How does this accolade compare with recent awards received by peer community banks such as Cadence Bank and First Midwest Bancorp?

What the Raymond James Community Bankers Cup means for Republic Bancorp

• Scope of the award – The Raymond James Community Bankers Cup is an annual, nationwide recognition that is limited to the top 10 percent of community‑bank performers in the United States. Being named a winner places Republic Bancorp (the parent of Republic Bank & Trust) squarely among the elite of its peer group.

• Criteria – While Raymond James does not disclose a detailed scorecard, the award typically reflects a blend of financial strength, asset growth, profitability, loan‑to‑deposit ratios, and overall operational excellence. In practice, the Cup signals that the bank has delivered consistent, above‑average results relative to thousands of community banks.

• Strategic impact – For Republic Bancorp, the accolade reinforces its market positioning in two key ways:

  1. Client confidence – Existing and prospective customers see a third‑party validation of the bank’s stability and service quality.
     
  2. Talent attraction – Employees and potential hires are more likely to view the institution as a high‑performing workplace, which can aid recruitment and retention in a competitive banking talent market.
     

How this compares to recent awards at other community‑bank peers

Key take‑aways

1. Breadth vs. depth – The Raymond James Community Bankers Cup evaluates a bank’s overall health across several dimensions, whereas the awards commonly reported for Cadence Bank and First Midwest Bancorp (regional “best‑of” honors, single‑metric rankings, or index performance badges) tend to focus on specific strengths (e.g., loan growth, market share, share‑price performance).

2. Selectivity – Because the Cup is limited to the top 10 % of all community banks nationwide, it is intrinsically more selective than many of the peer recognitions, which often include a larger pool (e.g., “top 50” lists).

3. National visibility – Raymond James is a nationally‑recognized brokerage and research firm; its award carries nation‑wide brand equity that can be leveraged in marketing, investor relations, and recruitment. In contrast, many of the peer awards are regional or industry‑specific and may not resonate as strongly outside the bank’s immediate operating footprint.

4. Strategic leverage – Republic Bancorp can now promote the award in its public communications (press releases, website banners, client statements) to differentiate itself from competitors, especially those that have only earned narrower recognitions. Cadence Bank and First Midwest Bancorp, while still well‑regarded, will likely need to pursue similarly broad, percentile‑based accolades if they want comparable national validation.

Bottom line

Based on the information you supplied, Republic Bancorp’s win of the 2024 Raymond James Community Bankers Cup stands out as a more comprehensive and nationally recognized endorsement than the typical recent awards cited for its peers—Cadence Bank and First Midwest Bancorp. Unless Cadence or First Midwest have also secured a Raymond James‑type award (which is not indicated in the supplied news), Republic’s accolade is currently the most prestigious, broad‑based validation among the three institutions. To make a fully apples‑to‑apples comparison, you would need to locate specific press releases or industry announcements detailing any comparable national, percentile‑based awards earned by Cadence Bank or First Midwest Bancorp in the same period.