Atlantic Union Bank CEO John Astbury on why North Carolina is the nation’s hottest banking market — and what his bank’s $9M Raleigh Convention Center naming rights deal signals about its Triangle ambitions.

Atlantic Union Bank, the largest regional bank headquartered in Virginia at nearly $38 billion in assets, is making a major play for North Carolina. In this episode, host Lauren Onasorge sits down with CEO John Astbury — a self-described “North Carolina banker at heart” who began his career at the old Wachovia in Winston-Salem — to discuss the bank’s aggressive expansion across the Triangle and Wilmington, including seven new branches in the Raleigh area.

They dig into why so many out-of-state banks are flooding into North Carolina right now, why physical branches still matter in an increasingly digital world, how AI is reshaping everything from customer experience to cybersecurity, and the competitive threat from credit unions. John also shares his outlook on inflation, interest rates, and what’s keeping bankers up at night in 2026.

Mentioned in this episode:

Elon University

https://www.elon.edu/