Executives from United Community Bank, Synovus and First Horizon tackle financial industry risks
July 1, 2018
The Upper South Carolina Chapter of The Risk Management Association (RMA) held a forum with three prominent Southeastern banking executives on Wednesday, June 20 in Greenville, S.C. to discuss the primary risks facing the banking industry, current industry trends and their perspective on its future. The panel included Lynn Harton, Greenville-based President and incoming Chief Executive Officer of United Community Banks, Inc.; Bryan Jordan, President and Chief Executive Officer of First Horizon National Corporation; and Kessel Stelling, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Synovus. The structured Q&A was held in the Gunter Theatre and moderated by Allen Gillespie, Chief Compliance Officer and Chief Investment Officer of FinTrust Investment Advisors. This was the third year for the annual event.
“It is always a pleasure to participate in the RMA CEO Panel and discuss the important challenges our industry is facing today,” said Harton. “It is an honor to connect with such accomplished and experienced executives and share our thoughts on how we mitigate the risks faced by financial institutions today.”
Topics discussed at the panel centered around several different types of risks typically faced by banks, including cultural and reputational risk, credit risk, and legal and regulatory risk. This year’s panel included chief executives representing some of the largest regional banks in the Southeast, with locations across Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, Florida, Tennessee, North Carolina and Virginia.
About RMA
Founded in 1914, The Risk Management Association is a not-for-profit, member-driven professional association whose sole purpose is to advance the use of sound risk management principles in the financial services industry. RMA promotes an enterprise approach to risk management that focuses on credit risk, market risk and operational risk. Headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, RMA has 2,500 institutional members that include banks of all sizes as well as nonbank financial institutions. They are represented in the Association by 18,000 individuals located throughout North America, Europe, Australia and Asia/Pacific.
About United Community Banks, Inc.
United Community Banks, Inc. (NASDAQ:UCBI) is a bank holding company based in Blairsville, Georgia with $12.3 billion in assets. The company’s banking subsidiary, United Community Bank, is one of the Southeast region’s largest full-service banks, operating 151 offices in Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee. The bank specializes in personalized community banking services for individuals, small businesses and corporations. Services include a full range of consumer and commercial banking products including mortgage, advisory and treasury management. Respected national research firms consistently recognize United Community Bank for outstanding customer service. For the last four years, J.D. Power has ranked United Community Bank first in customer satisfaction in the Southeast. In 2018, for the fifth consecutive year, Forbes magazine included United on its list of the 100 Best Banks in America. Additional information about the company and the Bank’s full range of products and services can be found at www.ucbi.com.
