Hancock Whitney Corp. is an American bank holding company headquartered in Gulfport, Mississippi. It operates 237 branches in Mississippi, Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, and Texas. The bank is the official bank of the New Orleans Saints and issues the official debit card. The bank is also the official bank of LSU Athletics and the Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns, being the exclusive provider of credit cards for the LSU Tigers, as well as debit cards for both athletic brands.
History
Hancock County Bank was founded in 1899 in Bay Saint Louis, Mississippi by 19 individuals. On its first day, the bank opened with $10,000 in capital and $8,277.41 in deposits. The bank was originally founded to capitalize on the booming lumber, cotton, and wool trades and also the market for poultry and produce.[3]
During the Wall Street crash of 1929, 162 Mississippi banks failed, leaving Gulfport without a bank. Some Gulfport residents were already customers at the Long Beach, Mississippi branch and several Gulfport businessmen appealed to the bank to open a downtown Gulfport branch. The bank opened a branch at the corner of 13th Street and 26th Avenue in the former First National Bank of Gulfport Building. In 1933, the bank moved to the location that would become One Hancock Plaza in downtown Gulfport, and the company changed its domicile to Gulfport and renamed the company Hancock Bank.[3]