The 2025 Virginia Black Business Leaders Awards: The Achievers
Black business leaders have played a pivotal role in shaping modern Virginia’s economic and cultural landscapes and driving progress across industries and communities. From the entrepreneurial spirit of pioneers who built thriving enterprises during times of immense adversity amid segregation and civil rights battles to today’s leaders breaking boardroom barriers, their stories are a t[...]
2025 Virginia Black Business Leaders Awards: Mark Johnson
Johnson’s perhaps best known as a community leader in Hampton Roads. In 2011, he started work with SunTrust, after 17 years with the United Way, and in 2019, SunTrust and BB&T merged, creating Truist. In 2023, he was promoted to his current post, helping fund nonprofit community organizations. In 2022, he was honored at the […]
Finance | Insurance 2023: EVELYN LEE
Lee has worked in banking for more than 23 years, and she couldn’t be happier to have found her place overseeing the Greater Washington, D.C., region at Truist. “I wanted to be financially independent, and I wanted variety,” she says. “Every day is different, and I work with people I admire and learn from.” A […]
Finance | Insurance 2023: THOMAS RANSON
Growing up in Urbanna, Ransom worked with his hands, doing house-roofing jobs and prepping cars to be painted. He moved into the less physically taxing field of banking when BB&T recruited him out of Hampden-Sydney College, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in economics. He’s worked at the bank, which became Truist following its 2019 […]
Truist grants $500k to aid Richmond Community Wealth Building office
Truist Foundation announced it has made a $500,000 grant that will ultimately help Richmond‘s Office of Community Wealth Building provide further financial, education and employment coaching to city families, the philanthropic arm of Truist Financial Corp. announced in a press conference Friday. “At Truist, our purpose is to inspire and build better lives and communities, and […]
Truist invests $7M in Virginia Community Capital
Virginia Community Capital received a $7 million investment from Truist Financial Corp. to support the organization’s Economic Equity Fund, a loan fund to expand access to capital and technical assistance for women- and minority-owned small businesses. VCC’s equity fund was launched in 2021 in response to the disproportionate impact of the pandemic on women- and […]
Truist donates $1M to U.Va. in memory of S. Buford Scott
Truist Wealth has made a $1 million gift to the Walter N. Ridley Scholarship Program and the University of Virginia Alumni Association in honor of the late Richmond business and philanthropic leader Sidney Buford Scott and the brokerage firm founded by his family, Scott & Stringfellow. The gift establishes a fully endowed Buford Scott Ridley […]
Truist commits $2M to small businesses hurt by pandemic
Truist Financial Corp. is donating $2 million to community development financial institutions to support grants to small businesses impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic in states served by the bank. “Small businesses are significantly affected by the steps the nation is taking to combat COVID-19, and it’s important we support them,” said Truist Chief Community Reinvestment […[...]
Va. banks stay open for business, but close lobbies
Virginia banks are open for business during the coronavirus crisis, but many are practicing social distancing by closing their lobbies to the public and only allowing in-person visits by appointment. “Providing safe and reliable service is a key priority for every one of our banks, especially in challenging times,” Virginia Bankers Association (VBA) Chairman Jeff […]
Truist’s new branding reflects BB&T and SunTrust merger
Truist Financial Corp. has unveiled a new logo and other branding following the completion of the December 2019 merger of Branch Banking and Trust Co. (BB&T) and SunTrust Banks Inc. “Our visual brand identity speaks to the importance of human touch and dynamic technology in delivering trusted solutions to our clients,” Dontá Wilson, chief digital […]
Truist names three Virginia regional bank presidents
Truist Financial Corp., the Charlotte, North Carolina-based mega bank created in December following the merger of BB&T and SunTrust, announced Tuesday it has named 24 regional presidents, three of whom will oversee the Virginia market. “Our ability to leverage our unique community model with its decentralized, regional structure combined with deep industry and banking expertise […]