Downtown Winston-Salem bank branch set to have new owner

A downtown Winston-Salem bank branch is set to change owner with Encore Bank exiting after just more than three years and American Bancorp Inc. debuting in the Triad.

Encore Bank, a privately held boutique bank based in Little Rock, Ark., opened in May 2023 a full-service branch on the second floor of the Bailey South building at 450 N. Patterson Ave.

Encore said in a news release it plans to sell its Winston-Salem and Greenville, S.C., branch to American Bancorp of Macon, Ga., which operates as American Pride Bank.

American Bancorp is a $1.2 billion community bank.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed. The sale of the branches requires regulatory approval. The sale involves the branches' real estate. American had agreed to retain the Encore employees.

However, Encore said that "client accounts are not included as part of the agreement" and that it will continue serving these markets through its bankers based in Charlotte and Charleston, S.C.

"Encore Bank has communicated with its clients that existing deposit accounts, loans and other banking relationships with Encore Bank will remain in place. No further client action is required."

Encore had just more than $3 million in deposits at the Winston-Salem branch as of June 30, according to the latest Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. annual report.

That ranks Encore 13th out of the 20 banks serving Forsyth County at that time.

"In today's environment, smaller banks must seize opportunities to support each other," said Dominik Mjartan, president and chief executive of American Pride.

"We are grateful to Encore Bank for the opportunity to acquire these two locations, allowing us to enter ideal markets to prudently deploy our growth capital."

Separately, American Pride announced that Michael Sharpton has joined its executive management team as chief growth and revenue officer.

Sharpton is joined by a team of 18 banking professionals with the goal of establishing and growing the bank's presence in Winston-Salem, Greenville and Charlotte.

"Michael exemplifies the type of bank we want to be - highly responsive, customer-centric and focused on building lasting relationships with clients, communities, and teammates," Mjartan said.

"Michael and our new colleagues have our full confidence, and we are eager to see this expansion help us fuel the success of more entrepreneurs and small businesses across our footprint."

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