Bank of Whittier

Bank of Whittier is a privately held, nationally chartered community bank (Bank of Whittier, N.A., dba BOW) headquartered in Whittier, California, providing commercial banking and mortgage services to local retail and small-business customers, founded in 1982.

Company typePrivate
Founded1982
HeadquartersWhittier, United States
Headcount11–50
GTM typeB2B and B2C
OfferingServices

What Bank of Whittier does

Bank of Whittier is a privately held, nationally chartered commercial bank headquartered in Whittier, California, operating under the legal name Bank of Whittier, N.A. and doing business as BOW. Founded in 1982, the firm functions as a community-focused commercial banking and mortgage provider serving the Whittier market and surrounding areas, with a workforce of 11–50 employees.

The bank's product surface is not enumerated in the available sources but is consistent with a community-bank operating model: deposit gathering, commercial lending, and mortgage origination targeted at local retail and small-business customers. Its business model is the standard net-interest-income model for a chartered depository institution, monetizing the spread between loan yields and deposit costs, supplemented by mortgage origination fee income. Pricing specifics, customer segmentation mix, and product-level economics are not disclosed in the source material.

The most consequential structural development is the pending acquisition of Bank of Whittier by University Bancorp, disclosed in University Bancorp's 2025 earnings report and reaffirmed in its Q1 2026 results, with closing subject to regulatory approval. Leadership rests with CEO Stephen Ranzini. No technology stack, AI capabilities, integrations, or proprietary platform components are documented in the supplied data.

Bank of Whittier firmographics

Firmographics

Name: Bank of Whittier
Legal name: Bank of Whittier, N.A.
Website: https://bankofwhittier.com
Company type: Private
Founded year: 1982
Operating status: Operating
Headcount range: 11–50 employees
Short description: Bank of Whittier is a privately held, nationally chartered community bank (Bank of Whittier, N.A., dba BOW) headquartered in Whittier, California, providing commercial banking and mortgage services to local retail and small-business customers, founded in 1982.
Ownership category
akta.pro rank

Bank of Whittier industry classification

Industry

Product category: Commercial Banking
NAICS: Depository Credit Intermediation (5221)
SIC: National Commercial Banks (6021)
akta.pro primary industry: Small Business Banking (Microbusiness/Sole Proprietor) (FSABAAAI)

Keywords

Commercial banking
Mortgage lending
Community banking
Retail banking
Business lending

Where Bank of Whittier is headquartered

Location

Headquarters

HQ city: Whittier
HQ country: United States
HQ region: North America

Markets served

Bank of Whittier business model

Business model

GTM type: B2B and B2C
Offering type: Services
Cost components: Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure

Bank of Whittier product offering

Product offering

Core offering

Bank of Whittier, N.A. is a community bank founded in 1982 in Whittier, California. The firm provides commercial banking services and mortgage lending products to local consumers and businesses, operating as a private national bank association with a small headcount of 11-50 employees.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

Commercial Banking Services
Mortgage Lending

Companies that use Bank of Whittier

Customer profile

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Bank of Whittier technology and API

Technology

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API: No
API docs
API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Bank of Whittier partnerships and signals

Strategic signal

Recent moves2 records

Expansion highlights2 records

Bank of Whittier competitors and assessment

Company assessment

Peers

University Bancorp:

Direct peers

Bank of Marin Bancorp: Community-focused commercial bank with a small-footprint, relationship-driven model; a directly comparable community commercial bank, though operating in a different Northern California region.
First Foundation Inc. California-based community bank providing commercial and consumer banking, including mortgages, to small and mid-sized businesses and affluent consumers — closely aligned with Bank of Whittier's customer profile and product set.
Mechanics Bank: California-headquartered community bank offering commercial, retail, and mortgage banking services to small businesses and consumers across the state; a directly comparable community commercial banking peer.
CVB Financial (Citizens Business Bank): California-focused community commercial bank providing commercial lending, mortgages, and treasury services to small and mid-sized businesses — a closely comparable community-banking franchise model to Bank of Whittier.
Plumas Bancorp: Small California community bank with community-banking, commercial lending, and mortgage operations — comparable in scale and business mix to Bank of Whittier as a similarly positioned small community commercial bank.

Broad incumbents

East West Bank: Large regional commercial bank headquartered in the greater Los Angeles area with deep Whittier/Southern California small-business and commercial banking presence; a broader incumbent serving the same geographic and customer base as Bank of Whittier.
Pacific Premier Bancorp: Southern California-based commercial bank formed by community bank consolidations; offers commercial loans, mortgages, and deposit services comparable to Bank of Whittier's mix and competes in many of the same submarkets.
Cathay Bank: California-headquartered commercial bank offering commercial lending, mortgages, and retail banking in the Whittier/LA County market, overlapping directly with Bank of Whittier's commercial banking and mortgage product set.

Regional players

Wilshire State Bank: California-based community commercial bank with a focus on small business and consumer banking in the greater Los Angeles area; a regional community banking peer with overlapping product and customer segments.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

Bank of Whittier financial estimates

Financial estimate

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Bank of Whittier leadership team

Management profile

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Bank of Whittier funding detail

Funding detail

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Bank of Whittier M&A and investment

M&A and investment

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Bank of Whittier

What does Bank of Whittier do?

Is Bank of Whittier a public or private company?

Bank of Whittier is a private company. It is classified as unknown and is currently operating.

When was Bank of Whittier founded?

Bank of Whittier was founded in 1982. It employs 11 to 50 people.

Where is Bank of Whittier based?

Bank of Whittier is headquartered in Whittier, United States, in the North America region.

Who are Bank of Whittier's main competitors?

University Bancorp is listed as a peer. Direct peers are Bank of Marin Bancorp, First Foundation Inc., Mechanics Bank, CVB Financial (Citizens Business Bank) and Plumas Bancorp. Broad incumbents are East West Bank, Pacific Premier Bancorp and Cathay Bank. Wilshire State Bank is listed as a regional player.

Does Bank of Whittier have an API?

No public API is recorded for Bank of Whittier.

What industry is Bank of Whittier in?

Bank of Whittier's product category is Commercial Banking. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSABAAAI, Small Business Banking (Microbusiness/Sole Proprietor). Its NAICS code is 5221 and its SIC code is 6021.