Florida Banking July 2023

PERSONAL TRANSACTIONS

CLEWISTON

FORT MYERS

Alexander Arias has joined Sanibel Captiva Community Bank as a loan servicing assistant at the bank’s Bridge Branch. He is responsible for processing loan payoffs, preparing loan verification requests, managing loan payoff quotes and assisting in document management.

First Bank announced that Andrew Couse has been promoted to serve as president and chief operating officer. Couse began working at First Bank in 2005. He obtained his bachelor’s degree from the University of Florida. He graduated from the esteemed Graduate

Couse

Arias

Arias has more than five years of banking experience, as well as a background in the sales industry. He attended Valencia Community College and Rasmussen College.

School of Banking at Louisiana State University and in 2013 completed his Master of Business Administration from Florida Gulf Coast University.

LOUISVILLE

First Bank announced that Mark Deitz has been promoted to senior vice president and chief financial officer in preparation of CFO Randy Wood’s upcoming retirement. Deitz began

The officers and directors of Republic Bancorp, Inc., and Republic Bank & Trust Company, announced the appointment of Vidya Ravichandran to both boards. Ravichandran’s background in technology, along with her entrepreneurial achievements and

working at First Bank in 2009. He obtained his bachelor’s degree from Florida State University and graduated from the Florida Bankers Association’s Florida School of Banking. Deitz

Ravichandran

leadership experience, will add additional strength to Republic’s boards. Ravichandran is the founder and CEO of GlowTouch, LLC, a global enterprise that provides customer care and technology outsourcing services. In 2013 she founded StemWizard, a software platform that allows students, teachers, judges, volunteers, and administrators to set up and run STEM competitions, such as science fairs, the Science Olympiad, and robotics events, through a cloud enabled platform. Ravichandran obtained a master’s degree in science from Virginia Tech and a bachelor’s degree in Science from Bangalore University. She is heavily involved in the community, having served as a member of several organizations including the Kentucky Council for Postsecondary Education Board. Ravichandran is also an active member of C200, a non profit inspiring, educating, supporting, and advancing current and future women entrepreneurs and corporate, profit-center leaders. She is an inductee of CCWomen Hall of Fame and last year was voted one of Louisville’s Most Admired CEOs by Louisville Business First.

First Bank announced that Marcel Padron has been promoted to

controller. Padron began working at First Bank in 2017. He obtained his bachelor’s degree in finance from Florida Atlantic University. He is also currently working on his second bachelor’s degree in

Padron

accounting from Florida Atlantic University.

CORAL GABLES

Amerant Bancorp Inc., and its subsidiary, Amerant Bank, announced that Sharymar Calderon, CPA , was named executive vice president, chief financial officer for the company and the bank effective June 1. Calderon has served as senior vice president, Head of Internal Audit

Calderon

at Amerant since June 2021, where she has led the implementation and monitoring of the company’s audit plan and risk assessments, including coordination with external auditors and the integration of SOX audits. Before Amerant, Calderon worked at Ocean Bank as SVP, Head of Payment Operations, and at PricewaterhouseCoopers, where she began her career as an associate and rose to senior manager over the course of her tenure. Calderon received a double Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting and Marketing from the University of Puerto Rico. She is a licensed CPA in Florida and Puerto Rico, a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, a member of the Puerto Rico State Society of CPAs and its Florida Chapter, and the Association of Latino Professionals for America.

SARASOTA

Gulfside Bank has hired Gary Houseworth to serve as the vice president and Financial Center Manager for a new full-service bank to be located east of I-75 and south of Fruitville Road. Houseworth earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Finance

Houseworth

from Florida State University. Since then, he has spent the vast majority of his 30-plus-year career working for local community banks in Sarasota. Houseworth is a member of the Rotary Club of Lakewood Ranch and a member of the East Sarasota Campus of Bayside

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