Local banks

To the editor:

Your most recent editorial is titled “Awash in Financial Drought.” You stated that many local financial institutions are nothing more than “minor branches of mega-corporations.” This is not true in the case of The Tampa State Bank.

The Tampa State Bank has funds available for investment into both new and experienced businesses. One of our largest lending lines is home mortgage loans for purchase and remodeling and expansion.

Funds are available in our communities from local institutions and other sources that can be utilized by those wanting to develop or expand businesses.

Your editorial makes Marion County sound like a barren dessert devoid of investment and contribution. That is just not true.

Christopher G. Costello
President, The Tampa State Bank

Editor’s note: The editorial stated that one of several reasons for declining investment in county businesses was a trend that has seen “more and more of our financial institutions become minor branches of mega-corporations located outside our community.” Tampa State is a rare exception to that trend.