Roshan McArthur

Gulf Coast Bank in Abbeville, Louisiana, and Legends Bank in Clarksville, Tennessee, run thoughtful and strategic programs that support their neighbors. That’s why they’ve been named the winners of the 2025 National Community Bank Service Awards. We talk to them and the runners-up about why and how they do the good work they do.

From donations to innovative money market accounts, CFG Bank is supporting Baltimore as it rebuilds and recovers from the 2024 Key Bridge collapse.

In partnership with ICBA preferred service provider Jack Henry, High Plains Bank is working to remove financial barriers and enhance the banking experience for Colorado’s large Hispanic community.

Serving its community in the Santa Clarita Valley is one of Mission Valley Bank’s founding principles. Its community work is best exemplified by its Give Where You Live program for nonprofits.

Cincinnati-based Warsaw Federal Bank has just become one of the state’s two minority depository institutions, with a focus on bringing banking to the city’s underserved communities.

In 2022, Detroit-based First Independence Bank became the first Black-owned bank to open a branch in Minnesota, with the goal of creating greater economic prospects for underserved people.

Valley Bank is working side by side with Walter Hoving Home, a place of refuge for women struggling with addiction and other personal challenges, to offer residents financial empowerment.

Derek Williams, president and CEO of Century Bank & Trust in Georgia, is bringing his passion for community banking to his term as ICBA chairman for 2023/24.

The skills needed to succeed in the workplace are changing, with companies placing greater value on soft skills like communication and leadership. In response, community banks have an opportunity to revisit hiring policies and training programs.

For a workplace to be truly inclusive, its employees should feel accepted for who they are and valued for their unique perspectives and backgrounds. We asked community bankers and experts for their advice on ensuring employees feel a sense of belonging.

May marks Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month—and these Asian American-led community banks are adding to that heritage every single day by helping bring dreams within reach. We asked them about the unique challenges and satisfactions of their work.

After a long history of systemic economic oppression, Black-owned banks are playing a key role in improving the economic fortunes of their communities. We asked both community bankers and their customers about what this positive change looks like, as it was in the past, as it is in the present and as it will be in the future.

Ponce Bank has brought banking services to minority neighborhoods in the Bronx and greater New York City for more than six decades with a clear focus on community investment.

Digital-only brand BankMD has shaken up the medical lending arena since its launch in 2019 under the leadership of Moses D. Luevano. Anchored by San Antonio-based TransPecos Banks, the experiment has brought huge success to both the brand and the community bank.

Brattleboro Savings & Loan is the ninth bank in the country to become an official B Corporation, a designation that certifies the community bank’s commitment to its community, the environment and strong corporate values.

Boosting the arts is a natural extension of the commitment many community banks make to their communities. For some institutions, this work is about championing the work of local creatives. For others, it’s part of their brand. Here’s how several community banks are engaging art and artists in their own ways.

With an increase in online traffic and challenges to in-person banking, community banks may be asking themselves if new branches are necessary. But many bank leaders report they’re investing in new branches because they’re strategic tools for growth.

ICBA’s National Community Bank Service Awards is a moment to celebrate the community banks that have stepped up for their communities in significant ways. This year, all community banks have faced a huge challenge in the COVID-19 pandemic. So, instead of highlighting a few winners, this year we are honoring all community banks. Here, we share just some of the many inspiring stories ICBA members submitted.

Independent Banker asked community bankers to nominate emerging leaders under the age of 40 in 2019, and did you ever deliver. Here are short profiles of 40 young innovators who are making waves in the industry but still manage to keep their communities front and center. In no particular order, let’s meet our winners—the industry’s future.

Large corporations that lack the agility of startups often turn to “intrapreneurship” to make time and space for creative development in the workplace. Should community banks be doing the same?

Community banking requires vigor, skill and passion to withstand the test of time. That’s why ICBA is honoring member banks celebrating 100, 125, 150, 175 and even 200 years in service. Read on for stories of how these community banks started out, persevered and have made a difference in their communities.

Good leadership is about much more than one individual’s impact on the bottom line. It’s not even just about having the “soft skills” that make people want to work on your team. It’s about how effective leaders use these skills both internally and in the community to build a stronger bank. Here, community bankers and experts give insight into what this can look like.

Every time a community bank celebrates a significant anniversary, it’s a reminder that our relationship-based business model transcends time and generations. Here, ICBA recognizes and honors its member banks’ 100th, 125th and 150th anniversaries. Read on for stories of how their impact and expertise have persevered through each new year, decade and century.

From centennials to dodransbicentennials (that’s 175 years), 36 community banks are marking significant anniversaries in 2022. Four presidents and CEOs reflect on how their banks survived the past, thrive in the present and look toward the future.

The idea that community banking can be a force for positive change is at the heart of Beneficial State Bank, which engages its customers through financial activism.