Winter Park National Bank opened its doors to the community in 2017, and in just three years of operating has already earned a 5-star “superior” bank rating from BauerFinancial Inc., an independent institution that rates banks and credit unions for the public’s reference. Ratings are determined based on several factors including capital ratio, trends over time, income, credit quality, loan portfolio, and more.
“Most startup banks don’t go from zero in assets to almost $500 million in less than three years,” said David Dotherow, president of Winter Park National Bank. As of June 30, the conclusion of the second quarter, Winter Park National Bank had about $467 million in assets. “To grow that quickly and maintain strong credit quality and increased profitability would typically take a significant amount of time longer for most community banks,” Dotherow said.
When it first opened, the bank was categorized as a startup and did not receive a rating as it was too young. In December 2018, the bank was named a 3.5-star institution, a “good” rating according to Bauer. By June 2019, the bank had already climbed its way to a 4-star “excellent” rating, which it held until June 2020, when it received its current 5-star rating.
“On behalf of our management team and our entire employee staff along with our board of directors, it’s a tremendous effort to reach a 5-star superior Bauer rating in such a short period of time,” Dotherow said. “That could not have been accomplished without all of the hard work from our employees, tremendously dedicated customers, and loyal shareholders.”
