TowneBank is a leading banking law firm in the Triangle, with over 100 clients. Sara Boshart is the senior vice president/private banker at TowneBank. She has more than 35 years’ experience in working with attorneys.
TowneBank is based in Portsmouth, Virginia and has two offices in the Triangle. Additional offices are currently being built in North Raleigh, Cary, and Cary. TowneBank has 49 branches in North Carolina, Virginia and the Triangle with assets totaling $16.73 billion. Boshart spoke to me about the banking needs of law firms and lawyers.
SB Like many of us, lawyers prefer to avoid surprises and know what they are up against. I worked in the title industry for 30 years before joining the bank. My entire career has been spent working with attorneys. The relationships I’ve developed over the years have allowed me to understand attorneys, their thinking and what they value. This allows me to better serve them from a bank perspective.
With all the growth happening in the Triangle, banking is a fluid industry. Local banks and banks from out of state are acquiring and opening new branches in the Triangle. The banker that an attorney has worked with in their bank tomorrow may no longer be there, and the replacement may have little knowledge of banking law firms. They may also not be familiar with the complex nature of IOLTA accounts.
I use my experience with law firms of all kinds to advocate for and educate our legal partners within the bank, which results in improvements to our program. My voice is respected by our leaders as the financial professional in charge of managing banking relationships with law firms. I help them understand the needs and wants of lawyers.
BF :Lawyers did not go to law school to be bankers, but to become lawyers. What can you do to make sure they aren’t always worried about their bank accounts?
SB The personal attention we provide and the experience that we have is what I value most, besides the knowledge of the legal sector. We are proactive and present. My clients can reach me at any time using my mobile number. We are also empowered to make local decisions, I would add.
We have daily interactions and conversations with many of our attorneys. We are unique in what we do. I am most proud that we are all very responsive and attentive to our members.
I would prefer to have a more consultative relationship with my members. It is important to me, and can extend to individual partners if they wish to bring in their own banking relationships. This is a white glove treatment. We provide a wide range of services including insurance, benefit management*, wealth management**, and merchant services. We are always there for our members in times of crisis. We all know that issues will come up, but it’s how we handle them that matters most.
BF :Lawyers are popular targets of cybercriminals who commit frauds and other financial crimes. When real estate is being transacted, large sums of money are often wired. There may also be a substantial amount of money in a trust fund.
SB We offer a number of treasury products to protect funds in law firms, including ACH blocks, Positive Pay, and other treasury solutions. I recommend that you use a standalone computer, not connected to any other computers, to access your bank account and send wires. You should also set appropriate wire and ACH limit to minimize exposure.
My team and I have thwarted many fraud attempts over the years. We can identify red flags due to our previous experience in fraud situations and alert our fraud team and the law firm.
A solo attorney emailed me to say he needed to add another signer to his business account. The request was out of character for him, so I checked the signature on the email and found that one digit had been altered. I called the correct number to confirm that he hadn’t sent the email. We immediately locked his accounts. The fraudster attempted to gain online access to the account and obtain a wire token in order to transfer funds.
One of my team members worked with a company that didn’t send wires regularly. The firm gave us instructions but returned the original wire. The client provided them with a new set of wire instructions. We were suspicious, so we stopped the wire transfer. The email of their client had been hacked and the wiring instructions fraudulent.
What is the most frequent question that lawyers ask when they are considering transferring their accounts to you?
SB The question I am asked the most about the transition is probably the one that concerns me the most. Although moving your banking relationship is a big step, I can assure you that we’ve done it many times before. We can move their accounts gradually to a new firm if necessary. We let them set the schedule; I only make suggestions.
They may also ask about our treasury and Legal Partner Program. In general, I will request an up-to-date statement to work with the treasury department on preparing an analysis. So we can fully understand their daily transactions and needs. In terms of cost and products, we can often offer better options than what their current bank offers. I go through the treasury services and products that are secure, efficient and offer optimal cash management. This includes wires, account transfer, ACH payments and fraud control. The system is very customizable, because everyone’s needs are different.
BF A client may need to contact their bank if there is a problem at the close of a deal such as commercial real estate. What can you do to ensure that your client does not have to waste time trying to locate someone who can help?
SB I have worked in the title business and I know the importance of balancing the pressure to close with the need to protect against fraud. My team and I can be reached by phone or text if help is required. Due to its size, TowneBank is a member-centered company where we can directly contact the right person or department for the problem. A member doesn’t have to wait on hold or call a general number.
BF : What types of community support does the bank engage in?
SB Many of our programs target food insecurity, and especially children. We gather volunteers twice a year in our training rooms for projects that benefit programs like Note in the Pocket and Communities in Schools. Every year we have a “Day of Giving”. This year, we had a team that built a Habitat for Humanity home. We also have a Christmas toy drive for Toys for Tots and Me Fine.
Since our foundation in 1999, we have donated more than $102 millions to charity. Donations and contributions across the bank totaled $12.7 million in 2022. Bob Aston wanted to accomplish this when he started the bank. Our core principle is to enrich the lives of others.
The article TowneBank Sara Boshart, a lawyer’s banker first appeared on Attorney At Law Magazine.