Carter Bank & Trust was formed on December 29, 2006 by the merger of 10 banks with 124 offices in Virginia and North Carolina. At the time, this merger created the largest independent state-chartered commercial bank with headquarters in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Banks merged to form Carter Bank & Trust were Blue Ridge Bank, N.A., Floyd; Central National Bank, Lynchburg; Community National Bank, South Boston; First National Bank, Rocky Mount; First National Exchange Bank, Roanoke; Mountain National Bank, Galax; Patrick Henry National Bank, Bassett; Patriot Bank, N.A., Stafford; Peoples National Bank, Danville; and Shenandoah National Bank, Staunton.

          On December 13, 1974, an office of the First National Bank of Rocky Mount opened in Rocky Mount, VA with eight employees. This was the first bank created by Worth Harris Carter, Jr. of Martinsville and a group of prominent local business people.

           A plan submitted to Regulators in 1973 stated that the banking philosophy for FNBRM and other proposed banks would place emphasis on consumer services with lower interest rates on loans and lower service charges than were being charged in the area at that time. The plan also stated that higher rates on deposit products would be offered.

           In October 1976, the first office of Patrick Henry National Bank opened in Bassett. Later that same year, the conversion of Danville-based Peoples Industrial Loan Corporation to Peoples Bank of Danville, a state-chartered bank, was completed. Peoples Bank converted to a national charter in December 1995 and became known as Peoples National Bank.

           Blue Ridge Savings & Loan opened in Floyd in March of 1978. In November 1982, Blue Ridge became one of the first S&L's in the country to convert to a commercial bank. Blue Ridge Bank was a state-chartered institution until converting to a national charter in December 1995, becoming Blue Ridge Bank, National Association.

           Also in 1982, a bank located in Stafford County, VA was declared insolvent. An agreement was reached over the phone on a Sunday night, papers were signed at 7 a.m. the next morning, and what was then known as Patriot Bank-Offices of Peoples Bank of Danville, opened for business two hours later.

           Bank Services of Virginia, Inc. was formed in 1984 in Henry County to provide a management center for the banks. The senior management personnel responsible for many of the banks’ functions were located there.

           In 1985, South Boston Bank opened its first office in the Centerville community of Halifax County, VA. In 1992, the bank received recognition as a key part of the downtown revitalization effort in South Boston. A new office designed to fit the surrounding architecture was built and housed the bank’s main office. In December 1995, South Boston Bank converted to a national banking charter and became known as Community National Bank.

           Patrick Henry National Bank made banking history in 1995 when it filed an application for an office in Eden, NC, becoming the first bank in the country to take advantage of a change in banking laws which allowed interstate branching.

           By 1996, five banks with 35 offices were in operation. On July 1 of that year, banking history was again made when two of the banks became six, thus becoming the first independent banks in the country to split themselves into separate financial institutions. Patrick Henry National Bank offices in Galax and Hillsville were spun off to create Mountain National Bank, while locations in Lexington, Staunton, and Waynesboro became offices of Shenandoah National Bank.

           Peoples National Bank also split itself into three separate financial institutions. Offices in the Stafford County and Fredericksburg areas were spun off to create Patriot Bank, N.A., and Central National Bank was created with a single office in Lynchburg.

           On May 1, 1998, First National Exchange Bank was created from the spin off of First National Bank of Rocky Mount offices in Roanoke, Bedford, and New Castle. Simultaneously, the remaining offices of First National Bank of Rocky Mount converted to a national charter and became known as First National Bank.

           Into the new millennium, growth continued at a rapid pace as the 10 banks grew to include over 120 offices by 2005. North Carolina offices of the banks numbered 36 by the end of that year.

          Just as splitting the banks made sense in order to grow quickly; bringing the banks together at the end of 2006 was a logical result of rising administrative and compliance burdens.

           Although the banks had operated under separate names over the years, many of the back room functions were a cooperative effort. From an operations standpoint, very little changed after the merger. From the customer’s perspective, they now had the ability to conduct their banking in a much broader area.

           “The merger created a financial institution with total assets in excess of $3.4 billion, well positioned for success in the increasingly competitive market for financial institutions,” said Worth Harris Carter, Jr., Chairman of the Board and President.

           “Carter Bank & Trust achieved substantial administrative, regulatory, and compliance cost savings and efficiencies, enhanced customer convenience, and the merger allows the Bank to expand products and services in the growing Virginia and North Carolina markets that we serve,” Carter commented.

          Carter Bank & Trust also owns a full-service Insurance agency based in Danville, VA. Bankers Insurance/Carter Bank & Trust has branch locations in Lynchburg and Roanoke.

           In the face of unprecedented growth, Carter Bank & Trust has and will remain true to the operating philosophy expressed in 1973. Services offered since the beginning include LIFETIME FREE CHECKING, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. drive-in service Monday through Saturday, daily compounding of interest on all Certificates of Deposit and savings accounts, the availability of Passbook Savings accounts and Christmas Clubs, competitive loan and deposit rates and no minimum loan amounts, and a limited number of service charges with those which are levied being well below those of the competition.

           Looking to the future, Carter Bank & Trust will search for ways to make life easier for its customers by providing new products such as Debit Cards, Equity Lines, and Internet Banking, and increasing access by opening additional offices in new markets.