Portrait Bank, central Florida’s first new bank since 2017, recently opened its doors for business.
Based in Winter Park, Portrait Bank helps to close a gap that had been widening for two decades.
The Orlando area, which includes Orange, Seminole, Osceola and Lake counties, was home to 38 community banks in 2000. By early 2025, that number had fallen to six. The recent sale of Winter Park National Bank and One Florida Bank to out-of-state banks further decreased the ranks. As those banks have continued to disappear, business owners have lost the personalized service and long-term relationships that have historically come with banking locally.
At the same time, the Orlando metro area added nearly 40,000 residents between 2024 and 2025, the 10th-fastest growth rate among U.S. metro areas.
Portrait Bank was founded by Erik Weiner, its president and CEO. Weiner spent 30 years in banking, including senior roles at Fifth Third Bank, BankUnited and City National Bank, before launching Portrait.
“This region has grown significantly, and it needs a bank that’s committed to evolving with it,” Weiner said on Sept. 21. “We created this bank for businesses and people who want sophisticated financial solutions without losing the personal relationships and local decision-making that define a great community bank.”
Backed by more than $43 million raised from 256 local investors, Portrait Bank enters the market with strong community support.
“The response from our investors is more than we typically see for a startup community bank, and it tells you something about the appetite for this kind of bank in Central Florida,” Ed Timberlake, chairman of Portrait Bank’s board of directors, said. “Our investors have a real stake in Portrait Bank’s success. That’s what will set us apart as we grow.”
Portrait Bank also has adopted agentic AI into its fraud detection systems and digital banking platforms, which gives it a technology advantage compared to other community banks in the region.