Florida Bank Introduces New Name: DLP Bank

Former Community State Bank Sees Solid Growth and Prosperity Following Capital Infusion by Investors Including Don Wenner, CEO of DLP Capital

ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Bank holding company DLP Bancshares announced that its north Florida commercial bank, Community State Bank, will be renamed DLP Bank on November 13, 2023. DLP Bank, which has $250 million in assets, is headquartered in Starke, Florida, near to Jacksonville. The bank is owned by a consortium of private investors including Don Wenner, CEO of the real estate investment and financial services firm DLP Capital.

“Since our investment, DLP Bank has experienced solid, measured growth,” said Don Wenner, Founder and CEO of DLP Capital and the lead investor in DLP Bancshares. “We have an extremely talented and experienced board of directors that is helping to guide the bank toward a new era of service and profitability. Their experience, plus DLP Bancshares’ capital infusion, allows for new technologies, products, and services. We look forward to continued growth, especially in loan origination as we service area homeowners and commercial businesses.”

DLP Bancshares acquired the Florida bank in late 2022 and made significant capital contributions that have fueled its growth. This capital has allowed the bank to increase lending limits, support balance sheet objectives, and enhanced the range of customer services and technologies. The newly renamed DLP Bank expects to expand its geographic reach to include commercial clients throughout the Southeast while remaining an important resource to local communities, having been founded in Florida in 1957.

DLP Bank’s vision includes a focus on “Dream, Live, Prosper,” and the bank’s vibrant rebrand reflects that vision—a commitment to delivering a banking experience that helps customers dream bigger, live better, and prosper more. As part of the bank’s renaming, DLP Bank introduced a new logo that artistically transforms the DLP letters into a percentage sign, reflecting the “percenting up” of services, customers, and profits.

Added Wenner, “DLP Bank is a bank for the future, drawing upon its rich history serving Florida—and now going far beyond to be best. We’re percenting up.”

DLP Bancshares board members include: Don Wenner, CEO of DLP Capital; Al Hatfield, who was formerly an M&A executive with General Mills, served in the Marine Corps, and is chair of a bank holding company in Minnesota; and Bob Peterson, Chief Financial Officer of DLP Capital. The DLP Bank board includes: Thomas J. Fontaine President and CEO of DLP Bank; Lisa Mead, a former executive of AmSouth Bank (later Regions Financial); Frank Rodriguez, chairman of debt and equity investment firm Miramar Group and former board member of the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce; attorney Eric Smith, a former member of the Florida House of Representatives; Joe Marsocci, Chief Credit and Risk Officer of DLP Bank; and the aforementioned Al Hatfield and Bob Peterson

DLP Bank offers a full spectrum of banking services, including consumer and business loans, residential and commercial real estate mortgages, depository products, and other services. The bank is expected to benefit in the future from DLP Bancshares’ affiliation with DLP Capital, which has a base of 2,250+ investors nationwide and 200+ real estate operator relationships that have the potential to access DLP Bank services.

About DLP Bank

DLP Bank (formerly Community State Bank), an FDIC-insured commercial bank, offers a full range of commercial and consumer banking products. The bank was founded in the city of Starke, Florida, and was purchased by DLP Bancshares in 2022.

About DLP Bancshares

DLP Bancshares Inc. is a bank holding company headquartered in St. Augustine, Florida and includes among its lead investors Don Wenner, CEO of DLP Capital, a real estate investment and financial services firm. DLP Bancshares’ holdings include DLP Bank, an FDIC-insured commercial bank with $250 million in assets. DLP Bank, which was purchased by DLP Bancshares in 2022, offers a full range of commercial and consumer banking products. The bank’s main branch is in the city of Starke, Florida.