Remember last month when Arkansas Business reported on the trend of national banks converting to state bank charters? (See National Charter Conversions to State a One-Way Street.)
That story was timelier than we knew. Even as the paper was being printed and mailed, Simmons First National Bank of Pine Bluff, the largest national bank chartered in Arkansas, filed a conversion application with the Arkansas State Bank Department.
The application is still pending, but Bank Commissioner Candace Franks told us that she couldn’t remember a conversion being turned down in the 36 years she’s worked for ASBD.
When it is approved, Simmons First National Bank will become Simmons Bank. Cleverly, that’s the streamlined brand name that Simmons has been using for a while.
Meanwhile, the national-to-state charter conversion that was pending when our story appeared was approved Jan. 21. First National Bank of McGehee is now First NaturalState Bank.