A decade after entering the Chattanooga market, the parent company of Cohutta Banking Co. is preparing to put a bigger mark on Chattanooga and more than two dozen other markets where it operates across the Southeast.
Synovus Financial Corp., the second biggest bank based in Georgia, plans to put its name on the Cohutta Banking Co. and 27 other banks it operates by 2018.
“This transition will improve efficiency and productivity by consolidating system, administrative, and other functions, and will culminate in 2018 with the transition to a single brand – Synovus,” the company said in its annual report released last week.
In the report, Synovus Chairman and CEO Kessel D. Stelling Jr. said Synovus’ 28 locally-branded bank divisions include seven that were founded more than a century ago and two that haven’t yet reached their third decade.
“But they are united by a culture based on long-standing values – strong and caring leadership, trusting relationships, dedication to communities, and excellence in all we do – that transcends history, geography, and brand,” he wrote. “This culture assimilated more than 60 acquisitions over the past 40 years and remains the cornerstone of our company today.”