Annual deposit market share numbers are in for 2021 showing First Horizon Corp. remains the clear No. 1 bank in the Memphis market, Regions Financial a strong No. 2 and Pinnacle Financial Partners leading the pack in deposit growth.

Still, First Horizon and the No. 3 bank in the Memphis MSA, Truist Financial Corp., saw deposits shrink from 2020 to 2021, a year in which total bank deposits grew by more than $1.6 billion.

“We are excited to once again be in the No. 1 position for market share in this market,” Bo Allen, president, First Horizon-West Tennessee, said. “We’ve been headquartered in Memphis since 1864, so longevity in the market and familiarity in the market and being headquartered in the market give us some advantages.”

First Horizon CFO leaving

Deposits at First Horizon were $14.34 billion as of June 30, according to new FDIC data, accounting for 35.12% of all deposits in Memphis banks. A year earlier, First Horizon had $14.63 billion in deposits for a 37.29% share.

Truist saw its market share drop from 6.01% to 5.17% as it lost $246,416,000 in deposits from 2020.

Allen noted First Horizon’s merger with IberiaBank is completed, but the conversion of IberiaBank’s systems has been pushed to February 2022 because many of its customers and employees remain affected by Hurricane Ida.

“Essentially the reason why we did it (pushed back the conversion) is there are thousands of customers and employees of Iberia in Louisiana who have been really hit hard by the hurricane, and we just felt like so many people that were going to be involved in that conversion are struggling with simple things like power and relocating back into their homes,” Allen said.

The plan is to delay the conversion until the Presidents Day holiday weekend in February. In addition, branding changes for IberiaBank into First Horizon are also delayed.

The merger will expand First Horizon’s footprint into new markets where it had little to no presence in the past, Allen said.

First Horizon, IberiaBank merger nearly complete, beat earnings estimates

“It significantly increases our footprint, which is attractive to businesses that have locations all over the South, and it gives us an opportunity to grow in the market,” Allen said. “First Horizon didn’t have a big presence in Arkansas, and with the merger, we do have a big presence in Arkansas, and what a natural market to grow our bank in.”

An Arkansas bank, meanwhile, saw its deposits nearly double in the Memphis market over the past year. Simmons First National Corp., based in Pine Bluff, saw deposits grow from $116.96 million to $206.05 million in 2021.

Simmons Bank should see deposits soar over the next year when its proposed acquisitions of Landmark Community Bank and Triumph Bancshares close later this year.

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But Pinnacle added more local deposits than any other bank in the Memphis market during the 12 months ended June 30, 2021, growing by $473.5 million to a total of $1.7 billion, a growth rate of 38.6%.

“We had great contribution across the team, from both new people and existing associates,” Phillip May, Pinnacle’s Memphis president, said. “There’s so much liquidity in the market, and we had great success in capturing that.”

The liquidity is being caused by stimulus dollars that have been dispersed throughout the economy over the last 18 months of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“What’s going to happen with that cash in the future depends on how we continue to move through the pandemic,” May said. “We think we will continue to grow deposits because we continue to grow our client base, and we’re watching what business owners are going to do with this excess cash, and their ability to grow will be interesting to see play out in the coming months.”

As of June 30, Pinnacle was the No. 5 bank in the market by deposits, up from No. 6 a year earlier.

“We’ve been really successful in continuing to add great people,” May said. “If you go back to early or mid-2020, those folks coming on board have been successful generating new business and bringing new clients into Pinnacle.”

May and his leaders have grown the team to 57 revenue-producing associates, with seven coming on board so far in 2021.

Total deposits in Memphis banks grew from $39.23 billion to $40.83 billion, according to the FDIC. 

“We really have been successful in attracting really great bankers that deliver an extraordinary client experience,” he said. “When you can offer something unique like that, it has been very inviting for clients to come our way. That’s been the Pinnacle model for over 20 years now – attract great people and deliver a great client experience for them.”