Amelis Long: Welcome back to the Vault, stories that matter by FNBO. I'm Amelis Long, and I am your host today. I'm so excited to be here with all of you because we're celebrating a birthday, right, David?

David Cota: You bet.

Amelis Long: Not my birthday.

David Cota: Not my birthday.

Amelis Long: Not our birthday, but FNBO's birthday, 168 years. And we're going to dive into some history. The vault is all about stories that matter to us as employees, to the bank, to our community. And so what better place to really start and dive in than our history?

David Cota: Absolutely.

Amelis Long: So, before we get going, David, welcome to the podcast. I'm so glad you're here.

David Cota: Thank you. Thanks for having me. This is great. What a great format, great update to our podcast. I'm super excited to be here.

Amelis Long: Yeah, I'm excited to have you too.

David Cota: Yeah, Thanks.

Amelis Long: For before we dive into FNBO's history, tell us a little bit about your history. How long have you been with the bank and what do you do here?

David Cota: Yeah, so I lead the banking division for FNBO, which includes everything from our retail branches and small business, through commercial banking, wealth management, payments, really everything that you would consider within a traditional regional bank is what I'm accountable for along with our leadership team.

I originally am from Omaha, so I grew up here. My wife, Stephanie and I are high school sweethearts. We've got three great kids. We're almost empty nesters. Our youngest is a senior in high school. Our second oldest is a junior in college, and then our oldest actually is just wrapping up her second year of law school.

So, yeah, so I've been with the company for 26 years and have had a variety of different roles over that 26 years and have seen the company change and evolve. And while my 26 years is really just a small part of 168 years that we just celebrated, you can see a lot of the elements of our history, even in that short period of time.

So, I'm glad to be here. It'll be fun to talk about with you and I'm excited to share some stories.

Amelis Long: Yeah, absolutely. I, you know, I think, what you said about just a sliver of our history is so true for FNBO. I think that's kind of one of our inside jokes, really, is like, well, I've only been here 10 years because we do have such an amazing legacy in history.

So, let's talk a little bit about let's go way back when, time travel.

168 years ago. Omaha's just a small little settlement, really. Tell us about how FNBO got started.

David Cota: Yeah, um, you do have to go back and it's really pretty amazing if you think about 168 years ago. When I catch myself thinking about our history, it is almost hard to put yourself into that period of time.

The great thing is we've captured a lot of the stories of that time. So, when I think of Omaha in 1857, it really was an early settlement town. Five to 600 people, kind of a dusty, uh, city sitting on the banks of the Missouri River. And, nationally in that moment of time, banking was in a really unique place. There was a lot of bank type activities that were viewed as opportunistic. Individuals would come in and out of a community and really used it as a money making-scheme, not really intended to help the community or drive the community forward.

And all of that changed when the National Banking Act was passed in 1863. And that's when we actually became a National Bank.

But let me rewind back to 1857. So, Omaha is just a couple years into being a city, probably two to 500 people in Omaha, two brothers, Herman and Augustus Kountze. They're young. I think Augustus was 30 and Herman was 24 years old. And they had this vision of starting a bank. And so they began the process of building out a banking operation, which, for them at the time, in 1857, amounted to gold dust, trading, and buffalo hide trading.

A little bit different than banking as we know it today. But it started as the Kountze Brothers Bank in 1857 and it was December 10th, 1857. So that's a date now December 10th that we celebrate every year, just as we did a few days ago with our employees.

Amelis Long: Yeah.

David Cota: So that is the founding of the First National Bank, December 10th, 1857. Um, as I said, in 1863, the National Banking Act passed, which allowed banks to, um, begin to operate on a broader scale, and under a set of national banking rules that were beginning to organize themselves at the time. And the Kountze brothers spent quite a bit of time, as the story goes, trying to decide if they remained a local state bank, at the time it was governed under the Territory Legislature, because Nebraska wasn't even yet a state, or if they pursued their national banking charter.

Ultimately, they determined to pursue a National Banking Charter. And so we became the 209th bank. chartered in the U.S. in August of 1863. And it's at that point that we became known as the First National Bank of Omaha.

Amelis Long: Yeah, and just for a little perspective, for our audience. So, say I was going to start a bank today. What number charter would I be? Roundabouts?

David Cota: We've had over 20,000 banks chartered in the US. And so to be the 209th bank. Yeah, it -

Amelis Long: Really speaks to the longevity -

David Cota: It really drives home the point. Yeah, it really does.

Amelis Long: That's awesome. So, uh, fast forward, we're Bank 209. We become First National Bank of Omaha, and kind of what are the next major milestones for this organization that still stands today?

David Cota: Yeah - I mean, the early days of the bank, and throughout the early, kind of 1850s,1860s, banking, as I mentioned, was really just solidifying itself at a national level. And so, by no means was it instant success or instant growth, there was a lot that the Kountze brothers had to do to just simply allow the bank to endure.

There's a lot of stories of, um, in the early days, the Kountze Brothers and other employees sleeping in the one building - bank building - guarding the vault, um, ensuring that the money that was deposited into the bank was safe, a lot of gold dust coming back from Colorado and California was also held in deposit at the bank.

So, the early milestones, quite honestly, were simply the ability for the bank to continue to persist. The National Bank Charter in 1863 was a big milestone. That was the same time that Omaha was awarded the Eastern Terminus of the Union Pacific Railroad. And from that point, the city really began to grow. And that's where you started to see Herman Kountze who took over as President in around 1874, 1875, where the bank really started to become a more commercial enterprise.

The bank, as we did today, was instrumental in helping grow out the city of Omaha, supported commerce and trade in the region, became a trusted and known name for depositors. For those in the community to have a trusted place that they could go and place their funds. And know that as the economy ebbed and flowed at that time in pretty meaningful ways, that the Kountze Brothers Bank, that became the First National Bank, was an organization and a company that they could trust.

And, you know, that element of trust is a thread that runs throughout our history. And so those were the early milestones that I know are important to share.

Amelis Long: Yeah. I know, we're both fans of history, so we probably could dive into all these different stories and go real deep into some of our favorite ones like sleeping at the bank, protecting the money overnight.

Um, but one of the key things, I think, that is so important, we're thinking about history and celebrating birthdays, it's, we honor the past. We talk about the present. We also talk about the future. And the bank has had so many milestones where we've had these pivots of innovation and change. And so let's jump into the 1900s. We started to have some really unique things happen in the bank. Oh, can you speak to some of those really innovative moments that really started to kind of shape the next, the next kind of major milestones?

David Cota: Yeah, innovation and change has also been a constant thread throughout the company's history. In the early 1900s we were one of the first banks to organize and have a women's department. We were very thoughtful around, ensuring that women that were operating within the community, running businesses, and otherwise accountable for running their family finances had a place where they could go and they could trust that the bank was going to have their best interests in mind.

In the 1950s, John Lauritzen, who's the grandfather of our current chairman Clark Lauritzen, pushed First National Bank of Omaha forward as one of the first banks to issue a credit card. We were on the front end of that industry that today has become just a ubiquitous way that people pay for really everything. We were one of the early members of the network that became the Visa network. We were early in Bruce Lauritzen days in merchant processing. We grew through acquisition, then throughout the 1980s and 1990s.

And all of that time after time, really allowed the company to continue to remain fresh and reinvent itself. Clark talks a lot about the cycle of business and the cycle of companies. And companies, most of them, move through periods of time where you're first starting out, you're trying to ensure that you can put your roots down, you can establish yourself as a business. And once that happens, most companies or most businesses run through a time of pretty rapid growth. And then that rapid growth creates success, which at times can turn into a little bit of complacency, and then bureaucracy, and then over years, you start to see companies fade.

One element of the family and a belief that they've had is that every generation as they come in to lead the company, not only has the right, but almost has the responsibility to reinvent the company. And so while our history covers 168 years, in many ways, if you break it down and you look at the six generations of leadership, you look at the history of the country, you look at what was going on in Omaha, you can see those cycles, where the company grows and hits success, and maybe the corner starts to turn, performance isn't quite what it was or innovation isn't as present.

And it's almost uncanny. Another family leader comes in and steps in and finds their moment to reinvent the company. So, a lot of the milestones and a lot of the change over the years within the company also is a big testament to a belief that the family has, which is it's okay to constantly reinvent yourself.

Amelis Long: Yeah. Yeah, absolutely. I think for our audience, just to, you know, really bring that message home is that for 168 years, this has been a family-run business. Right? And, so when we talk about these generations and these six generations today, now led by Clark Lauritzen, we've all had these moments. And, so are several folks at the bank, they've had the opportunity to work for different presidents, different members of the family, and they've seen those changes in evolutions over time.

David Cota: Yeah. It really is pretty incredible. Family-owned businesses are often lucky if they're able to endure three generations of leadership. That's kind of the mark where, um, if a transition is going to take place, it typically will take place within the first three generations.

For our company to be on the sixth generation of leadership, and we had the seventh generation of the family in the bank this year. is really quite remarkable, and it doesn't just happen by chance. Uh, there's a very intentional way in which, uh, ownership and leadership of the family thinks about succession and talks about how we can endure for the next 168 years, because it really is a belief of the family that they want to run a company that they can own and run in perpetuity. And so setting up for the future successes always on their minds.

Amelis Long: Yeah. So, when it comes to a birthday, right? So it's a, adds a family experience. So, we just we just celebrated as a bunch of coworkers here in our in our tower. Um, and can we think about those moments of celebration? Birthdays are about your legacy, right? And so we think we've had these generations and these moments of innovation. Talk to us about the 168th year and what that legacy means today as Omaha is and all our communities that we serve across the United States. What does that look like?

David Cota: First and foremost, I think it's great that we've started a tradition of celebrating the birthday every year. Clark has put a stamp on that as a moment every year, December 10th, as employees, we get together at all of our corporate locations. We have cake, all of the... all of the celebration.

Amelis Long: Who doesn't love cakes, right?

David Cota: Who doesn't love cake, right? Let's have some cake and celebrate because every year should be celebrated. And even though it's a part of a broad and vast history, as you've said, the progress that the company continues to make year over year and the work that employees do every single year really matters, and it's worth celebrating. And, so I love the fact that we've started celebrating birthdays every year.

When I think of the 168th year, this year is one that as well deserves a ton of celebration. Performance across the company has been exceptional. We've seen leaders transition. Kim Weiss has taken the leadership role within our credit card partnership business, which is a business that is doing tremendous things and has had great performances this year.

We had the acquisition of the Country Club Bank in Kansas City, the largest acquisition that our company has ever done, truly transformative for us down in the Kansas City market, exceptional people, a great client and customer base, and it really gives us an ability to grow in Kansas City, in a way that we haven't been able to up to this point. We had a great operation in Kansas City, and adding Country Club to it is just taking us to a whole other level.

So, the business is performing well, the company is growing. We've continued to make smart strategic acquisitions. And so 168th year is definitely worth celebrating. That's for sure.

Amelis Long: Yeah. I agree. It was a great celebration. I should have brought my party hat and really emphasized it.

David Cota: We could have had a kazoo.

Amelis Long: We could have - next year for 169. We'll plan on that. Um, let's talk a little bit about, you know, we've gotten this history. What's next? So, I know, like you said, this is very planful and very intentional when we think about what we're doing today and what that means for our future.

David Cota: Yeah.

Amelis Long: So what's coming up for FNBO next?

David Cota: You bet. There's a lot of change happening within the industry, of course, and that has our focus and attention. There's a tremendous amount of curiosity with AI, artificial intelligence. So, we are doing a lot of work within the company, exploring ways that that can help make us better. And we will be smart as we are with all things. We will ensure that as we develop solutions that they do truly make our people better, make our interactions with our customers better, and ensure that the value that we deliver out to the community is better.

So there's always technology, there's digital innovation that's coming. Payment methodologies continue to evolve, we'll be implementing new solutions into our mobile app and our web experience next year, which will be exciting, and I know our customer base will appreciate seeing a refresh in that environment.

We also do a tremendous amount of work, of course, in the community, and so we will continue to push that part of our mission and part of our work forward. Uh, get close to community partnerships that matter. We focus on affordable housing, of course, we focus on financial education, economic development, that's a big part of our work.

We're growing customer relationships next year. We're fortunate to operate across - our banking franchise operates across the nine-state footprint. We've got locations in nine states now with Missouri being the ninth added this year with the acquisition of Country Club Bank. And I see nice growth in the middle part of the country, and we're fortunate to be a part of, as the community grows, our bank and our team, gets an opportunity to grow along with the families in the businesses in those communities.

And then, we're, we try to be good stewards of um, community resources and Brenda Dooley and Tim Malik and our team spend a lot of time thinking about sustainability and the way that we can be a responsible community partner and corporate partner. We've made tremendous strides in that regard. I'm really proud of the work we've done there.

And then every day we're trying to be a better and better employer in place for people to work. We spend a lot of time, as you know, I'm always, you and I see each other a lot through the course of any given month or year, and we really want to have a company that people enjoy working for. And so creating a sense of belonging, creating a sense of opportunity, and really pushing the company to be as good as it can be for those that we're fortunate to work with every day is a big part of our focus.

All of that will be on the horizon and continue to take our time and attention as we move into the 169th year.

Amelis Long: Yeah. I love that. I love just that intentionality of honoring our legacy, honoring our history, but never shying away from what's coming and really being excited about it, truly.

David Cota: This year, we spent time talking about our culture. We described it in our compass is what we call it internally, as you know. And one element of that is a standard that we set for ourselves to constantly raise the bar.

And, it's an interesting aspect to call out in a company culture. And part of the reason why I think about it in relationship to a birthday is 168 years, again, doesn't just happen. Every year, we have to work hard to raise the standard on ourselves, to try to improve, to be a better employer, to be a better banker, to be a better partner into the community, to add more value to our customers.

Listen, the community expects more of us is we are fortunate to have success year upon year. The community's expectation of us goes up. And so we have to match that by raising the standard on ourselves. And that's if you need to capture the essence of what it is that drives us every day and what will drive us to 169, 170, and hopefully many, many years beyond that, I think you can capture it in what we're communicating in our compass.

Amelis Long: Yeah. And lucky for us for us.

David Cota: It's a great place to be, 26 years, and, you know, a lot of memories, a lot of change over that time. I remember I started in 1999 with the bank. It was September of 99. I was moving back to Omaha. Omaha was home for me. And I was moving back to Omaha from Dallas, where I'd been for college, and I worked for a bank down there for a few years. And it was so refreshing to go from a large kind of global multinational bank, to a bank that had an equal amount of capability, an equal amount of talent, and yet had this feel through private ownership and through the involvement of the family that just matched what matters to me.

And so it's been a great place to be for 26 years. Again, I recognize it's a small portion of 168-year history, but I know you agree it's a pretty special place to work every day.

Amelis Long: Absolutely.

David Cota: Yeah.

Amelis Long: I'm catching up to you. I just got ten. But you know what? I'm working on - I'm working on it.

David Cota: Yeah - ten becomes 20 and that becomes 26 and next thing you know…

Amelis Long: Before you know it…

Amelis Long: Yeah, yeah. That's what's... Yeah, truly what was wonderful about working here.

David Cota: It is.

Amelis Long: Yeah, yeah. That legacy, that history, and that excitement about what's next.

David Cota: Absolutely.

Amelis Long: Well, David, thank you so much for joining me on the vault today.

David Cota: It was a pleasure.

Amelis Long: Yeah, we unlocked some stories. I know we have a lot more that we could cover. And I hear that you and I are going to trade spaces here. You'll be hosting coming up soon. Is that right?

David Cota: There is a possibility that I might sit in your chair.

Amelis Long: I think it might be more than a possibility.

David Cota: I've got big shoes to fill, Amelis.

Amelis Long: Well, I'll give you some tips offline for what we'll figure that out. But thank you so much for being our guest today.

David Cota: You bet.

Amelis Long: Happy Birthday to FNBO.

David Cota: Happy Birthday, FNBO.

Amelis Long: Yep, we're so excited to continue this legacy with our audience, with our customers, our employees. Thank you all for being here for unlocking stories that matter with FNBO.

If you're interested in more history, I have a special teaser for you, we do have our 2nd edition of our history book that will be coming out later this year. We'll be excited to share that with all of you coming up soon.

Until then, like and subscribe. We'll see you next time on The Vault. Thank you so much, everyone.