Bank of America names Sarasota/Manatee president

There is a new leader of Bank of America in the Sarasota/Manatee market.

Stephenie Whitfield has been named the president of Bank of America Sarasota/Manatee in addition to her role as business banking market executive for Southwest Florida.

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Whitfield will take on the position of president as Erik Vatter, who led the market since 2022, begins his role as Merrill senior financial advisor, according to a statement.

As president and head of the Sarasota/Manatee market, Whitfield will connect clients, teammates and communities to the full power of the franchise; drive integration across the bank’s eight lines of business; and oversee the company’s efforts to grow market share, according to a statement.

“Stephenie is well positioned to build on Erik’s success and continue to grow our market share,” Bank of America CEO and chair of the board Brian Moynihan says in a statement.

Whitfield has more than 25 years of financial services experience, including owning a financial consulting firm and working for commercial banks as well as in Small Business Administration lending. She joined Bank of America in 2016 and has held a variety of leadership positions for the company since then, such as commercial credit executive for the Southeast and the national SBA credit team, business banking market manager for Tennessee and SBA market manager for the eastern U.S., according to a statement.

Whitfield became Bank of America's business banking market executive for Southwest Florida in 2022, the Business Observer previously reported. In that capacity, she has been based in Bradenton and leads a team that serves U.S.-based companies ranging from startups to those with $50 million in annual revenue.