Our goal is to empower people and lift up our local communities.
A Legacy of Service and Success
United Bank is committed to the communities it serves. That's nothing new. It's been our way of doing business since we opened in 1904.
Back then, we were a small operation. Our assets totaled less than $45,000. By the end of the 1970s, that number had increased a thousand times, to over $45 million. Since then, our assets have grown to $1.3 billion.
In the beginning, we served a region that was largely rural. Farm families needed a safe place to keep their savings and access to affordable loans that would help them grow their crops, raise their livestock and continue their way of life.
Today, farm families are still the backbone of many of our communities. But so are small businesses. And professional offices. And nonprofit organizations that do great work. And, of course, thousands of friendly people who we're happy to call our neighbors.
Our aim is to serve them all. To provide them with a full range of financial services. To offer affordable loans so they can purchase homes and cars and farmland and business equipment. To make lives easier with 21st century conveniences like Online Banking and a mobile app. To go the extra mile to provide support for community events, scholarships for deserving students, and even an incubator for start-up businesses.
In the beginning, we had one location. We were the Bank of Atmore, Alabama. After expanding the main office a few times and adding several branches, in 1982 we created a holding company, United Bancorporation of Alabama Inc. That fueled an expansion that now finds us with more than 20 locations - from Foley and Frisco City in Alabama to Jay and Pace in Florida.
In fact, our success has caught the eye of organizations that rate financial institutions, and they've named us one of America's strongest banks.
Yes, some things have changed since 1904. But some things have not. We're still totally committed to the communities we serve in South Alabama and Northwest Florida.
Our past, present and future prosperity is founded upon this singular mission.
CDFI Designation
Our community development initiatives are aimed at improving the social and economic conditions of the underserved people and distressed communities within our service area. In order to be certified as a Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI), a financial institution must:
- Have a primary mission of promoting community development
- Be an entity that provides financial products and services
- Serve one or more defined low-income target markets
- Provide development services in conjunction with its financing activities
- Maintain accountability to the community it serves
- Be a legal non-governmental entity
United Bancorporation of Alabama, Inc.'s CDFI Certification was granted on August 27, 2010.
What Does it Mean to be CDFI?
Community Development Financial Institutions
- Are mission-driven financial institutions that are dedicated to providing financial services to meet the needs of economically disadvantaged individuals within underserved communities
- Invest in local communities and the residents who live there by providing critically needed financing to:
- Develop commercial and residential real estate
- Provide affordable homeowner financing
- Provide capital and operating funds for businesses which in turn creates jobs
- Develop commercial and residential real estate
- Provide affordable financial services as an alternative to payday lenders and other predatory loan products
- Provide developmental services in conjunction with the financial products it provides to help borrowers use credit effectively, such as:
- Business planning
- Credit counseling
- Financial education
- Business planning
United Bank is a full-service financial institution with branches in Alabama and Florida.