The Orlando Economic Partnership welcomes TD Bank to the Partner level of investment and as the presenting sponsor of the 2020 Barbecue on the Boulevard.
In 2010, TD Bank entered the Central Florida market through an acquisition of the South Financial Group, which had a significant presence in South Carolina, Georgia and Florida. Since that time, TD has expanded throughout the region through new customer acquisition, new store openings, and, most recently, moving its regional office from Winter Park to its Downtown Orlando Lake Eola location, a more prominent location to emphasize its foothold in the market.
“I wasn’t a part of the original team that came in,” says Steve Fisher, TD Bank Regional Vice President Greater Orlando Region. “Those who preceded me did an outstanding job of understanding the goals and objectives of our business community and executing on the bank’s strategy.”
Fisher, a long-time resident of Central Florida who moved to the region to attend Rollins College, was recruited to TD in 2013, bringing with him years of personal and professional relationships and a deep understanding of the market.
“Having the ability to really understand the particular market is one of the benefits of working with TD,” Fisher says. “A lot of it comes down to the bank’s philosophy of local bankers making local decisions and providing local loans. We must understand the conditions companies are facing and the surrounding markets in which they conduct their activities.”
By doing so, TD Bank can respond to the unique challenges and opportunities facing each market.
“It’s something we focus on every single day—finding the right solutions for our customers that will help them enhance their performance and growth,” Fisher says.
“We have the flexibility and understanding of a community bank but the toolbox of a global institution.”
Steve Fisher, TD Bank Regional Vice President Greater Orlando Region
Fisher says this personal touch stems from the bank’s ability to service clients no matter where they are in the business cycle.
“It’s how we’re set up; every business customer has a dedicated bank contact. We have relationship managers across the board—one team across TD’s market that allows us to take care of clients from startup to maturity.”
Even amid the pandemic, TD Bank sees Florida as a growth market, given the mature business community and volume of resident and business relocations, with many coming from the Northeast where TD has significant market share.
“While many institutions are minimizing their expansion efforts, TD is in the middle of a growth story,” Fisher says. “Even though the market is in a tough economic cycle, TD is continuing to grow, provide capital and make enhancements to our products and services, thanks to our fiscal strength as a global institution.”
As COVID-19 continues to have tremendous impact on lives and communities, TD Bank continues to serve its Central Florida customers through its TD Cares customer relief program. Through this program, they continue to listen to customers, providing fiscal advice, working through customer concerns and doing whatever they can to help small businesses and individuals adapt and respond to current conditions. The bank is a leading lender of SBA loans across its footprint and was among the top six participants nationwide in the Payment Protection Program, processing nearly 86,000 loans totaling approximately $8.55 billion in funding. In Florida, the bank processed 9,600 loans and continues to participate in the Main Street Lending Program.
“We’re constantly having conversations with borrowers to get an understanding of what’s going on,” Fisher says. “COVID is not going away any time soon so we have to make sure we’re focusing on our local presence and understanding what’s happening at a local level. That’s how we take care of existing clients and prepare ourselves to help new clients who may have run into difficult situations at another institution.”
Through its products, services, community engagement and philanthropic initiatives, TD Bank is committed to supporting every aspect of the community and making the biggest impact possible, through its TD Ready Commitment program.
“Most of all, we pride ourselves in showing up and being visible,” Fisher says.
“One thing we know is giving back to the community promotes the opportunity for everyone to grow, both in business and individually.”
Steve Fisher, TD Bank Regional Vice President Greater Orlando Region
The TD Ready Commitment helps drive its focus on improving business and individual financial security, protecting a vibrant planet, and promoting connected communities and health. TD’s involvement in the Central Florida community includes helping small businesses recover from COVID-19, supporting the Special Olympics, awarding sponsorships that allow underprivileged children to attend summer camp, funding clinics for those who are uninsured, planting trees in urban areas and volunteering. So far in 2020, the bank has contributed $2 million across the state of Florida, including $500,000 to Orlando-based organizations.
This all plays into how TD Bank helps the Partnership advance broad-based prosperity.
“We participate in many programs that provide guidance and expertise to help business owners and individuals become more financially literate,” Fisher says. “Working with individuals, the businesses community and community leaders and organizations, we are working to provide everyone in our community better access to financial education and resources. That way everyone in the community has the tools they need to achieve financial security and prosperity.”
The Partnership celebrates TD Bank’s regional leadership in support of advancing broad-based prosperity through its investment and sponsorship of the 2020 Barbecue on the Boulevard.
If you are interested in joining or being a sponsor of the Orlando Economic Partnership’s regional efforts to advance Broad-Based Prosperity™, please click here to review available opportunities.
