Innovation doesn’t always come in the form of small tech startups dotting the halls of sleek business incubators. Sometimes, innovation comes in the form of a 60+-year-old bank with 72 offices nationwide and $48.7 billion in assets.

Joe Campolo, Managing Partner of Campolo, Middleton & McCormick, recently had the opportunity to welcome West Coast-based City National Bank to Long Island. He caught up this month with Davi Tserpelis, a longtime friend of the firm and a veteran Long Island banker who recently made the move CNB to grow its Long Island presence. Tserpelis, Senior Vice President – Regional Business Banking Manager, Personal & Business Banking, is focused on building a team of CNB ambassadors as priority number one.

“The culture at CNB is to put people first,” Tserpelis explained, “and not every banker is the right fit. We look for people who want to take the time to get to know clients and get creative finding solutions for their needs. The culture is really unique – the focus is on cultivating true, personal relationships.  The CNB PRIDE statement stands for our people, relationships, integrity, dedication, and entrepreneurs and we are dedicated to our PRIDE culture.” And once on board, new team members can expect great support and tools on how to service clients the CNB way, adding client value to the many years of experience they have under their belt.

Indeed, CNB is all about customized solutions and taking a holistic approach to preserving and building a client’s wealth. Advising takes the place of product-pushing; CNB’s focus is on providing one-stop concierge services to meet all the financial and banking needs of their clients. Senior Business Banking Relationship Manager Dan Kim, who recently joined the Long Island team, said that CNB offers customized solutions he’s never seen in his 15 years in business banking.

CNB – which merged with Royal Bank of Canada in 2015 – was founded in 1954 in Los Angeles by entrepreneurs, for entrepreneurs. In the 1960s, CNB developed a reputation as a “bank to the stars,” and continued to grow in the decades since. Well known on the West Coast, the bank entered the New York City market 15 years ago, and currently has three branches and their wealth management arm there. Serving New Yorkers for the past decade and a half, CNB recognized that expanding to Long Island was a natural fit, where the financially-savvy clients the bank specializes in – sophisticated entrepreneurs, entertainment industry executives, high-net-worth individuals, and other professionals who value the “white glove touch” – abound.

CNB is investing heavily in talent to support the Long Island market, and is attracting the attention of seasoned bankers like Tserpelis who, like the bank itself, are selective about whom they do business with. “We’re looking for clients who expect and value the service experience that we offer,” Tserpelis said.

On Long Island and in Queens, the CNB team is focused on wholesalers, importers and exporters, and entrepreneurs. Business and personal banking is one unit at CNB, underscoring the bank’s commitment to serve as a one-stop solution that’s invested in its clients’ success. Their ladder logo and slogan, The way up™, are emblematic of the entrepreneurial spirit that thrives on Long Island, and we wish them all the best as they embark on their latest expansion!

Busy growing City National Bank’s presence on Long Island, team members Dan Kim and Davi Tserpelis welcomed CMM Managing Partner Joe Campolo to their office.

Davi Tserpelis, Senior Vice President – Regional Business Banking Manager, Personal & Business Banking at City National Bank, poses with her colleague Dan Kim at CNB’s New York City headquarters on Park Avenue.