A banker walks into a bar...

Bankers can have fun. Really.

Shaun Merriman, president and CEO of Sarasota-based Gateway Bank of Southwest Florida, is out to prove it. The bank, with assistance from its marketing firm, Be Creative, recently produced its first two video testimonials. The people giving the testimony: Gateway clients Les and Pam McCurdy, owners of McCurdy's Comedy Theatre in downtown Sarasota.

Known for his dry humor, Les McCurdy announced on the video, on YouTube, that Merriman is more than a banker. Says McCurdy: “The CEO...the big daddy, Shaun, is one hell of a break-dancer. As soon as a deposit comes in that's more than five grand, Shaun will get down...”

A fit and spry banker, Merriman, also an avid cyclist, admits McCurdy wasn't lying. “It's true that I can do that stuff,” Merriman says. “Although it's only for a special audience.”

Merriman says being fun is not just about attracting customers or softening an image. It also helps employee morale, and in turn, retention. “Banking is boring,” says Merriman, “so anything we can do spice it up, we will do that.”