American Bank's Stephen C. Raffaele Nominated for Best CEO Award

Congratulations to American Bank’s President and CEO, Stephen C. Raffaele, for being nominated as the top CEO in Central Texas in the Austin Business Journal’s Best CEO Awards large company category. The Austin Business Journal hosts the annual Best CEO Awards to recognize chief executive officers in Central Texas who have a strong record of innovation and outstanding performance, and who also demonstrate difference-making leadership in the philanthropic, civic, or political arenas. The recipient of this honor will be announced on October 6, 2022 in Austin.

Raffaele has served as American Bank’s President and CEO since 2018. Over the past several years, American Bank has experienced tremendous success, tripling its growth rate relative to the five years prior to Raffaele joining the bank. In 2021, American Bank surpassed another milestone when it reached $2 billion in assets.

“I’m so pleased that Steve’s hard work and leadership are being recognized,” said Ben Wallace, Board Chair for American Bank. “Steve brings a contagious passion to work every day. He embodies our corporate values of integrity, excellence, performance, innovation, and leadership. And he connects with our employees and clients in a way where they understand and embrace our vision. He’s exactly what you want in a leader and, on behalf of the Board and our shareholders, I’m happy to congratulate Steve for his nomination.”

In the past year, American Bank has also expanded under Raffaele’s leadership. The bank purchased ACG Equipment Finance, an Austin-based specialty finance company, in late 2021. And in June 2022, American Bank announced it was acquiring TexStar National Bank in San Antonio, which is set to close in early 2023. All this was accomplished despite significant challenges, including the COVID pandemic, extremely low interest rates and adverse economic conditions.

Raffaele has remained true to his servant leadership style by focusing on serving people and maintaining a healthy culture. The culture at American Bank that he has helped strengthen is built around its core values, which Raffaele reinforces in his actions and interactions, often kicking off meetings with a reminder about the company’s values. Raffaele has also emphasized the importance of board, executive, and employee alignment when it comes to the bank’s vision and strategy. In 2021, he led efforts to redesign and implement an updated five-year strategic plan for the bank, which he originally initiated in 2017.

“I’m honored to have been nominated for this award,” said Raffaele. “It’s humbling for me to be nominated alongside so many great leaders in the Central Texas community who also represent great companies. I don’t really look at this nomination as anything I’ve done alone. This is truly a recognition that American Bank is doing things the right way with many outstanding employees who are devoted to building something special. I’m proud to lead such a great organization and to represent such a wonderful team and Board. As I often say, it’s an exciting time to be at American Bank. This is just one more example.”

About Stephen C. Raffaele

Stephen C. Raffaele is a long-time Texas business leader, having lived and worked in most of the major markets in Texas over his 34-year career. Raffaele has broad executive experience in banking, wealth management, financial management and reporting, investor relations, investments, mergers and acquisitions, public company governance, and strategic planning.

As President and CEO at American Bank, Raffaele manages and provides leadership to the bank’s management team, as well as develops and leads the strategic planning initiatives to ensure the long-term growth and profitability of the bank. He joined American Bank as Senior Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer in 2016 and was promoted to President and Chief Operating Officer in 2017. He became Chief Executive Officer and President in 2018. Prior to that time, Raffaele held various C-level positions in several financial organizations including F&M Bank & Trust Co. and Guaranty Bank, both in Dallas, as well as Sterling Bank in Houston.

Raffaele is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) and is an active member of the CFA Institute. In addition, he currently serves on the board for the Texas Bankers Association, the largest state banking association in the country. Raffaele has also been involved with many other charitable organizations, including the Art Museum of South Texas, Boy Scouts of America, the American Cancer Society, and the Salvation Army. He is a graduate of Baylor University, where he earned a B.A. in Business.

About American Bank

American Bank was founded in Corpus Christi, Texas in 1970. It is an independent financial institution with assets of approximately $2.1 billion as of June 30, 2022. American Bank has 13 locations in the Texas communities of Austin, San Antonio, Houston, Corpus Christi, Port Aransas, Rockport, Goliad, and Victoria. On December 31, 2021, American Bank acquired ACG Equipment Finance based in Austin, Texas, which provides financing for essential business use equipment across the United States. The bank’s strategic plan includes growth in the size and scope of the bank’s operations and geographic footprint; an exceptional banking experience for clients; and a position as a leading regional Texas bank. Services include Commercial Banking, with Centers of Excellence specializing in commercial real estate, medical, energy, SBA and technology lending; a full range of Personal and Business Banking services, including business and personal deposit accounts and loans; Wealth Management services including Private Banking, Investment Management, Trust and non-bank investments; a full suite of technology-enabled Treasury Management services; home mortgage and construction-related loans; and a full range of electronic banking services. More information can be found at www.americanbank.com. Member FDIC. Equal Housing Lender.