President, Chief Executive Officer & Director, Bancfirst Ok
Search every verified David Harlow interview, podcast appearance, and on-the-record quote — each transcript cross-checked by AI and human review to confirm speaker identity. In a September 2020 interview, David Harlow discussed BancFirst's role in the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) during the COVID-19 pandemic. He stated that BancFirst had processed nearly a billion dollars of the approximately five billion dollars in PPP funds that had been pumped into Oklahoma's economy, representing about 20% of the total. Harlow noted that the bank, as the largest SBA lender in the state for 27 years, had pulled 25-30 employees from across the company to work on the program, often in 24/7 shifts. He described the effort to stand up the $700 billion loan program in about ten days as a challenge but said it had been a "great success" despite some issues. Harlow also commented that unemployment would reach "unprecedented highs" and the economy would be injured, while expressing optimism about the resiliency of Oklahomans. Harlow also addressed BancFirst's operations and a building renovation during the pandemic. He said the bank had kept its lobbies open, practiced social distancing, and followed CDC guidelines, and that as of the interview, none of its 2,000-plus employees had tested positive for COVID-19. Regarding the renovation, Harlow noted that an hourglass feature for the first and second floors was being sourced from China, causing a 45-60 day delay, while glass for the tower was domestically sourced and work was beginning that week. He anticipated that people could start moving into the building in January 2021.
“BankFirst has been a big part of the PPP program which is the payroll protection program that the SBA put out and we have been very involved in that across the state of Oklahoma. We're almost finished with Phase two; there's been about five billion dollars pumped into the Oklahoma economy and we've done almost approach...”
“Unemployment's going to reach unprecedented highs, the economy obviously is going to be injured, and on top of that we have energy prices which are at all-time lows. First and foremost, I think it's our people and the resiliency of our state and everybody kind of banding together to help work through this.”
“We are essential infrastructure as mandated by the Department of Homeland Security, so we've been open and we've done it a little different. We've kept our lobbies open, practiced social distancing, followed CDC guidelines, and as of today, with our 2,000 plus employees across the state, we still have yet to have a pos...”
“Trying to stand up a 700 billion dollar loan program in about ten days was a challenge, but all things considered, it's been a great success. It has not been without its stops and fits and starts and issues, but as the largest SBA lender in the state for the past 27 years, we know the processes and pulled many people f...”
David Harlow, CEO of BancFirst Corp, talks about the changes taken due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the current market needs, ...
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