Forty Under 40: Charles Bowen Blanchard

Russellville native Charles “Chip” Blanchard, 28, originally wanted to own a bar and grill in Colorado, but that dream faded with some of the realities of the business. He grew up in a banking family — his father and grandfather were bankers — and had been around the industry enough to know he was probably destined to follow that path.

Blanchard graduated from the University of Arkansas in 2002 with a degree in finance and marketing and went straight to work for Metropolitan National Bank in Little Rock.

He was hired into the management training program for commercial lending. He spent about a year doing rotations in most of the bank’s various departments before he was transitioned to the bank’s lending side.

In 2005, Blanchard had the opportunity to move to Northwest Arkansas with MNB’s push to open 12 branches in Benton and Washington counties.
Blanchard said he probably closes on about $25 million per year in total loans and manages a portfolio of about $50 million.

His goal is to continue to grow as a banker and to eventually be a bank president, he said.

Blanchard is the vice president of the emerging leaders section of the Arkansas Bankers Association, is a board member of the Northwest Arkansas Risk Management Association and was recently accepted into Leadership Fayetteville.