April 21, 2021 – Local Profile – Bailey Lewis
In the early 1960s, Bert Fields Sr. didn’t have much of an education when he founded North Dallas Bank & Trust Co. Born in 1900, he had an eighth grade education and $5 in his pocket when he began his professional career three decades earlier in the West Texas oilfields. He worked as a tank truck driver, then started a transport business with his wife, and branched out into oil & gas production. He quickly earned a reputation as a favorable business person and eventually gained ownership of several wells across the Southwest, which gave him the financial means to open a community bank in North Texas, according to an May 2020 article from the Texas A&M Foundation.
The bank began its journey with just $2 million in total assets, three officers and seven employees.
Two years later, Fields, Sr. died, and his 23-year-old son, Bert Fields, Jr., took over the family business. But, just like his father, Bert Jr. took what he learned from his father, worked hard and built a favorable reputation. He would help lead his father’s bank to becoming one of the most successful banks in the state.
Today, the North Dallas Bank & Trust Co. is celebrating 60 years of business in North Texas. It currently has four branches — Addison, Frisco, Las Colinas, and Plano — $1.5 billion in total assets and over 160 employees.
NDBT Today
NDBT has earned a 5-star superior rating from Bauer Financial for over 30 consecutive years, making it one of the safest banks in America.
“Any banker will tell you — 31 years with that rating is a remarkable streak,” said Ralph Thompson, market president of NDBT’s Plano Banking Center and NDBT’s Collin County regional president. “There are almost 5,000 banks in the U.S., and only 3% of those banks have matched it. No other bank headquartered in Dallas or Collin counties has achieved it. Those five stars represent the truly uncommon stability that NDBT achieves for customers and employees. This translates into business, jobs, and success.”
But the bank doesn’t just focus on banking — it also focuses on helping the community. Each NDBT branch supports a non-profit organization specific to the community it serves.
“Our bank believes in serving our communities in a way that promotes growth, progress and success for everyone in those communities,” said Thompson, who has been with NDBT for 12 years. “As financial service professionals, we have the opportunity to help others make wise financial choices.”