FirstBank, sometimes referred to as 1STBank, is a Colorado-based and privately heldbank and financial services company that owns over 115 FirstBank locations in three states in the Southwestern U.S.: Colorado, Arizona, and California. Headquartered in Lakewood, Colorado, it is the second largest bank in Colorado by total deposits behind only Wells Fargo. On February 1, 2017, John Ikard, CEO, and Dave Baker, President, announced their retirement. Jim Reuter and Ron Tilton took over the CEO and President positions respectively and Emily Robinson succeeded Reuter's previous position as Chief Operating Officer. FirstBank is a member of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, often styled as Member FDIC and Equal Housing Lender.
Overview
Founded by George and Everett Williams in partnership with Ira C. Rothgerber Jr. and William P. Johnson in 1963, FirstBank has expanded beyond a contender in the Denver Metro Area to one of the largest privately held banks in the country. As of February 2019, FirstBank had assets totaling $18.5B and more than $16.5B in deposits. In 2010 FirstBank partnered with Community First Foundation to launch Colorado Gives Day - a 24-hour online drive to raise funds for Colorado non-profits. This was expanded beyond Colorado, in 2013, with the implementation of Arizona Gives Day - a collaboration between Alliance of Arizona Nonprofits and Arizona Grantmakers Forum.
History
On February 1, 1962, Everett and George Williams of Boulder met with Ira C. Rothgerber Jr. and William P. Johnson of the Rothgerber, Appel and Powers law firm to discuss a possible bank charter application. Ira suggested that they locate the proposed bank in the then developing 40-acre Westland Shopping Center in Lakewood. Everett, Ira and Bill Johnson met with Paul Ross, Chief National Bank Examiner, in Kansas City on March 12, 1962. The charter application for First Westland National Bank was filed on March 23, 1962. A number of bankers were interviewed and considered for the president position before Roger Reisher, Vice President of the Roeland ParkState bank in Kansas City, was ultimately chosen. FirstBank opened its doors to the public on February 28, 1963, under the name of Westland National Bank.
