It’s official: Bank of St. Francisville is growing in the Capital Region! The bank is pleased to announce the opening of a new full-service branch at 5505 Highland Road in Baton Rouge early this fall.
“We are thrilled to deepen our commitment to our customers in the Capital Region with the acquisition of this building purchase,” said BSF President and CEO Carter Leak IV. “Over the past few years, we’ve steadily and significantly grown our footprint in the Baton Rouge market, and this expansion allows us to provide a greater level of service to our customers,” he said.
A True "Relationship Bank"
As the COVID-19 pandemic decimated the U.S. economy, Bank of St. Francisville made hundreds of loans through the Small Business Administration's Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) throughout the Capital Region. "I think a lot of our success is due to the fact that, while PPP was a challenge for all banks to deal with, it also gave clients an opportunity to see which banks were truly “relationship banks”—banks that were going to hold their hands to get them through it—and which ones were not,” Leak said.
With more Baton Rouge-based businesses seeking the concierge-style banking relationships that BSF has built its reputation on, the need for a standalone branch in the Capital Region became increasingly evident, said BSF Baton Rouge Market President Douglas Dupont.
“The branch will replicate the culture and overall banking experience that has made Bank of St. Francisville a cornerstone in the West Feliciana business community," Dupont said. “This means building banking relationships that are rooted in accessibility, flexibility, and attention to detail.”
Dupont joined BSF in 2018 as Vice President for Commercial Lending. After two years developing BSF’s commercial lending and deposit portfolio while in North Louisiana, Dupont returned to Baton Rouge in 2020 to lead the expansion.
The right combination of financial expertise, close customer relationships, and banking technology puts a small-town bank in a unique position to build a stronger financial institution and a stronger community at the same time, Leak added. “Our local economy is impacted by our ability to grow,” he said. “I think the expansion works together for the good of our communities as well as our customer base, which we’re now seeing our third generation of customers coming through.”
“The main priorities are to serve our customers, our local community of St. Francisville, and Baton Rouge in a way that we have for the past 40 years.”
About Bank of St. Francisville
Bank of St. Francisville is a community-owned and operated bank in West Feliciana Parish. Chartered in 1978, the Bank opened its doors in a small trailer. Today, its two-story brick headquarters on Commerce Street is a community landmark. The institution has grown to $224,000,000 in assets and 52 employees. Learn more at bsf.net.
Contact
Kelly Hurtado
Director of Community Relations
kelly@bsf.net
