Simmons Bank is headquartered in Pine Bluff and is the 3rd largest bank in the state of Arkansas. It is also the 88th largest bank in the nation. It was established in 1903 and as of March of 2022, it had grown to 2,874 employees at 212 locations. Simmons Bank has an A+ health rating.
Writing As An Associate, Non-Customer
I have known several people that used Simmons in Jonesboro, Arkansas, and had good experiences. The bank was very good about working with local Arkansas State University students as well as with the university itself. I even used their conference room for local meetings. The people are quite friendly and it seems that this bank's rates and fees are no more or less different than any other regional bank. I would say give them a try.
Banking Local - There's a Reason Not Everyone Does It
My first banking experience ever was with Simmons First Bank. I opened it in high school, because it was where my mom banked and that way she would have access to my accounts if I ever needed help. I ended up using it for about five years, opening both checking and savings accounts. First of all, their online and phone based systems were awful. They were tedious, time consuming, and difficult to get the help you actually needed. At one point I had a breach of my account where someone stole my purse and was using my cards. Within a few hours before I could cancel it, they had spent over $400. Simmons was very difficult to work with in filing a fraud claim, and it took over three months to get the money returned to me. Overall the experience caused me to look elsewhere for a more established and national bank.
People Are Waiting
My father and I went to the Saginaw branch to close his accounts. We were told we had to do that with a personal banker. I have closed acts w/ tellers in the past, so I couldn't understand why I had to go to pb. We had most current statements, so it would be pretty easy to figure the balance. We waited for pb for almost an hour. When we finally saw the.customers leaving, new people started going directly to pb and was being greated by him. During our 50 minute wait, we noticed the lobby was very slow, so tellers were not busy. When the pb started greating and helping walk ins, I really lost my cool. I ended up yelling at him. There is no reason why closing acct should require a pb. Especially when there is only one person available. My father wanted to close his account because of excessive service charges. By the time we finished, the groceries in the car were thawed. If the duties are so unevenly distributed, maybe there should not be so much hobknobbing with customers. No body was rude or lazy. Years ago I took in a personal check to cash but I would have to pay a service charge. That check was returned due to closed acct, and I was charged over $50.00. I have all sorts of stories about the problems this bank has caused.
Customer Service
The customer service is incompetent starting bank manager all the down to reps answering calls. I left a message requesting a callback, which never happened. They are supposed to mail out annual statements from my individual retirement account, however, failed to do so. When I tried to get electronic access to my account, the bank manager claimed he had a computer problem (yeah, it's a bank in the 21 century). The same manager failed to provide a satisfactory explanation why my statement could not be sent by mail. We've been customers since 2003 and we are done with this bank.
Data as of Q1 2022
Learn why bank health mattersHealth Grade Components
| Overall | |
|---|---|
| FDIC Certificate # | 3890 |
| Year Established | 1903 |
| Employees | 2874 |
| Primary Regulator | FED |
| Profit Margin | |
|---|---|
| Return on Assets - YTD | 1.18% |
| Return on Equity - YTD | 8.86% |
| Annual Interest Income | $161.7MM |
| Assets and Liabilities | ||
|---|---|---|
| Assets | Q1 2022vs Q1 2021 | $24.43B$23.29B |
| Loans | Q1 2022vs Q1 2021 | $11.87B$12.02B |
| Deposits | Q1 2022vs Q1 2021 | $19.57B$18.39B |
| Equity Capital | Q1 2022vs Q1 2021 | $3.13B$3.07B |
| Loan Loss Allowance | Q1 2022vs Q1 2021 | $178.9MM$235.1MM |
| Unbacked Noncurrent Loans | Q1 2022vs Q1 2021 | $51.5MM$105.1MM |
| Real Estate Owned | Q1 2022vs Q1 2021 | $3.8MM$11.2MM |
