First Horizon Bank
| File:First Horizon National Corporation (logo).svg | |
| File:Madison Avenue and 2nd Street, Memphis, TN.jpg First Horizon Bank Tower located in Memphis, Tennessee | |
| Formerly | First Tennessee Bank |
|---|---|
| Company type | Public |
| Industry | Financial services |
| Founded | March 25, 1864 |
| Founder | Frank S. Davis |
| Headquarters | Memphis, Tennessee, U.S. |
Key people | Bryan Jordan (president and CEO) Hope Dmuchowski (CFO) |
 Template:US$ (2022) | |
| Total assets | US$88.7 billion (2022) |
| Total equity | US$8.7 billion (2022) |
Number of employees | 7,600 (2022) |
| Website | firsthorizon |
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First Horizon Corporation, originally known as First Tennessee Bank, is a financial institution established in 1864 with its headquarters situated in Memphis, Tennessee. Operating through its subsidiary, First Horizon Bank, the company serves twelve states across the Southeastern United States and ranks as the fourth largest regional banking entity within that region.
In July 2020, First Horizon finalized its merger with IberiaBank Corporation, an agreement initially reached in November 2019. The merged organization continued under the First Horizon brand and maintained its headquarters in Memphis.
The firm attracted widespread national scrutiny during the 2023 banking crisis, experiencing a significant drop in its stock price following the cancellation of a merger deal with Toronto-Dominion Bank and the failure of First Republic Bank.
History
Established in 1864 by Frank S. Davis as First National Bank—the first bank in Memphis to obtain a national charter—the institution expanded by acquiring entities such as German Bank in 1895 and Central-State National Bank in 1926. It contributed to the enactment of the Federal Reserve Act of 1913 and participated in founding the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis in 1914.
By the mid-1900s, First National had become the dominant banking institution in the Mid-South region. In 1969, it created a holding company that later became First Tennessee National Corporation to facilitate further acquisitions. Under leaders including Allen B. Morgan, who served as president starting in 1960 and chairman until 1973, the company acquired multiple banks, consolidating them under the First Tennessee Bank name by 1977.
During the 1980s, First Tennessee broadened its operations to include mortgage brokerage, loan origination, insurance offerings, and brokerage services. Notable acquisitions during this period were MNC Mortgage (1993), Peoples Commercial Services Corporation (1994), Maryland National Mortgage Corporation, and SNMC Management Corporation (both acquired in 1995). These moves positioned the company among top U.S. mortgage originators with $6 billion in annual originations.
In 1999, the firm adopted the tagline "All Things Financial" to emphasize its expanded service portfolio and rebranded as First Horizon National Corporation in 2004 to reflect its interstate expansion efforts. It purchased Republic Mortgage in 2007 but divested branches located outside Tennessee later that year. In 2008, it sold its residential mortgage origination and servicing operations to MetLife.
Amid the financial crisis of 2008, the U.S. Treasury invested $866 million into First Horizon under the TARP program; these funds were repaid by 2010.
Throughout the following decade, First Horizon grew through acquisitions including Mountain National Bank (2013), TrustAtlantic (2015), and Capital Bank Financial (2017). The merger with IberiaBank in 2019 resulted in an institution managing $79 billion in assets and $58 billion in loans. That same year featured a rebranding initiative unifying all operations under the First Horizon name.
In February 2022, Toronto-based TD Bank Group announced plans to acquire First Horizon for $13.4 billion—a deal among the largest recent U.S. bank transactions—but ended the agreement in May 2023 due to regulatory challenges, incurring $225 million in termination fees. This development coincided with instability affecting other regional banks amid an ongoing banking crisis.
Consumer and Business Banking
First Horizon provides a range of banking solutions tailored to both individual clients and enterprises of varying scales.
In 2016, the company enhanced its retail footprint by inaugurating its initial branch in the Piedmont Triad area, located in Winston-Salem. Prior to this, since 2004, it had been delivering commercial banking, real estate, and wealth management services within that region. Between 2003 and 2016, Winston-Salem functioned as the Mid-Atlantic regional hub, overseeing significant markets such as the Research Triangle, Charlotte, Greenville, Richmond, Charleston, and Jacksonville. After acquiring TrustAtlantic Bank in 2015—which included four branches under First Tennessee—the regional headquarters was subsequently relocated to Raleigh.