2019 Legacy Leader
Steve Swiontek Gate City Bank’s Executive Chair and Chair of the Board, Steve Swiontek, is this year’s Legacy Leader recipient
This prestigious award recognizes and emphasizes the important role and contributions of long-time local leaders in both shaping and serving The Chamber, metropolitan community and region. Steve was selected by a nomination committee based on his involvement in North Dakota’s business climate. A member of The Chamber’s Board of Directors since 2014, Steve also served as president from 2017–18. Steve has spent more than 42 years living and breathing Gate City Bank’s mission of providing a better way of life for customers, communities and team members. A native of North Dakota, he grew up in Edgeley, where he graduated high school before moving to Fargo to attend North Dakota State University. He graduated from NDSU with a bachelor’s degree in economics and military science. While there, he held the title of Student Body President and served as a member of the North Dakota House of Representatives for eight years. It was at NDSU where he met the love of his life, Mary Anne. A management trainee at Gate City Bank, Steve began his first job out of college in 1978. Between 1978 and 2001, he served in various positions at the bank, including personnel manager, branch coordinator and director of administration. From 2001 to 2019, he served as chair, president and CEO. Currently, Steve serves as Executive Chair at Gate City Bank. He oversees the Bank’s strategic investments in philanthropic giving and is dedicated to inspiring the mission of providing a better way of life for customers, communities, and team members. In addition, he chairs Gate City Bank’s Board of Directors. The bank, which was founded in 1923, had 24 locations in 2001. Under his leadership, it has expanded to $2.3 billion in assets with 38 locations across 19 communities in North Dakota and west central Minnesota.
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Gate City Bank’s culture and philanthropy, nurtured with Steve’s innovative vision, has transformed the bank into a leading financial institution and an employer of choice with over 700 team members. In addition to his role at the bank, Steve has shared his industry knowledge with various banking organizations through his involvement on the American Bankers Association Mutual Institutions Council and Board of Directors, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Community Bank Advisory Council, Independent Community Bankers of America Mutual Bank Council, North Dakota Bankers Association Board of Directors and Legislative Committee, and Office of the Comptroller of the Currency Mutual Savings Association Advisory Committee. Throughout his career, Steve has had many notable achievements and is the recipient of awards including the NDSU Development Foundation Service Award, NDSU Beta Gamma Sigma Chapter Honoree, NDSU Honorary Doctorate Degree, NDSU Masters Award, UND Beta Gamma Sigma Chapter Honoree, Outstanding Young North Dakotan by ND Jaycees, ND Chamber of Commerce Community Leadership Award and Prairie Business Leaders & Legacies award, among others.