SmartFinancial, Inc. ("SmartFinancial"; NASDAQ: SMBK) announced on Monday the completion of its merger of Cornerstone Community Bank and SmartBank, creating a banking franchise that extends across East Tennessee and Northwest Florida and exceeds $1 billion in assets. The merger completion means that the Chattanooga offices are now open for business as SmartBank, moving a strong banking legacy into a new chapter focusing on combining the best of community banking with technology and innovation.
Billy Carroll, president and CEO said, “For the past year, our two teams have been highly collaborative; the marriage of our banks has been as complementary as we anticipated. It’s exciting now to be unified on one banking platform, offering the same products and services and building a great future together. In our merger work, we’ve combined our people, systems and operations in a way that will support the continued growth we anticipate for our company.”
Barry Watson, regional president said, “Our Chattanooga market now represents half of our combined company and with our current banking team, is poised for continued solid growth. This team could not be more excited to be part of the SmartBank family, and we intend to offer more good things to our loyal clients and friends over the coming years.”
Chairman Miller Welborn said, “As we unveil SmartBank in Chattanooga, the expectation is that we’re at the starting line, writing the next chapter of a great story centered on banking innovation. Truly, I believe this is where the fun begins. The energy we have in this $1 billion in assets bank is tremendous; our opportunity to serve individuals and companies throughout our footprint is better than ever.”