Paul Mitchell Is the Chairman Behind the Carolinas’ Boldest Banking Merger

Let me tell you about Paul Mitchell.

Columbia, South Carolina is home to Optus Bank — the only African American-owned bank in the state — and Mitchell has spent years as its chairman determined to give it a platform bigger than it could ever build alone.

The Work

Mitchell is chairman of Optus Financial Corporation and Optus Bank. In 2026, Optus agreed to merge with North Carolina’s M&F Bancorp and M&F Bank in a transaction valued at more than $105 million. When the deal closes in the fourth quarter of 2026, Mitchell will remain chairman of both combined entities — the largest African American-owned financial institution in the United States, with approximately $1.27 billion in total assets and 10 branches spanning the Carolinas. He called the partnership “a defining moment, not only for our organizations, but for mission-driven banking in America.” Executing it takes real work behind the scenes: two boards approved the deal unanimously, and the transaction is subject to M&F Bancorp shareholder approval, regulatory clearance and other customary conditions before it can close.

The Roots

Optus Bank was founded in 1921 as Victory Savings Bank — a Black-owned institution born in an era when segregation shut Black South Carolinians out of mainstream banking. More than a century later, Optus is approaching its 105th anniversary and operating as a certified Community Development Financial Institution, focused on expanding access to credit and banking in underserved communities. Mitchell’s stewardship has kept that mission intact while positioning the bank for national scale — no small feat for an institution that predates most of the banking industry’s modern playbook. That’s the through-line of his chairmanship: honor the legacy, then build something the legacy couldn’t have imagined.

Why You Should Know Him

As chairman of the combined organization, Mitchell will help set the strategy for the country’s largest Black-owned bank — deciding where its capital goes, which communities get served, and how a mission-driven institution competes at scale. That role matters far beyond the boardroom. When a bank this size commits to relationship-based banking and community development, it moves real money into small businesses, affordable housing and neighborhoods that are usually an afterthought. “Together, we will create a stronger institution with greater scale, enhanced capabilities, and an expanded capacity to advance economic mobility throughout the Carolinas and beyond,” Mitchell said. He’s not just preserving a century of Black banking — he’s scaling it, and showing a new generation of Black bankers what is possible when institutions choose partnership over isolation.

Quick facts

• Chairman, Optus Financial Corporation and Optus Bank (Columbia, SC)
• Optus Bank was founded in 1921 as Victory Savings Bank and is South Carolina’s only African American-owned bank
• Will remain chairman of the combined M&F/Optus organization after the merger
• Combined institution: approximately $1.27 billion in assets, 10 branches across the Carolinas
• Optus is a certified Community Development Financial Institution

📸 Photo: Optus Bank

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