When almost 100 banks countrywide are facing closure, banking business is booming in Horry County in southern part of California. Reports show that the number of banks doing business in Horry County has risen to 27 on June 30, 2009 compared to 22 at the same time in the year 2007. On the other hand, the growth in the Grand Stand’s banking industry has come to a standstill.
According to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the number of banks nationwide plummeted , the number going down to 8200 from 8600, with some banks closing down while some other merging with larger competitors.
According to experts and local bank officials, Myrtle Beach has a cutting edge compared to other parts. The strong tourism industry along with growth of population is helping local banks to survive and thrive even in time of worst economic crisis of the recent years.
According to Professor Robert Burney of Coastal Carolina University, “Startups are always looking to find business, and when business is slow, it’s that much more difficult for them to find it. That makes it even more curious that we’ve had multiple startups in the recent past. Some of the players are thinking that it’s a good long-term bet, and they’re willing to go ahead and start and wait things out for when the economy starts heating up again.” Prof. Burney said that is good news for the consumers.
The growth of Grand Strand along with increase in facilities and development of new roads are attracting national and regional banks as there are profitable lending opportunities waiting for them.
Real estate development and tourism are the two largest industries of Myrtle Beach. This is a specialized field where lending is associated and this lead to flourishing of community banks.
According to FDIC, the number of deposits in Myrtle Beach contracted slightly between 2008 and 2009, from $5.69 billion to $5.58 billion. It is said that, Myrtle Beach is saturated with banks for now, may has even more than it can support.
According to David Morrow, chief executive of Crescent Bank, “When the growth is there, then a new bank coming into the market really doesn’t upset the apple cart, but because of the lack of growth in the last couple years, the new banks coming into the market have created a tougher market for the existing banks that are already struggling.”
Two new banks came up here this year. Coastal Carolina National Bank opened its offices on Oak Street in June, while South Atlantic Bank recently opened a building in Murrells Inlet. The South Atlantic’s headquarters in Myrtle Beach is under construction at 29th Avenue North and Robert Grissom Parkway and will be ready by early next year.
The Atlantic Bank & Trust, which started in Charleston in 2007 , opened a branch on the Grand Strand in 2008.
Burney says,” You’re still seeing strong community banks that aren’t just being gobbled up by the big banks. That’s a story worth telling. Otherwise, it sounds like the march of the giant banks slowly gobbling everybody else, and that’s not the whole story by a long shot.”
According to Scott Plyler, President of South Atlantic Bank, the bank took less than three months to raise $27.5 million in capital after the bank was planned in 2007. The bank has had a better-than-expected start and its recent beginning has allowed it to avoid the toxic assets and bad loans that plagued other banks.
But everyone is not worried about the new competition and the sluggish economy. Some banks delayed or deferred their expansion plans, waiting for the right time.
Tommy Bouchette, an executive vice president at South Carolina Bank and Trust comments, “Community banks understand that we’re all in this to try and service our customers and try to be the best bank we can and sometimes that competition will drive you to be a better bank.”