“Larger banks focus on satisfying Wall Street, the financial community, stock analysts and big investors. My philosophy is that if you put your customers and employees first, the shareholders will make a lot of money.” ~C. John Hipp III Chairman and CEO
(l to r) Marc Bogan President and COO C. John Hipp III Chairman and CEO NewDominion Bank additional time to reposition the bank,” credits Hipp. No TARP funds were received by the bank. “A consent order is really nothing but best practices,” says Hipp. “We are in full compliance with the consent order other than the capital component. The capital we raise will allow us to exceed the regulatory minimums, after which we hope the regulators will consider terminating the consent order.” NewDominion aims to focus more on small business; more specifically, service, owner-operated and manufacturing businesses, and professionals such as doctors, lawyers and CPAs. “We want to do the kind of lending that is traditional for a community bank: a car loan, equity loan, house or apartment or small shopping centers where there are high quality tenants.” Bogan reports that the bank is poised with $20 million dollars in the loan pipeline: “Once we have achieved additional capital and satisfy all the regulatory pieces, those loans in the pipeline can be accelerated.”
Plus, while the bank was growing, it had borrowed 10 million dollars from another bank in North Carolina to help cover the growth, a move that caused concern in the subsequent economic downturn. In late 2010, NewDominion was placed under a consent order by the FDIC and North Carolina Banking Commission. Hipp was invited in to restore the bank and move it forward. One of his first acts was to persuade the bank it had borrowed money from to convert the debt to equity. “Having them transition from creditors to investors had a huge impact on our capital ratios and gave our new management team
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Righting the NewDominion Story Hipp, Bogan, Jackson and Burke, together with the people they’ve been able to attract and those who’ve stayed on, all share a vision of a community bank that will be meaningful in Charlotte for decades to come. “Although some people think of a ‘community bank’ as being small, most people think of it as one they have a real relationship with,” says Hipp. “It could be a $100 million or a $5 billion community bank; it’s how you do business,” affirms Bogan. First, the bank will be focused on the banking needs of Charlotte area residents and the business community. “There is so much opportunity right here that is not being well served by the larger banks,” says Hipp. At the same time, through a concept Hipp has named “the reverse solution,” the bank will focus on its customers and employees. “Larger banks focus on satisfying Wall Street, the financial community, stock analysts and big investors. My philosophy is that if you put your customers and employees first, the shareholders will make a lot of money.” “It’s not likely at a large bank that you will get the president or the CEO of the bank to come out and walk through your plant or business and be able to make decisions right on the spot. We can offer that,” says Bogan. “When you call us, you will always get a live person. John’s accessible, I’m accessible; everyone who works with us is accessible. We give all our customers our cell numbers. They can call us—even on a Saturday.” Customer services also include mobile remote deposit for consumers which allows an individual to utilize the NewDominion application on their cell phones to make an immediately credited deposit. Bank workers go out to ➤ customers’ businesses or workplaces and open accounts.
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