Finance

Then & Now: Mentoring key part of Shy’s banking career

Editor’s Note: The following story appeared in the Sept. 13 issue of the Northwest Arkansas Business Journal. “Then & Now” is a profile of a past member of the Business…

Little Rock hotel bought out of receivership for $1 million

Titan General Contractors LLC paid $1 million for the former M Star hotel (99 units) at 1010 Breckenridge Drive in Little Rock. The deal closed Sept. 3. Bill Pendergist, Jim…

Russellville bank plans branch in Fayetteville

Russellville-chartered First State Bank (FSB) plans to build its first full-service branch in Northwest Arkansas on Van Asche Drive in Fayetteville. In August, the bank closed a real estate deal…

Gov. Hutchinson outlines tax reduction goals, special session parameters

Gov. Asa Hutchinson wants to see a further cut in the state’s income tax, but he’s avoiding a position on a potential proposal to eliminate the tax in eight years….

Natalie Bartholomew resigns from Grand Savings Bank

Natalie Bartholomew, vice president and chief administrative officer of Grand Savings Bank, has resigned. In a social media post on Friday (Sept. 17), Bartholomew said Friday was her last day…

Southern Bancorp CEO Darrin Williams appointed to Community Development Financial Institutions advisory board

The White House announced the appointment of nine people, including Southern Bancorp CEO Darrin Williams, to the 15-member board that advises the Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) Fund and its…

Arvest Bank partners with tech firms Thought Machine, Accenture to support digital transformation

Arvest Bank took a big stride forward in its digital transformation initiatives on Thursday (Sept. 16). The Fayetteville-based bank has selected London-based fintech firm Thought Machine to implement a next-generation…

Financial Park Place in Little Rock sold in $2.15M transaction

A multi-tenant office building at 11219 Financial Centre Parkway in Little Rock changed hands recently for $2.15 million. Acadia Properties LLC, registered to Ali Raja, bought the three-story, 32,767-square-foot Financial…

Car wash, apartments top recent NEA property transactions

State Line Properties LLC made the most significant residential and commercial property transfer in Craighead County, from July 15 through Aug. 15, according to the Craighead County Assessor’s Office. The…

Home BancShares plans Texas market entry through $918M acquisition

Conway-based Home BancShares (NASDAQ: HOMB), holding company of Centennial Bank, announced Wednesday (Sept. 15) its entrance to the Texas market with the $918 million all-stock acquisition of Happy Bancshares, parent…

Curry resigns as Waco Title Co. CEO; Heck appointed successor

After more than eight years of working for Fayetteville-chartered Arvest Bank, Sara Heck was recently appointed CEO of Springdale-based Waco Title Co. Heck was asked to become CEO of Waco…

State Chamber chief says organization unlikely to take position on vaccine mandate; wants corporate income tax reduction

Arkansas State Chamber of Commerce/Associated Industries of Arkansas President and CEO Randy Zook says the business community’s reaction to a Biden executive order mandating vaccines has been “muted.” He also…

NWA mortgage volume up 9.1% in 2Q 2021

A new report from California-based Attom Data Solutions shows that 6,839 mortgages secured by residential property were originated in the second quarter of 2021 in Northwest Arkansas. That’s up 9.1%…

Walmart to buy back $8 billion of corporate debt, issue $2 billion in green bonds

Walmart said Wednesday (Sept. 8) it planned to buy back $8 billion of its bonds ranging from notes due from 2023 through 2049. The tender offer was made public in…

Banking industry earnings up 281% in second quarter

The 4,951 commercial banks and savings institutions insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC) reported aggregate net income rose by 281%, or by $51.9 billion, to $70.4 billion in…

Arvest Bank hires JPMorgan exec for new digital banking role

On Tuesday (Sept. 7), Fayetteville-chartered Arvest Bank announced the hiring of Melanie Fuller as president of digital banking solutions. Fuller spent the past decade working in Ohio in various leadership…

AG Rutledge argues for income tax elimination, while Democratic governor hopefuls oppose

GOP gubernatorial hopeful Attorney General Leslie Rutledge wants to eliminate Arkansas’ individual income tax by 2030 through a constitutional amendment. Three Democrats vying to challenge for governor – Dr. Anthony…

Arvest Bank promotes Matt Kendall to full-time CEO of mortgage division

Arvest Bank on Thursday (Sept. 2) named Matt Kendall president and CEO of the bank’s mortgage division and Arvest Central Mortgage Co. Kendal filled the role on an interim basis…

Armor Bank hires Chris Wolcott as VP for commercial banking

Armor Bank announced that Chris Wolcott has recently been hired as the Vice President of Commercial Banking. “Chris brings a wealth of customer service experience to Armor Bank,” said Chad…

P.A.M. to spend more than $10 million on stock repurchase

Tontitown-based carrier P.A.M. Transportation Services Inc. will purchase 272,405 shares of its stock for more than $10.07 million, according to a Tuesday (Aug. 31) news release. Meanwhile, the carrier’s share…