John Corbett

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, SOUTH STATE CORP

Search every verified John Corbett interview, podcast appearance, and on-the-record quote — each transcript cross-checked by AI and human review to confirm speaker identity. John Corbett, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of SouthState Bank, discussed the company's recent performance and strategy during the second quarter 2026 earnings call. He noted that SouthState's financial performance ranks among the top quartile of its peer group and that the company is executing on four goals laid out the previous year. Corbett reported that recent hires contributed $600 million in loan production over three quarters, with a $1.5 billion pipeline, and highlighted the Texas team's success in expanding its commercial relationship manager count by 25%. Corbett addressed the balance between growth and profitability, stating that the company's responsibility as capital managers is to balance soundness, profitability, and growth without optimizing for a single quarter. He described share repurchases as one of several tools for creating shareholder value, noting that repurchase activity slowed in the second quarter but that the company intends to continue returning capital in a disciplined manner, consistent with its previously communicated 40% to 60% capital return payout ratio. He also mentioned that deposit rates in Texas and Colorado are about 25 basis points higher than in Southeast markets, reflecting regional pricing pressure.