Synovus Financial Corp., formerly the Columbus Bank and Trust Company, is a
financial service
Financial services are the economic services provided by the finance industry, which encompasses a broad range of businesses that manage money, including credit unions, banks, credit-card companies, insurance companies, accountancy companies, ...
s company with approximately $45 billion in assets based in
Columbus, Georgia
Columbus is a consolidated city-county located on the west-central border of the U.S. state of Georgia. Columbus lies on the Chattahoochee River directly across from Phenix City, Alabama. It is the county seat of Muscogee County, with which it ...
. Synovus provides
commercial
Commercial may refer to:
* a dose of advertising conveyed through media (such as - for example - radio or television)
** Radio advertisement
** Television advertisement
* (adjective for:) commerce, a system of voluntary exchange of products and s ...
and
retail banking
Retail banking, also known as consumer banking or personal banking, is the provision of services by a bank to the general public, rather than to companies, corporations or other banks, which are often described as wholesale banking. Banking servi ...
,
investment
Investment is the dedication of money to purchase of an asset to attain an increase in value over a period of time. Investment requires a sacrifice of some present asset, such as time, money, or effort.
In finance, the purpose of investing i ...
, and
mortgage
A mortgage loan or simply mortgage (), in civil law jurisdicions known also as a hypothec loan, is a loan used either by purchasers of real property to raise funds to buy real estate, or by existing property owners to raise funds for any pu ...
services through 249 branches and 335
ATMs in
Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States
Georgia may also refer to:
Places
Historical states and entities
* Related to the ...
,
Alabama
(We dare defend our rights)
, anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama"
, image_map = Alabama in United States.svg
, seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery
, LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville
, LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...
,
South Carolina
)''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no)
, anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind"
, Former = Province of South Carolina
, seat = Columbia
, LargestCity = Charleston
, LargestMetro = ...
,
Florida
Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...
, and
Tennessee
Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...
.
[
]
Company history
The bank opened in 1888 following an incident at a textile mill
Textile Manufacturing or Textile Engineering is a major industry. It is largely based on the conversion of fibre into yarn, then yarn into fabric. These are then dyed or printed, fabricated into cloth which is then converted into useful goods ...
in which a worker's dress became entangled in machinery, spilling the money she had sewn into her hem onto the floor. After she explained to a factory executive that she had felt this was the safest place to keep her savings
Wealth is the abundance of valuable financial assets or physical possessions which can be converted into a form that can be used for transactions. This includes the core meaning as held in the originating Old English word , which is from an I ...
, he offered instead to secure her money in the mill safe
A safe (also called a strongbox or coffer) is a secure lockable box used for securing valuable objects against theft or fire. A safe is usually a hollow cuboid or cylinder, with one face being removable or hinged to form a door. The body and ...
and pay her interest
In finance and economics, interest is payment from a borrower or deposit-taking financial institution to a lender or depositor of an amount above repayment of the principal sum (that is, the amount borrowed), at a particular rate. It is distinct ...
on her balance. This service was soon offered to all company employees.
Synovus's founding parent company, Columbus Bank and Trust (CB&T), has deep roots in its hometown. CB&T started TSYS in 1959 and in 1974 the company began processing credit cards for other banks. In 1983, CB&T made TSYS a separate publicly traded company, retaining majority ownership. On October 25, 2007, TSYS and Synovus (holding 81% of shares at the time) announced a spin-off that was completed as of the end of 2007. Synovus took its current name in 2010.
Since its founding in 1888, it has acquired 35 banks.
* Alabama: Sterling Bank MONTGOMERY, The First National Bank of Jasper, First Commercial Bank of Huntsville, First Commercial Bank BIRMINGHAM, Community Bank and Trust of Southeast Alabama DOTHAN, The Bank of Tuscaloosa, CB&T Bank of East Alabama PHENIX CITY.
* Florida: Tallahassee State Bank, Synovus Bank SAINT PETERSBURG, Synovus Bank JACKSONVILLE, First Coast Community Bank FERNANDINA BEACH, Coastal Bank and Trust of Florida PENSACOLA.
* Georgia: Buena Vista Loan & Savings Bank, First United Bank MONTEZUMA, Bank of Manchester, Coastal Bank of Georgia BRUNSWICK, Sea Island Bank STATESBORO, SB&T BANK ALBANY, Georgia Bank & Trust CALHOUN, First State Bank and Trust Company of Valdosta, Commercial Bank & Trust Company of Troup County LAGRANGE, First Community Bank of Tifton, Commercial Bank THOMASVILLE, Citizens First Bank ROME, CB&T Bank of Middle Georgia WARNER ROBINS, AFB&T ATHENS, Bank of Coweta NEWNAN, Bank of North Georgia ALPHARETTA, Sunrise Bank VALDOSTA (as part of a government assisted transaction).
* South Carolina: The National Bank of South Carolina SUMTER.
* Tennessee: Cohutta Banking Company CHATTANOOGA, Trust One Bank MEMPHIS, The Bank of Nashville.
* Nebraska: World's Foremost Bank SIDNEY.
Financial crisis of 2007-2008
In 2009 the bank was listed as one of more than 150 United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
lenders that owned nonperforming loans equal in value to five percent or more of their holdings, exceeding a threshold said to threaten its survival. Synovus subsequently laid off
A layoff or downsizing is the temporary suspension or permanent termination of employment of an employee or, more commonly, a group of employees (collective layoff) for business reasons, such as personnel management or downsizing (reducing the ...
850 employees and closed many branches
A branch, sometimes called a ramus in botany, is a woody structural member connected to the central trunk of a tree (or sometimes a shrub). Large branches are known as boughs and small branches are known as twigs. The term ''twig'' usually ...
in early 2011. In July 2013, Synovus repaid $967.9 million borrowed under the Troubled Asset Relief Program
The Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) is a program of the United States government to purchase toxic assets and equity from financial institutions to strengthen its financial sector that was passed by Congress and signed into law by President G ...
.
Synovus Branding
In early 2010, Synovus consolidated thirty separate state bank
A state bank is generally a financial institution that is chartered by a federated state, as opposed to one regulated at the federal or national level. State banks differ from a reserve bank in that it does not necessarily control monetary policy ...
charters into one Georgia charter
A charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified. It is implicit that the granter retains superiority (or sovereignty), and that the rec ...
and began the transition toward operating as a more centralized bank. Beginning in late 2017 and ending in mid-2018, the company transitioned from 28 locally-branded divisions to a single Synovus brand.
Acquisition of Florida Community Bank
In January 2019, Synovus completed a $2.9 billion acquisition of FCB Financial Holdings, Inc., owner of Florida Community Bank
Florida Community Bank, also known as FCB, was an American bank based in Weston, Florida that provided consumer and business banking services to communities throughout the state. With roots tracing back to 1923, the legacy Florida Community Bank w ...
. Branding to Synovus was expected during the second quarter of 2019.
References
External links
*
New Georgia Encyclopedia Article on Synovus
Synovus Financial Completes Spin-off Of TSYS - RTT News
{{Authority control
Companies listed on the New York Stock Exchange
Financial services companies of the United States
American companies established in 1888
Banks based in Georgia (U.S. state)
Companies based in Columbus, Georgia
1888 establishments in Georgia (U.S. state)