efforts in the local community, including signing on as the presenting sponsor for the Woodland Art Fair, held at Lexington’s Woodland Park on Aug. 19–20.
In February, WesBanco was also awarded its sixth consecutive “outstanding” rating by the FDIC for its Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) performance. The rating is determined based on a review of the institution’s community lending, investment and service performance.
“WesBanco is a strong advocate of giving back to the communities in which we live and work, especially in low-to-moderate income census tracks, to try to help revitalize and support all aspects of the community,” Koonce said. “We believe in giving back to the community at all levels. Building a better community pays dividends.”
While WesBanco is poised for further growth and possible acquisition opportunities that may arise in the future, Koonce said the bank has set its sights on growing its local presence to become one of Lexington’s top 10 banks, in terms of market share. WesBanco is currently ranked 28th in the Lexington-Fayette MSA by S&P Global.
“I’m confident we’ll get there,” Koonce said. “We are a committed bank and looking to be a long-term player here — and we’ve got the right people.”