American Banker Features Goldsmith Family Legacy

City National chairman shares insights before retiring on Jan. 31.

American Banker featured Russell Goldsmith, chairman of City National Bank and RBC U.S. Wealth Management, in an article on Jan. 26 about his family and legacy at the bank. It was also the headline story in American Banker’s daily newsletter. Goldsmith discussed City National’s merger with Royal Bank of Canada (RBC), the 2007-2009 financial crisis and banks’ competition from fintechs.

When addressing the advantages of banking with the likes of City National over fintechs, Goldsmith said, “There's a need for the kind of relationship banking that isn't just cookie-cutter online products — and at the same time, we too can provide online products. It’s a more competitive world, but there’s clearly hundreds of millions of clients out there who want to be linked to a bank.”

Goldsmith took over as chairman and CEO of City National in 1995, when it had just $3 billion in assets. Under his leadership, the bank has grown far beyond its Southern California roots into more than a dozen states, including New York, Georgia, and Florida. On Goldsmith’s incredible legacy at City National, Jennifer Demba, a bank stock analyst at Truist Securities, said that he “built one of the most enviable and differentiated banking franchises in the country.”

Goldsmith will retire from the company on Jan. 31. It will be first time in nearly 70 years that a member of his family will not be at the bank’s helm.

Goldsmith is the son of Bram Goldsmith, who served as chairman and CEO of City National Bank from 1975 to 1995. Bram served as chairman of City National Corp. for more than 40 years. He passed away in 2016. Goldsmith's grandfather, Ben Maltz, also served as chairman and was one of the founders of City National.

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