Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc.

What does Cullen/Frost Bankers own?

The company owns Frost Bank, Frost Insurance Agency, and Frost Wealth Management operations including investment advisory, all operating under the unified Frost brand across Texas.

Is Cullen/Frost Bankers publicly traded?

Yes. Cullen/Frost Bankers trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker CFR. It has been public since 1977 and listed on the NYSE since 1997.

Who founded Cullen/Frost Bankers?

The company traces to Thomas Claiborne Frost, who founded the bank in San Antonio in 1868. The modern holding company formed in 1977 through the merger of Frost Bank Corp. and Cullen Bankers, Inc.

Where is Cullen/Frost Bankers headquartered?

The company is headquartered at Frost Tower in downtown San Antonio, Texas, at 111 West Houston Street. It has been based in San Antonio for its entire history.

How many brands does Cullen/Frost Bankers own?

The company operates essentially one brand, Frost, across its banking, insurance, and wealth management businesses. Its subsidiaries carry the Frost name rather than separate brand identities.

Who owns Cullen/Frost Bankers?

The company is owned by public shareholders with no controlling holder. Phil Green has served as chairman and CEO since 2016, having joined the company in 1980.

Why does Frost only operate in Texas?

The Texas-only strategy is deliberate: the company positions itself as the dedicated relationship bank for Texans, concentrating its franchise in the state's major markets rather than competing nationally. It maintains no branches outside Texas.

The company traces to 1868, when Colonel Thomas Claiborne Frost, a former Confederate officer and merchant, founded a private bank in San Antonio to serve the ranchers and merchants rebuilding the Texas economy after the Civil War. It is among the oldest banks in Texas and received a national charter as Frost National Bank in 1899.

Through the twentieth century Frost remained a San Antonio and South Texas institution. It was one of the few major Texas banks to survive the 1980s collapse that destroyed most of the state's largest institutions during the oil bust and savings and loan crisis, a survival it treats as central to its identity.

The modern holding company formed in 1977 through the merger of Frost Bank Corp. and Houston-based Cullen Bankers, Inc., the holding company built by the Cullen family, creating Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. The combined company first listed on Nasdaq and moved to the New York Stock Exchange in 1997 under the ticker CFR. Frost converted to a state bank charter in 2012.

Under Phil Green, a career Frost banker who joined in 1980 and became chairman and CEO in 2016, the company pursued organic Texas expansion through new financial center construction in Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston, and the Permian Basin. Assets grew to $53 billion by year-end 2025 and $54.5 billion by September 2026, with trust and advisory assets exceeding $68 billion.

The company operates a corporate citizenship program centered on Texas communities, including financial literacy, small business support, and philanthropy through the Frost Charitable Foundation. As a financial services company, consumer-facing third-party sustainability certifications do not apply; its posture is reflected in corporate reporting and community investment.

Frost has been named the top bank for customer satisfaction in Texas and the Southwest in multiple J.D. Power retail banking studies, a distinction central to its marketing. It appears regularly on Forbes' lists of America's Best Banks and has been recognized as a top workplace in Texas by local publications. Its wealth management operation receives consistent industry recognition for performance and client service.

Cullen/Frost carries no defining public scandal. Its most cited historical fact is positive: its survival through the 1980s Texas banking collapse without failure or forced sale, which it invokes as evidence of conservative management. Routine regulatory examinations and consumer compliance matters occur at the level common to all banks its size, and its downtown San Antonio expansion has periodically drawn local redevelopment debate rather than legal exposure.