What's the Future of Community Banking? Brian McEvoy, CRO at Webster Five Bank

How should community banks compete with fintechs, grow deposits, and rethink the branch in 2026? Brian McEvoy, Chief Retail Officer at Webster Five Bank, joins The Outlier Podcast to share a candid playbook for the future of retail and community banking.In this episode, host Anurag Mukherjee sits down with Brian — a retail banking leader with deep experience at TD Bank and Cynoverse before stepping into his current role at Webster Five — to unpack the strategic questions every community bank executive is wrestling with right now.What you'll learn in this episode:Why the era of the "primary bank" is fading, and what consumers' multi-bank wallets mean for community institutionsThe biggest underserved opportunity in retail banking today: small business customers stuck between branch-level micro accounts and full commercial bankingHow to balance deposit growth with new household acquisition — and why it's not a 50/50 splitWhy community banks can't afford to bet wrong on digital, and how Webster Five evaluates fintech API integrationsThe real role of data and hyper-personalization — and why blanket marketing campaigns no longer workBrian's honest take on the future of the bank branch: why physical locations still matter as a trust signal, even as transactions go digitalWhy "don't chase Chase" is the right mindset for community bank branch strategyHow small businesses still expect a relationship manager, and what that means for branch staffingKey moments:(00:00) Introduction to Brian McEvoy and Webster Five Bank(01:32) What keeps a retail banking leader going(02:53) The future of retail banking and the erosion of "primacy"(05:19) Small business banking: the biggest gap in community banking(06:00) Deposit growth vs. customer acquisition: how to prioritize(09:01) Competing with fintechs through human connection and digital(12:26) Data, AI, and hyper-personalization in retail banking(16:40) The evolving role of the bank branch(20:01) Why community bank stories deserve to be toldAbout the guest:Brian McEvoy is the Chief Retail Officer at Webster Five Bank, a community financial institution based in Massachusetts. He oversees retail branches, the contact center, digital banking, wealth management, and small business banking. His career spans senior leadership roles at TD Bank and Cynoverse, giving him a rare dual perspective across national and community banking.About the host:Anurag Mukherjee hosts The Outlier Podcast, a series of candid, high-signal conversations with banking, credit union, and fintech leaders who challenge the status quo. Each episode is built to be operator-level, sharp, and packed with insight you can apply inside your own institution.Who this episode is for:Community bank and credit union executivesRetail banking and branch network leadersChief retail officers and heads of consumer bankingFintech founders selling into financial institutionsSmall business banking strategistsDigital banking, CRM, and data leaders in financial servicesIf you lead retail at a community bank, run a credit union, or build fintech products for financial institutions, this episode gives you a clear, contrarian view on where retail banking is heading — from someone running it day to day.Subscribe to The Outlier Podcast for more conversations with banking and fintech leaders who think differently. New episodes drop regularly, featuring practitioners who've actually built, scaled, and transformed financial institutions.Follow, rate, and review on Apple Podcasts to help more banking leaders find the show.Topics covered: community banking, retail banking, future of banking, fintech disruption, small business banking, deposit growth, customer acquisition, bank branch strategy, digital banking, hyper-personalization, banking data strategy, embedded finance, challenger banks, relationship banking, banking podcast, retail banking podcast.