Bay to bay: West Coast exec transitions to Gulf Coast

In January, Atlanta-based SunTrust Bank appointed a new president of its Tampa and Southwest Florida markets. Tim Schar, 48, comes to SunTrust from San Francisco-based Apple Pie Capital, a financier for franchise businesses, but his resume includes stints with Wells Fargo, Wachovia Securities, Bear Stearns and Credit Suisse.

SunTrust saw its revenue rise by 6.3% in 2017, to more than $9.7 billion, and it boasts assets in excess of $205 billion. Southwest Florida and Orlando have been big drivers of that growth, so the Business Observer sat down with Schar to find out what the bank is doing to capitalize on the Gulf Coast’s booming economy, what brought him to Tampa and other topics. Edited excerpts: