Press Releases

COLUMBIA – The South Carolina Bankers Association Tuesday awarded $56,000 in scholarships to South Carolina college students.

Fifty-six students from 18 S.C. institutions received Palmetto Scholarships during a reception in Columbia.

Over the past three years alone, the SCBA has awarded $155,000 to South Carolina undergraduates.

Leading the way with 19 scholarship winners was Clemson University, followed by the University of South Carolina with 13 and Anderson University with five. Other recipients came from Bob Jones, Charleston Southern, Coastal Carolina University, College of Charleston, Furman University, Horry Georgetown Technical College, Lander University, North Greenville University, The Citadel, Trident Technical College, USC Aiken, USC Beaufort, USC Upstate, Winthrop University and Wofford College.

To reinforce its commitment to education and assist students with the ever-escalating cost of higher education, the SCBA in recent years has bolstered its scholarship giving its Palmetto Scholarship. A key component of the association’s revamped program is its emphasis on offering scholarships to the children of employees of SCBA-member banks.

“It is an incredible feeling to help these students pursue their higher education goals while also laying the foundation for the next generation of South Carolina’s leaders,” said SCBA Senior Vice President Carolyn E. Laffitte.

Money for Palmetto Scholarships comes from the SCBA Educational Foundation through funds raised by the Young Bankers Division Scholarship Golf Tournament and the efforts of South Carolina Bankers School students. Over the years hundreds of thousands of dollars have been awarded to deserving students.

The South Carolina Bankers Association is the trade and professional association representing more than 70 financial institutions across the state. The SCBA is organized to effectively represent the common interest and welfare of South Carolina’s banking industry and to promote the professional development of its members and individual practitioners. The SCBA’s mission is to provide legislative, regulatory and educational leadership on behalf of its members.

For more information about the SCBA please visit https://scbankers.org/

COLUMBIA, S.C. – The percentage of unbanked South Carolinians has fallen to its lowest level since the FDIC began tracking the data during the last decade.

Some 8.9 percent of Palmetto State households were classified as unbanked through last year, according to the FDIC National Survey of Unbanked and Underbanked Households, released Thursday. That’s down from 10.5 percent in 2013, or a drop of more than 15 percent.

During the same period, the percentage of underbanked South Carolinians fell to 23.4 percent from 25.6 percent, according to FDIC data. To see the survey, click here.

“This is another indication of the successful efforts that South Carolina bankers have made to reach out to all segments of society,” said SCBA President and CEO Fred Green. “Many of our member institutions have implemented programs and plans specifically designed to assist the unbanked and underbanked.”

Among surrounding states, South Carolina fared well. While the FDIC, which began tracking unbanked and underbanked households in 2009, didn’t provide regional breakdowns, the Palmetto State performed better than nearly all other Southern states in terms of reducing its percentage of unbanked and underbanked. South Carolina’s improvement of 15 percent compared favorably to the overall national increase of 9 percent.

“I can’t help but believe that the hard work of our Young Bankers Division, which has as one of its key initiatives financial literacy, played a strong part in making this happen,” Green added.

Between 2013 and 2015, South Carolina bankers, particularly those involved in the Young Bankers Division, touched nearly 200,000 South Carolinians through financial literacy efforts.

“That number has remained strong for many years and I believe there is a direct correlation between the Young Bankers’ financial literacy push and the drop in unbanked and underbanked individuals in our state,” Green said. “Financial literacy has long been one of the prime areas of focus for us and results like these show they’re making a difference.”

The South Carolina Bankers Association is the trade and professional association representing 75 financial institutions across the state. The SCBA’s mission is to advocate for banks and bankers serving South Carolina, to provide legislative and regulatory leadership, to furnish educational support and career development for bankers, to serve as media liaison on industry issues, to improve South Carolinians’ financial literacy and to bolster valuable peer-to-peer interaction between member banks and business-to-business interaction between member banks and goods and services providers.

COLUMBIA, S.C. – South Carolina bankers spoke before more than 60,000 individuals this past year on the importance of good credit and other basic financial facts and concepts, continuing long-standing efforts at improving financial literacy across the Palmetto State.

Financial literacy has been a key point of emphasis for the South Carolina Bankers Association and its members for many years. The Association and its members understand that the best way to reduce the number of unbanked and underbanked in the state is by educating them on the benefits of financial literacy.

Financial literacy is just one area that the SCBA has been active in bolstering the communities it and its member banks serve. Among other ways it assists: this year the Association awarded nearly $60,000 in scholarships to rising junior and senior college students. Over the past two years, the SCBA has awarded $100,000 in scholarships to South Carolina college students.

This comes on top of the good work that South Carolina banks do across the state, including donating millions of dollars annually, providing hundreds of thousands of volunteer hours and involvement in thousands of charitable projects.

“There’s a direct relationship between the health of the communities and the banks that do business there, and bankers are always looking for ways to contribute to the quality in life of the areas they serve by devoting their time and money to volunteer efforts,” said SCBA President and CEO Fred Green.

The South Carolina Bankers Association is the trade and professional association representing 75 financial institutions across the state. The SCBA’s mission is to advocate for banks and bankers serving South Carolina, to provide legislative and regulatory leadership, to furnish educational support and career development for bankers, to serve as media liaison on industry issues, to improve South Carolinians’ financial literacy and to bolster valuable peer-to-peer interaction between member banks and business-to-business interaction between member banks and goods and services providers.

For more information about the SCBA please visit https://scbankers.org/

GREENWOOD, S.C. – Forty-seven students graduated from the South Carolina Bankers School on July 14, 2016, at Lander University in Greenwood, bringing the institution’s total number of alumni to nearly 2,900 since its inception 55 years ago.

In all, 134 first-, second- and third-year students attended the school this session, with banks, thrifts, farm credit institutions, an associate member and the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond being represented. They were taught by 26 instructors, including many individuals who are themselves graduates of SCBS.

“We saw an increase in first-year students this year, which bodes well for the future of banking in South Carolina,” said Carolyn Laffitte, SCBA senior vice president and Bankers School director. “The South Carolina Bankers School is critical to ensuring the strength of our industry through the training of future leaders. And it’s because of the support of our banks and banking leaders that the school remains among the very best.”

The BankExec competition, in which teams compete against one another in the running of a simulated bank, featured two winners: In “Community A” top honors went to Team 2, made up of Cam Freeman, First Citizens Bank; Ashley Rogers, CresCom Bank; Nikki Barnett, Bank of York; and Amber Bobo, First Community Bank. In “Community B” first place was captured by Team 4, which featured Shawn, Phillips South State Bank; Blaine Patterson, Bank of Travelers Rest; Joe Hunter Hyman, The Conway National Bank; and Blake Timanus, First Bank.

Ryan Griffin of BNC Bank was recognized with the Lillie H. Magalis Award, given to the third-year student with the highest cumulative average. The award includes a stipend to cover the cost for the first year’s tuition at the Graduate School of Banking at LSU.

Finally, the third-year class raised more than $10,300 for scholarships, money that will be awarded to children of employees of SCBA-member banks.

The South Carolina Bankers Association is the trade and professional association representing 75 financial institutions across the state. The SCBA is organized to effectively represent the common interest and welfare of South Carolina’s banking industry and to promote the professional development of its members and individual practitioners. The SCBA’s mission is to provide legislative, regulatory, educational and product leadership on behalf of its members.

For more information about the SCBA please visit https://scbankers.org/

COLUMBIA, S.C. – Robert R. Hill Jr., chief executive officer of South State Corp., the parent of South State Bank, will begin a one-year term as chairman of the South Carolina Bankers Association on July 1. Hill was elected to the position at the association’s annual meeting, held June 12-15.

Hill, 49, has been with Columbia-based South State since 1995, and was named chief executive officer of the company in 2004.

Hill succeeds David Lominack, South Carolina market president for TD Bank, N.A.

“The South Carolina Bankers Association has been supporting banks across our state for 116 years,” Hill said. “I am honored to serve as the incoming chairman of such a strong organization and look forward to serving the banks of South Carolina during the coming year.”

A graduate of The Citadel, Hill also earned an MBA from the University of South Carolina’s Moore School of Business.

Hill serves on the boards of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond and the University of South Carolina Development Foundation.

“Robert is an excellent choice to be chairman of our board,” said Association President and CEO Fred Green. “Not only has he and his bank been strong supporters of the SCBA, but he has led a very successful South Carolina-based institution in South State Bank.”

Hill has served in various positions since joining South State, including president of South State Bank. Earlier this year, he officially handed the duties of chief executive officer of South State Bank to John Windley to enable him to better concentrate on the responsibilities of running South Carolina’s largest state-based banking company.

Hill and his wife Carol reside in Columbia. They have two sons.

The South Carolina Bankers Association is the trade and professional association representing approximately 80 financial institutions across the state. The SCBA is organized to effectively represent the common interest and welfare of South Carolina’s banking industry and to promote the professional development of its members and individual practitioners. The SCBA’s mission is to provide legislative, regulatory, educational and product leadership on behalf of its members.

For more information about the SCBA please visit www.scbankers.org.

COLUMBIA, S.C. – Jennifer T. Jones, executive vice president for Greer-based Citizens Building and Loan, was named the South Carolina Bankers Association’s Outstanding Young Banker for 2016 at the SCBA Annual Meeting, held June 12-15.

The Outstanding Young Banker Award is chosen by the SCBA Past Chairman’s Club and has been given to one deserving banker each year since 1970. Past recipients include many prominent South Carolina bankers.

“Jennifer’s leadership role at a small financial institution requires a thorough understanding of the broad spectrum of banking regulations,” said J. Thomas “Tommy” Johnson, chief executive officer of Citizens Building and Loan. “She is motivated in every way to improve Citizens’ service to Greer and, by extension, the well-being of our employees.”

Johnson, 38, succeeds last year’s honoree, R. Montague Laffitte III, senior vice president and central regional president for South State Bank.

“The Outstanding Young Banker award is the highest honor presented in the South Carolina banking industry, and all past recipients have continued to play important roles in their institutions, in addition to supporting their communities and the banking industry,” said Fred Green, president and CEO of the S.C. Bankers Association.

Jones is a 2000 graduate of Presbyterian College. While in college, she began her banking career as a teller and worked in operations. After graduating from Presbyterian, Jones joined Citizens and since then has worked in every area of the entity’s operation. During her time with the institution she has led the way in major software and policy changes.

Recent, Citizens modified its corporate structure to create a mutual holding company, which involved satisfying a host of regulators, including the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and the Federal Reserve. Jones successfully oversaw this change in corporate structure.

Jones has been active in the Young Bankers Division of the South Carolina Bankers Association. She has served on its board of directors since 2011 and is currently chairman-elect of the Young Bankers Division.

Jones is active in the Greer community. She served on the Greer Chamber of Commerce Board of Regents for four years, has been active in the Greer Station Association Committee and the Greer Partnership for Tomorrow Oversight Committee and Board of Trustees, a Means on Wheels volunteer, active in leadership roles with First Presbyterian Church in Greer, chairman of the Greer Arts Council and president of the Chandler Creek Elementary School Improvement Council.

Jones and her husband Walden have a son and daughter.

The South Carolina Bankers Association is the trade and professional association representing approximately 80 financial institutions across the state. The SCBA is organized to effectively represent the common interest and welfare of South Carolina’s banking industry and to promote the professional development of its members and individual practitioners. The SCBA’s mission is to provide legislative, regulatory, educational and product leadership on behalf of its members.

For more information about the SCBA please visit www.scbankers.org.

COLUMBIA, S.C. – The South Carolina Bankers Association awarded scholarships totaling $57,000 to deserving Palmetto State college students, the association announced Tuesday.

Fifty-seven students from 16 South Carolina institutions of higher education were awarded Palmetto Scholarships during a reception in Columbia.

Leading the way with 17 scholarship winners was the University of South Carolina, Clemson University with nine and Anderson University with six. Other recipients came from Bob Jones University, Charleston Southern University, Coastal Carolina University, College of Charleston, Erskine College, Furman University, Lander University, Medical University of South Carolina, Southern Wesleyan University, The Citadel, University of South Carolina Upstate, Winthrop University and Wofford College.

To reinforce its commitment to education and assist students with the ever-escalating cost of higher education, the SCBA in recent years has bolstered its scholarship giving with the introduction of the Palmetto Scholarship. A key component of the association’s revamped program is its emphasis on offering scholarships to the children of employees of SCBA-member banks.

“The Bankers Association receives tremendous support from its member banks, and we look at the Palmetto Scholarship program as a dividend back to our members,” said SCBA President and Chief Executive Officer Fred Green. “This is just one way we can show our gratitude to the employees and institutions that have helped make our organization the strong and vibrant force that it is.

“This program not only lays the foundation for the next generation of our state’s leaders, it serves as a means for building a path to a better, more prosperous South Carolina,” Green added.

Money for Palmetto Scholarships comes from the SCBA Educational Foundation, through funds raised by the Young Bankers Division Scholarship Golf Tournament and the efforts of South Carolina Bankers School students. Over the years hundreds of thousands of dollars have been awarded to deserving students.

The South Carolina Bankers Association is the trade and professional association representing approximately 80 financial institutions across the state. The SCBA is organized to effectively represent the common interest and welfare of South Carolina’s banking industry and to promote the professional development of its members and individual practitioners. The SCBA’s mission is to provide legislative, regulatory, educational and product leadership on behalf of its members.

For more information about the SCBA please visit https://scbankers.org/

COLUMBIA, S.C. – Carolyn E. Laffitte, senior vice president with the South Carolina Bankers Association, has taken over as administrator of the South Carolina Banking School.

Laffitte, who has been involved with the operation of the school for more than a decade, replaces Teresa D. Taylor, who recently left the Bankers Association to head the South Carolina Bankers Employee Benefit Trust.

“Carolyn has been active in a number of different aspects of SCBA operations over the years and having her take over the Bankers School is a natural step,” said SCBA President Fred Green. “I’m confident she will not only continue the strong record the Bankers School has enjoyed in recent years but build on it.”

Laffitte, a graduate of Wofford College, joined the SCBA in 2004. Her other duties at the SCBA include being in charge of SCBA Services Inc. and the Young Bankers Division.

The South Carolina Bankers School was begun more than 60 years ago and remains one of the nation’s premier banking institutions. Since its inception, more than 2,800 students have graduated from the school, including 42 this past July.

The upcoming session of the school will be held July 10-15, 2016, at Lander University in Greenwood.

The South Carolina Bankers Association is the trade and professional association representing more than 80 financial institutions across the state. The SCBA is organized to effectively represent the common interest and welfare of South Carolina’s banking industry and to promote the professional development of its members and individual practitioners. The SCBA’s mission is to provide legislative, regulatory, educational and product leadership on behalf of its members.

For more information about the SCBA please visit https://scbankers.org/