Banking Brothers Duel

Brothers Jeff and Doug Lynch used to argue about who would get to use the family car to go out on Friday and Saturday nights. Twenty years later, the bankers compete to stay at the forefront of Northwest Arkansas’ banking market.

The younger of the two at age 37, Doug Lynch is executive vice president for Community Bank of North Arkansas in Fayetteville. Jeff Lynch, 39, is president of United Bank in Springdale. As leaders in their respective institutions, the siblings occasionally vie for the same customers.

According to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., Community Bank had 8 percent of the Northwest Arkansas market share as of June 30, and United Bank had 3.2 percent. Less than one percent of Community Bank’s market share and none of United Bank’s share is in Benton County.

Community Bank has assets of $219 million compared with United Bank’s $83.3 million in assets. But United bank recorded a market-leading return on assets of 2.37 percent compared with Community Bank’s 0.79 percent.

Both banks contend for local commercial customers. Jeff Lynch’s experience centers around commercial lending, and he is focusing a lot of United Bank’s energy toward seeking those accounts. Within the last 60 days, United Bank has hired three new commercial lenders.

United Bank opened a Fayetteville location in March, and executives want to expand in Springdale by 2003.

Doug Lynch said Community Bank has long been known as a commercially driven lender.

“It’s no hard feelings,” he said, “but there’s going to be some business competition.”

Jeff Lynch agreed.

“Neither one can say, ‘Oh well. You’re banking with my brother, so I don’t want your business,'” Jeff Lynch said.

By grade-school rules, Doug Lynch would get dibs on Northwest Arkansas customers because he saw them first.

Doug Lynch moved into the northwest corridor in 1994 to work for City National Bank of Fort Smith. Two years later, he took a position with Arkansas National Bank in Bentonville. In 1998, he joined Community Bank as vice president of the Springdale market and was later promoted to executive vice president of the bank.

Jeff Lynch said he regrets waiting so long to move into the area.

He relocated to Fayetteville five years ago to join Arvest McIlroy Bank as a senior vice president and area loan manager. A head teller and an assistant loan officer accompanied Jeff Lynch when he left Arvest McIlroy for United Bank six months ago.

During college, the Lynches lived together in an apartment until they graduated with degrees in finance from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock in the mid-1980s.

Although they prospect in the same market, the Lynch brothers remain close. They play golf together, and their kids — Doug has three and Jeff has two — play together several times a week.

Banking is in the Lynch brothers’ blood. Bill Lynch, Jeff and Doug’s father, is president and CEO of Heber Springs State Bank.

“In the family, we’re cheerleaders for each other,” Bill Lynch said. The brothers said they knew in college that they would be bankers.

Having three executive-level bankers at the holiday dinner table sometimes makes for one-track discussions, the Lynches said. Each said that he maintains his customers’ privacy, but the conversation usually turns to the industry.