JACKSONVILLE AND NORTHEAST FLORIDA SPONSORED SECTION 47
Jacksonville’s financial
services climate has
also attracted the
attention of foreign
banks.
Germany-based Deutsche
Bank opened a Jacksonville
operations center in 2008
and already has nearly 2,000
employees, with plans to add
more.
Jacksonville has become
Deutsche Bank’s second-largest
U.S. city of operation, behind
New York.
Australia-based Macquarie
Group opened a global financial
services center in Jacksonville
in 2016 with plans to create 140
jobs. Macquarie chose Jacksonville
over 20 other cities for the
center.
“Jacksonville’s rich talent pool,
incredible quality of life and
downtown growth provide us
the key ingredients to continue
growing our operations in the
U.S.,” Macquarie CFO Patrick
Upfold said as he cut the ribbon
on the downtown office.
Jacksonville’s largest homegrown
bank, EverBank, was
acquired by TIAA in 2017. But
the St. Louis-based financial
services company decided to
keep the headquarters of the
merged bank at EverBank’s
offices in Jacksonville, where the
company employed about 1,600.
Macquarie Group offices
at Riverplace Tower
While the big banks grab
headlines, the Jacksonville
market has room
for smaller financial
institutions to serve the
community.
Northeast Florida is home to
19 credit unions, led by VyStar
Credit Union. Founded in 1952 as
Jax Navy Federal with 12 members
and $60, today VyStar is the
second-largest credit union in
Florida and the 18th largest in the
U.S., with $6.8 billion in assets. It
serves more than 560,000 members.
Credit unions provide a necessary
service in the marketplace, says Bruce
Fafard, CEO of 121 Financial Credit Union.
“We compete by providing service to
what would be called the underserved,
or the middle class,” he says.
Fafard’s institution was one of the
first credit unions established in the
U.S. in 1935. It was founded as Florida
Telco Credit Union and became 121
Financial in 2010.
While Jacksonville is home to
many giant global financial institutions,
Fafard says credit unions like 121
appeal to consumers who prefer the
“buy local” concept.
60,000+
FINANCIAL SERVICES WORKERS
Employed in Northeast Florida
/www.etminc.com