Ledger-Enquirer | 08/18/2005 | First Georgia joins... -
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Published on: 8/18/2005
Last Visited: 8/18/2005
Frank Etheridge, president of SunTrust's West Georgia operation, also has respect for the new competition.He thinks they are simply responding to a healthy Columbus market that has experienced growth over the last decade and is poised for more.But he knows the lack of deep pockets could factor against the smaller upstarts.
"They can't handle some of the big corporate and commercial people," he said."They don't have the resources, the technology and they don't have the capacity to do millions of dollar loans.We can do $20 million or $30 million loans and their capital often doesn't even approach that."
A personal approach and teaser deposit rates likely will attract some people to banks such as First Georgia and Colony, he said.
"But they'll have to sustain it and I think the banks that are already here are doing a pretty good job of retaining their customers," said Etheridge, who oversees 10 offices and $510 million in deposits in Columbus and LaGrange.