Banker warns to protect from lax lending

The mood was chipper when top executives from three of the region's fastest-growing banks gathered recently to chat about the industry.

For good reason, too: The bankers, Jim Gburek, Florida regional president for IberiaBank; Jim Kuhlman, president and CEO of Venice-based Florida Shores Bank; and Katie Pemble, president of St. Petersburg-based C1 Bank, all have happy stories. The trio spoke during an event sponsored by the Sarasota/Manatee chapter of the Risk Management Association.

An underlying theme was each bank's ability to grow in a market that remains littered with uncertainty. Florida Shores has focused on organic customer growth, while C1 and IberiaBank have grown both in new customers and through acquisitions of other institutions.