Independent Banker - February 2022 - 61

lender. He credits one of the founding
families with keeping the bank going
when times were tough.
" The family that had the majority
ownership of this bank also had
a thriving business going on, " he
explains. " The Boyd family were the
founders of the R.H. Boyd Publishing
Company that printed media,
hymnals, anything church-related for
Black churches across the country. I've
heard stories of the original Mr. Boyd
putting money in the windows of the
bank during the Depression, so people
would know that there hadn't been a
run on the bank. "
REFRESH AND RENEW
Today, Citizens is fighting
gentrification in favor of revitalization.
The community bank's main office
is located in a district once known
for extreme poverty and the highest
concentration of prisoners in the
U.S. per capita, but it's now ripe for
redevelopment.
" The bank's role now is to preserve
as much of the economics in the
community as we can, " McGruder
says. " One of the stories we're trying
to get out to those who own land in
the community, who own businesses,
is this notion of the money multiplier.
It's to tell the story of keeping your
deposits and your capital gains from
your real estate in this district, and
also to educate them that when you put
those gains into our bank, our mission
will increase the net worth of African
Americans, create jobs and participate
in the organic growth in Nashville. "
Ora adds, " Revitalization is when
you stay where you are, and you put
your money back where you are.
And that basically creates an upward
spiral of economic growth and
wealth creation. That's what we want
to achieve. "
This means focusing on funding
small businesses and developers who
are creating affordable housing, as
well as helping formerly incarcerated
people get full-time work and buy
property in the neighborhood. That's
an invitation that's open to everyone. " I
don't want Citizens to just be known as
a Black bank, " says McGruder. " I just
want to be known as the community
bank that's Black-led or minority-led.
We want everyone's business. "
CUSTOMER STORY
LAURENCE PLUMMER SR.
PLUMMER FINANCIAL SERVICES
MEMPHIS, TENN.
Financial adviser Laurence Plummer Sr. was
purchasing a property in 2005 but still had his
current home on the market. It was one of those
transactions that required speed and finesse, but
he had trouble finding a bank that would work with
him.
" I actually gave three banks a shot at getting
it done, " he says. " But when I called Citizens,
they basically told me, 'Let's get it done, what do
you need us to do?' I told them exactly what the
situation was, and I promise you within less than 24
hours I had an, 'OK, let's go, we can get this taken
care of for you.' So, it was a seamless transaction. "
Plummer recalls one of the first things Citizens
president Sergio Ora told him: that they were
not a transaction bank, they were a relationship
bank, and Plummer has seen this in action
countless times.
" In the African American community, a lot of
times they're not privileged to have banks that will
go to bat for them, " he says. " I've referred people
to the bank, and they've given me phone calls back
saying, 'Thank you so much, they were easy to work
with, they took care of me, I got my mortgage, I got
my car financed.' It's just a major, major plus to have
a bank that they can call and feel like they have
some type of client relationship with. "
independentbanker.org Q 61
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Independent Banker - February 2022

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