Synovus Financial Corp., formerly the Columbus Bank and Trust Company, is an American

financial service Financial services are service (economics), economic services tied to finance provided by financial institutions. Financial services encompass a broad range of tertiary sector of the economy, service sector activities, especially as concerns finan ...

s company with approximately $62 billion in assets based in

Columbus, Georgia Columbus is a consolidated city-county located on the west-central border of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. Columbus lies on the Chattahoochee River directly across from Phenix City, Alabama. It is the county seat of Muscogee ...

. Synovus provides

commercial Commercial may refer to: * (adjective for) commerce, a system of voluntary exchange of products and services ** (adjective for) trade, the trading of something of economic value such as goods, services, information or money * a dose of advertising ...

and

retail banking Retail banking, also known as consumer banking or personal banking, is the provision of services by a bank to the general public, rather than to companies, corporations or other banks, which are often described as wholesale banking (corporate ...

investment Investment is traditionally defined as the "commitment of resources into something expected to gain value over time". If an investment involves money, then it can be defined as a "commitment of money to receive more money later". From a broade ...

, and

mortgage A mortgage loan or simply mortgage (), in civil law (legal system), civil law jurisdictions known also as a hypothec loan, is a loan used either by purchasers of real property to raise funds to buy real estate, or by existing property owners t ...

services through 249 branches and 335 ATMs in

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

South Carolina South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

, and

Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...

Company history

The bank opened in 1888 following an incident at a

textile mill Textile manufacturing or textile engineering is a major industry. It is largely based on the conversion of fibre into yarn, then yarn into fabric. These are then dyed or printed, fabricated into cloth which is then converted into useful good ...

in which a worker's dress became entangled in machinery, spilling the money she had sewn into her hem onto the floor. After she explained to a factory executive that she had felt this was the safest place to keep her

savings Wealth is the abundance of valuable financial assets or physical possessions which can be converted into a form that can be used for transactions. This includes the core meaning as held in the originating Old English word , which is from an ...

, he offered instead to secure her money in the mill

safe A safe (also called a strongbox or coffer) is a secure lockable enclosure used for securing valuable objects against theft or fire. A safe is usually a hollow cuboid or cylinder, with one face being removable or hinged to form a door. The body ...

and pay her

interest In finance and economics, interest is payment from a debtor or deposit-taking financial institution to a lender or depositor of an amount above repayment of the principal sum (that is, the amount borrowed), at a particular rate. It is distinct f ...

on her balance. This service was soon offered to all company employees. Synovus's founding parent company, Columbus Bank and Trust (CB&T), has deep roots in its hometown. CB&T started TSYS in 1959 and in 1974 the company began processing credit cards for other banks. In 1983, CB&T made TSYS a separate publicly traded company, retaining majority ownership. On October 25, 2007, TSYS and Synovus (holding 81% of shares at the time) announced a spin-off that was completed as of the end of 2007. Synovus took its current name in 2010. Since its founding in 1888, it has acquired 35 banks. * Alabama: Sterling Bank MONTGOMERY, The First National Bank of Jasper, First Commercial Bank of Huntsville, First Commercial Bank BIRMINGHAM, Community Bank and Trust of Southeast Alabama DOTHAN, The Bank of Tuscaloosa, CB&T Bank of East Alabama PHENIX CITY. * Florida: Tallahassee State Bank, Synovus Bank SAINT PETERSBURG, Synovus Bank JACKSONVILLE, First Coast Community Bank FERNANDINA BEACH, Coastal Bank and Trust of Florida PENSACOLA. * Georgia: Buena Vista Loan & Savings Bank, First United Bank MONTEZUMA, Bank of Manchester, Coastal Bank of Georgia BRUNSWICK, Sea Island Bank STATESBORO, SB&T BANK ALBANY, Georgia Bank & Trust CALHOUN, First State Bank and Trust Company of Valdosta, Commercial Bank & Trust Company of Troup County LAGRANGE, First Community Bank of Tifton, Commercial Bank THOMASVILLE, Citizens First Bank ROME, CB&T Bank of Middle Georgia WARNER ROBINS, AFB&T ATHENS, Bank of Coweta NEWNAN, Bank of North Georgia ALPHARETTA, Sunrise Bank VALDOSTA (as part of a government assisted transaction). * South Carolina: The National Bank of South Carolina SUMTER. * Tennessee: Cohutta Banking Company CHATTANOOGA, Trust One Bank MEMPHIS, The Bank of Nashville. * Nebraska: World's Foremost Bank SIDNEY.

2008 financial crisis

In August 2009, due to the

2008 financial crisis The 2008 financial crisis, also known as the global financial crisis (GFC), was a major worldwide financial crisis centered in the United States. The causes of the 2008 crisis included excessive speculation on housing values by both homeowners ...

, the bank was listed as one of more than 150

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

lenders that owned nonperforming loans equal in value to 5% or more of their holdings, exceeding a threshold said to threaten its survival. Synovus

laid off A layoff or downsizing is the temporary suspension or permanent termination of employment of an employee or, more commonly, a group of employees (collective layoff) for business reasons, such as personnel management or downsizing an organization ...

850 employees and closed many

branches A branch, also called a ramus in botany, is a stem that grows off from another stem, or when structures like veins in leaves are divided into smaller veins. History and etymology In Old English, there are numerous words for branch, includi ...

in early 2011. In July 2013, Synovus repaid $967.9 million borrowed under the

Troubled Asset Relief Program The Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) is a program of the United States government to purchase toxic assets and equity from financial institutions to strengthen its financial sector that was passed by Congress and signed into law by U.S. Presi ...

Synovus Branding

In early 2010, Synovus consolidated thirty separate

state bank In Australia and the United States, a state bank in a federated state is usually a financial institution that is chartered by the government of that state, as opposed to one regulated at the federal or national level. In British English, the ter ...

charters into one Georgia

charter A charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified. It is implicit that the granter retains superiority (or sovereignty), and that the ...

and began the transition toward operating as a more centralized bank. Beginning in late 2017 and ending in mid-2018, the company transitioned from 28 locally-branded divisions to a single Synovus brand.

Acquisition of Florida Community Bank

In January 2019, Synovus completed a $2.9 billion acquisition of FCB Financial Holdings, Inc., owner of

Florida Community Bank Florida Community Bank, also known as FCB, was an American bank based in Weston, Florida that provided consumer and business banking services to communities throughout the state. With roots tracing back to 1923, the legacy Florida Community Ban ...

. Branding to Synovus was expected during the second quarter of 2019.

References

External links

*
New Georgia Encyclopedia Article on SynovusSynovus Financial Completes Spin-off Of TSYS - RTT News
{{Authority control Companies listed on the New York Stock Exchange Financial services companies of the United States American companies established in 1888 Banks based in Georgia (U.S. state) Companies based in Columbus, Georgia 1888 establishments in Georgia (U.S. state) Companies in the S&P 400