Florida Banking February 2023

Resilience, Growth and Community U.S. Century Bank:

O n Nov. 23, 2021, the U.S. Century Bank management team rang the closing bell at the Nasdaq Stock Exchange, at Times Square, celebrating the bank’s hard-earned achievement of taking the bank public amid a global pandemic. The faces of their colleagues and friends at home in Miami appeared on the screen behind them to live stream the experience. This was not, in fact, the day that the bank’s stock was listed on the market; U.S. Century Bank officially went public several months earlier, in July, but the team was unable to visit New York at the time due to pandemic restrictions. Bank leadership conducted much of the process of its initial public offering virtually. On the day of the bank’s IPO, the team gathered in the boardroom to toast with mimosas and watch its stock go live on the Nasdaq with ticker symbol USCB. Both the experience of going public and then celebrating the bank’s 20 t h ann i ve r s a r y i n 2022 were particularly sweet for the Miami based community bank, which had labored under regulatory supervision several years prior. Though the bank experienced explosive growth when i t wa s f o u n d e d i n 2002, i t exper i enced losses stemming from plummeting real estate p r i c e s , d i m i n i s h i n g collateral values, and project foreclosures because of the 2008 banking crisis. The bank was recapitalized in 2015 and the new investor group brought on veteran banker Luis de la Aguilera as the president and CEO, signaling the beginning of a new era.

first 90 days to hire 29 members of his former team who chose to follow him. “It was a team that not only knew and trusted each other, but knew what to do, because we had done it before,”Aguilera said. “We got to work immediately; we had no time to waste.” In his first year as CEO, Aguilera focused on developing a strategic plan for returning the bank to profitability. The bank adopted a “branch light” model, consolidating its 18 banking centers, with the intention of better stewarding its resources while still providing high-touch service for its customers and community. Today, the bank has 10 banking centers and a commercial business office. Aguilera also led the team to identify and develop new business lines, which the bank calls “business verticals,” to diversify its loan portfolio. “I recognize that South Florida is a real estate

dominated economy and that commercial real estate will always be an important asset class,” Aguilera said. “However, we wi l l p r oa c t i v e l y manage risk and diversity through our new business verticals, which include association lending, global banking, SBA lending for entrepreneurs, and yacht financing.” “In 2016, we lifted the long-standing consent order and returned the bank to profitability. This created much energy,

“LAUNCHING A SUCCESSFUL IPO WAS AN IMPORTANT MILESTONE. IT REALLY VALIDATED THE EFFORTS OF THE TEAM.”

- LUIS DE LA AGUILERA

excitement and commitment. I think these ingredients, along with a sense of urgency, can ignite a company forward,” Aguilera said. “In a very short period of time, we quickly saw measurable results.” U.S. Century Bank, Continued on page 10

“While the financial crisis had hit the bank hard, we clearly saw the potential to rebuild,” Aguilera said. “I also understood how big the task ahead was; the bank had burned through its capital, lost key talent, and morale was low. It was going to be a huge challenge.” Aguilera’s priority was to quickly earn the trust of the board, investors and staff, and to build “buy-in” commitment and improve morale. In a twist of fate, Aguilera had the opportunity within his

The U.S. Century Bank headquarters in Doral.

WWW.FLORIDABANKERS.COM FEBRUARY 2023 — 9