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Fitzgerald’s bank does bigtime political biz

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Illinois

* If you’ve ever wondered what former state and US Senator Peter Fitzgerald is up to these days, well, now you know…

Chain Bridge Bank’s single location is next to a wine store and a café on the ground floor of a luxury condo building in suburban McLean, Va., about a half-hour outside downtown Washington. It looks like any small-town bank. Tellers keep bowls of candy at their windows, and staff members talk to customers about no-fee checking accounts. But right now, Chain Bridge, which has about 40 employees, is responsible for more of the hundreds of millions of dollars flooding into the 2016 presidential race than any other bank in the country.

According to the most recent Federal Election Commission filings, Chain Bridge is the sole bank serving Jeb Bush’s presidential campaign, which reported raising $11.4 million as of June 30, and his allied super-PAC, Right to Rise, which says it’s raised $103 million so far. Donald Trump’s campaign banks at Chain Bridge, and it’s listed as the primary financial institution for the campaigns of Kentucky Senator Rand Paul and former Texas Governor Rick Perry. It’s also the only bank used by super-PACs supporting neurosurgeon and author Ben Carson, South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham, former technology executive Carly Fiorina, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal, and Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker, all Republicans.

Founded in 2007, Chain Bridge served John McCain’s presidential campaign in 2008 and Mitt Romney’s in 2012. House Speaker John Boehner keeps fundraising accounts there; so does the Republican National Committee. It’s also served political action committees for Altria Group, the National Association of Convenience Stores, and the Outdoor Advertising Association of America. “The largest issue that we would always have with people is that they’d be like, ‘Why would we use this Podunk little bank in McLean, Virginia?’ ” says Bradley Crate, Romney’s 2012 chief financial officer. He routinely refers clients of his consulting firm Red Curve Solutions to the bank, including both Florida Senator Marco Rubio and Trump. Chain Bridge offers services tailored to the idiosyncrasies of campaigns, which deposit and then spend enormous sums quickly, with no credit history to lean on. “I know I can call my contacts at Chain Bridge Bank and have an account open in like 15 minutes,” Crate says. “If you go to a much larger bank, you have a bureaucracy you have to deal with.”

The bank requires employees to list cell phone numbers on their business cards so clients can reach them after hours. It will greenlight credit cards immediately for campaign staffers scattered across the country without waiting for credit checks, and it will let campaigns make large wire transfers as soon as their accounts are open. It will also send and receive wire transfers until the Federal Reserve window closes, usually around 5 p.m.—more than two hours later than most banks. That extra time can make a difference. “If you’re a presidential campaign and you need to be up on the air in Iowa tonight, then you need your wire to go to television stations in Des Moines this afternoon,” says Peter Fitzgerald, the bank’s founder and chairman. “That’s a big deal for campaigns.”

Go read the whole thing.

posted by Rich Miller
Wednesday, Jul 22, 15 @ 11:05 am

Comments

I read this article this morning. It’s fun.

Great service, understanding campaigns, the 24/7 cell phone contacts, the wires to get up on TV, being as liquid as possible…

Filling a niche. A need is being met. Really cool.

Comment by Oswego Willy Wednesday, Jul 22, 15 @ 11:09 am
I loathe him, but this is smart. Good for him.

Comment by Blago's Luxurious Grey Mane Wednesday, Jul 22, 15 @ 11:17 am
I’ve always had the impression, and I’m sure someone will correct me if I’m wrong, that Peter Fitzgerald served only one term because he was disgusted with the way things work in Congress.

I agree with OW. Fitzgerald’s bank is filling a niche, catering to customers’ needs, going the extra mile to provide the kind of unique service they need.

Congratulations to Mr. Fitzgerald for being successful in this venture. I wish all the businesses I use were this accommodating.

Comment by Streator Curmudgeon Wednesday, Jul 22, 15 @ 11:19 am
Pretty brilliant really.

Comment by A guy Wednesday, Jul 22, 15 @ 11:21 am
Brilliant. Such a clear niche to fill. Apply specialized expertise to benefit you and your close friends. Giant cash flows. And it’s no longer as seasonal as it once was.

Comment by walker Wednesday, Jul 22, 15 @ 11:22 am
@A guy- totally agree, brilliant. Funny that he voted to support McCain-Feingold and is now benefiting from that- nothing negative implied here, just interesting/funny how things develop.

Comment by JS Mill Wednesday, Jul 22, 15 @ 11:25 am
Peter has always been a better banker than politician. His arrogant, self-righteous manner was poison in politics, but that decisiveness allows him to see this business niche and fill it without having to kiss butt.

The other pols don’t have to like him and he doesn’t need to like them.

“It’s not personal, Sonny. It’s only business.”

Comment by Adam Smith Wednesday, Jul 22, 15 @ 11:34 am
Good god I wish this existed when I needed that type of banking customer service.

Comment by The Captain Wednesday, Jul 22, 15 @ 11:34 am
@Streator Curmudgeon-Fitzgerald served only one term in the Senate in large because he had lost the support of the Republican party by the end of his term. His actions that caused this were to an extent linked to his opinion of the Congress.

Comment by Jamie Wednesday, Jul 22, 15 @ 11:38 am
@Streator: Mr. Principled White Knight only served one term because he knew he was going to get his butt kicked if he ran for re-election.

He is the only far-right candidate to get elected statewide in Illinois in my lifetime — the result of a perfect storm: Carol Moseley-Braun’s disastrous term and his family’s money to bankroll. He was the ultimate political rope-a-dope, hiding downstate in tiny counties in an RV and literally avoiding the Chicago media. Even after all that, he squeaked into office. He then proceeded to alienate everyone, going out of his way to imply everyone else crooked (sometimes correctly, but often not). When the going got tough, there was nobody to support him.

The man was a poster child for the “I’d rather be right than win” crowd.

I will give him credit for the battle to bring us a good U.S. Attorney.

Comment by Blago's Luxurious Grey Mane Wednesday, Jul 22, 15 @ 11:38 am
Taylor Swift says it best: Bankers gonna bank.

Comment by A guy Wednesday, Jul 22, 15 @ 11:56 am
I am extremely happy for Mr. Fitzgerald. My experience with him was always positive. I met him a few times in Springfield ad he would come over and shake my hand, introduce himself and chat for a moment or two. He was no curmudgeon, which is more than I could say for Governor Ryan. My understanding of why the Republican Party did nor endorsed him was his endorsement of Patrick Fitzgerald for U.S. Attorney.

Comment by Old Sarge Wednesday, Jul 22, 15 @ 11:59 am
Peter Fitzgerald: from White Knight to King of Dark Money. (*Sigh*)

Comment by See the forest Wednesday, Jul 22, 15 @ 12:17 pm
One of the benefits of Cap Fax is being educated by folks more knowledgeable than you. Thanks for your comments, and I’m not trying to be snarky here.

Comment by Streator Curmudgeon Wednesday, Jul 22, 15 @ 12:19 pm
SC, Fitzgerald served one term because his old man told him he wasn’t going to cash out and take the capital gains hit on any more Bank of Montreal stock to self-fund a campaign.

Comment by Wordslinger Wednesday, Jul 22, 15 @ 12:21 pm
Really smart business. Kudos to him.

Comment by The Way I See It Wednesday, Jul 22, 15 @ 12:34 pm
SC - at one point, I knew his downstate staffers well. I remember them telling me that Senator Fitz’s health was not too great, either, and that his Bell’s palsy conditions had worsened during his single term.

Comment by Team Sleep Wednesday, Jul 22, 15 @ 12:56 pm
Good business model. He saw a need and developed the bank to fulfill that need.

Comment by Nearly Normal Wednesday, Jul 22, 15 @ 12:56 pm
Is this the same guy who campaigned against people who profit from being in public office?

Comment by blogman Wednesday, Jul 22, 15 @ 1:23 pm
Senator Peter Fitzgerald went against the old guard when he refused to install the hand-picked US Attorney when, as senior Senator, he chose Patrick Fitzgerald (no relation, as we all know). This ruffled some feathers as it caused some difficulty in conducting business as usual in the state.

Comment by dupage dan Wednesday, Jul 22, 15 @ 2:10 pm
“- See the forest - Wednesday, Jul 22, 15 @ 12:17 pm:

Peter Fitzgerald: from White Knight to King of Dark Money. (*Sigh*)”

Yup - exactly right. The guy who gave is Pat Fitzgerald and a lot of hyperbole is making megabucks from the darkest of dark money. All hail your dark knight.

Comment by Chicago Cynic Wednesday, Jul 22, 15 @ 2:32 pm
Fitzgerald served one term because his old man told him he wasn’t going to cash out and take the capital gains hit on any more Bank of Montreal stock to self-fund a campaign.

That’s about how I remember it too. The Senator’s family was up front about it costing too much. It was refreshingly blunt.

Comment by VanillaMan Wednesday, Jul 22, 15 @ 2:50 pm
===Fitzgerald served one term because his old man told him he wasn’t going to cash out and take the capital gains hit on any more Bank of Montreal stock to self-fund a campaign.====

This is exactly how it played out.

That’s about how I remember it too. The Senator’s family was up front about it costing too much. It was refreshingly blunt.

Comment by A guy Wednesday, Jul 22, 15 @ 3:49 pm