RankingBanking 24 Digital (1) - Flipbook - Page 9
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The Five Star culture is “not for everybody. You have to be
continuously improving. You can’t hide here.”
James Beckwith / Five Star Bancorp
enough to move their core deposits to Five Star as
Insurance Corp.
well. While the company doesn’t break out earn-
Technology is critical to the operation. Five Star
ings from the business, Terrell estimates it gener-
is a big user of nCino’s cloud banking platform,
ates between 35% and 45% of net income.
deploying it on both the lending and deposit sides.
“They’re probably the only bank I’ve dealt with
Beckwith accesses it daily on his tablet to move
that is totally committed to the business,” says
loans through the pipeline quickly. “It creates ef-
John McDougall, principal and CEO of Monte
ficiencies in terms of how we approve or reject
Christo Communities, a Sacramento-based owner/
oppositions and gives us actionable information
operator of 91 manufactured housing communi-
more quickly than before we used it,” he explains.
ties in the western part of the country and a Five
“That builds stronger connections with customers
Star client. “They understand the business com-
and turns up the velocity on what we’re able to do
pletely and know where the risks lie.”
and drives growth.”
The company also recently implemented Axiom,
Born for CRE
a financial reporting system, to help turn around
Five Star was founded in 1999 by a pair of real
such back-office tasks as budgeting and forecasts
estate professionals who thought Sacramento need-
quickly. “I have a bunch of really talented peo-
ed a bank attuned to their industry’s needs. Over
ple, and it killed me to think they were spending
time, the company expanded its branch presence
time checking formulas on a spreadsheet instead
methodically, and today boasts five Sacramento-ar-
of making things better for customers,” Luck, the
ea offices and three more to the north in Yuba City,
CFO, says. “It has improved my team’s efficiency
Chico and Redding. CRE is the focus, with some ba-
significantly.”
sic small business lending scattered in.
It’s what Beckwith calls a “branch-light” mod-
Work Hard, Play Hard
el. “Each of our offices, on average, holds a lot
The technology spending goes into supporting a
of deposits, and that creates a lot of efficiencies,”
customer-first culture that feels more developed
he says. Indeed, the company’s efficiency ratio, a
and mature than many community banks. “We’re
measure of noninterest expenses over revenues,
big believers in creating relationships built on trust
was 40.4% in 2023, and that included the Bay
and empathy,” Beckwith says. “It’s a commodity
Area expansion costs. The industry average for the
business, so you have to have expertise in the ver-
year was 57.5%, according to the Federal Deposit
ticals you participate in and differentiate yourself
