The economic climate that financial
institutions find themselves in is
challenging, to say the least.
So how do banks manage to survive
these uncertain economic times? And
what of the bankers whose livelihood
depends on setting up loans between
banking institutions and business owners in need?
“Right now it seems like here in
Houston, we have been a little less
affected than elsewhere in the country,” says Carl Nicchio, vice president
of business banking and business sales
officer for Wells Fargo Bank in
Houston. “Although Houston has fared
better than other cities in the United
States, it’s feeling the effects of the
economy through contact with consumers worldwide and the challenges
they are facing.”
Smart Business asked Nicchio why
Houston seems to be the exception
rather than the norm.
What has been your experience with potential customers and Wells Fargo?
Network news shows have been talking about what Wells Fargo has been
doing in light of the national banking
crisis. So as an outside salesperson
who walks into a new business, my
calling card has already been dropped
by people who don’t even work for the
bank.
Wells Fargo never deviated from its
conservative roots, which has helped
immensely in a time when other banks
are crumbling. People never talked
about the company’s reputation
before, although they are starting to
talk about it now.
Is Houston still ahead of the tough economic
times being experienced around the world?
Locally things are still going well,
although some are beginning to wonder
when things are going to start to slow
down. Every day I drive through different parts of the city and I see construction still going on and I see businesses
transacting business as usual. We know
that people are cutting back on extravagant purchases and being more cautious with their money, but here in
Houston it’s still business as usual.
How have the tumbling gas prices affected
the Houston economy?
Gasoline here is in the $1.70s. But
after paying more than $4 a gallon, the
savings we are seeing now seem substantial. I think the lower prices are a
temporary thing and that the prices will
eventually go back up. I don’t think
we’ll get back into the $4-a-gallon
range, but I think $3.50 a gallon is very
realistic eventually.
We work with several customers
whose businesses must budget for
gasoline costs in 2009 and they were
budgeting $7 and $8 a gallon for gas.
We told them we could hedge their
gasoline price at $5 a gallon so that
they could set their budget and know
for sure their cost for gasoline would
never go above $5 a gallon, even if the
actual cost went much higher.
But now we will go back and adjust
the hedge cost. We are still providing
the same service, just on a different
scale. The lowering of the price of gas
has allowed them to better budget their
funds.
How will a new presidential administration
affect the Houston economy?
We don’t anticipate any rupture with
the past. The new administration
appears to be well balanced in its makeup with an emphasis on continuity.
Wells Fargo is a well-established company that prides itself on its commitment to its customers and helping them
achieve success. Whatever the challenges of the current environment, our
company feels it has the tools and
resources to help our customers, both
business and consumer, weather the
storm and prosper.
CARL NICCHIO is vice president of business banking and business sales officer for Wells Fargo Bank in Houston. Reach him at
(832) 251-5507 or [email protected].
