LIFETIME BANKER

Scott Landau, a native of Massachusetts and graduate of Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine, got his start in banking in 1994 when he went to work as Credit Process Auditor for BMO Harris Bank. He settled in comfortably to the banking industry and over the following years eventually took his credit analyst skills to the world of wealth management and private banking.

He now applies his three decades of experience as he serves as National Director of Private Banking for Fifth Third Bank, the Cincinnati-based financial institution that maintains an active presence in Chicago and throughout markets in the Midwest. Landau likes to say he “climbed the mountain.”

Fifth Third is the third largest consumer bank in the Midwest region but it operates more like a community bank, staying laser-focused on delivering customized services to clients.

“I was a private banker at one time in my life, so I know what it’s like to be in front of the client,” Landau says. “The best way to describe me is that I’ve done the work. I respect the people who do the work for me and with me. I always go back to my days being in front of the client, and it’s important to be there for our clients and not for ourselves. Everything is driven by the clients’ needs.”

Landau says his credit-heavy background makes him more effective as the leader of private banking, especially given the loan services Fifth Third Private Bank offers.

“We do a lot of commercial real estate lending and liquid secured lending at the Private Bank, and I like to say we’re open for business,” Landau says. “We look at credit as an opportunity to help our clients leverage their assets, and it differentiates us from other private banks. Credit is an important part of someone’s overall wealth management strategy.”

Landau says he’s pleased to be working at Fifth Third because of the ease with which he can do business in a way that upholds the bank’s underlying values of honesty and ethics.

“The people and the culture and workplace environment are important to me. Anywhere I’ve been, it’s always been about the people and culture,” says Landau. “I have four daughters and I’m proud to be able to tell them that as their father I work for a company that has a lot of respect for women, for diversity and inclusion, and for strong ethics. That’s what motivates me.”

A lot of banks might give lip-service to customer service, but Landau sees the relationship between banker and client as a partnership.

“It’s about giving the client the expertise and knowledge we bring to the table, Landau says.

For more information about Fifth Third Private Bank, visit 53.com/privatebank or call 847-653-2142.