EY Announces Ken LaRoe of Climate First Bank as an Entrepreneur Of The Year® 2024 Florida Award Finalist
29 April 2024 - 4:01PM
Ernst & Young LLP (EY US) today announced that Ken LaRoe of
Climate First Bank was named an Entrepreneur Of The Year® 2024
Florida Award finalist. The Florida program celebrates
entrepreneurs from Florida and Puerto Rico. Now in its 38th year,
Entrepreneur Of The Year is the preeminent competitive business
award for audacious leaders who disrupt markets, revolutionize
sectors and have a transformational impact on lives. Over the past
four decades, the program has recognized the daring entrepreneurs
with big ideas and bold actions that reshape our world.
LaRoe was one of 22 regional entrepreneurs selected as finalists
by an independent panel of judges. The candidates were evaluated
based on their demonstration of building long-term value through
entrepreneurial spirit, purpose, growth and impact, among other
core contributions and attributes.
“I’m honored to be included in this year’s lineup of finalists.
Here at Climate First Bank, we use finance as a force for good,
funding energy alternatives with assets as the world’s first
FDIC-insured bank founded to combat the climate crisis,” said
LaRoe. “We are leading the change one cent at a time and to date
we’ve surpassed over $600M in assets and achieved over $125M in
solar financing.”
Entrepreneur Of The Year honors many different types of business
leaders for their ingenuity, courage and entrepreneurial spirit.
The program celebrates original founders who bootstrapped their
business from inception or who raised outside capital to grow their
company; transformational CEOs who infused innovation into an
existing organization to catapult its trajectory; and
multigenerational family business leaders who reimagined a legacy
business model to fortify it for the future.
Regional award winners will be announced on June 14 during a
special celebration and will become lifetime members of an esteemed
community of Entrepreneur Of The Year alumni from around the world.
The winners will then be considered by the National judges for the
Entrepreneur Of The Year National Awards, which will be presented
in November at the annual Strategic Growth Forum®, one of the
nation’s most prestigious gatherings of high-growth, market-leading
companies.
In addition to Entrepreneur Of The Year, EY US supports other
entrepreneurs through the EY Entrepreneurial Winning Women™ program
and the EY Entrepreneurs Access Network to help connect women
founders and Black and Hispanic/Latino entrepreneurs, respectively,
with the resources, network and access needed to unlock their full
potential.
SponsorsFounded and produced by Ernst &
Young LLP, the Entrepreneur Of The Year Awards include presenting
sponsors PNC Bank, Cresa, Marsh USA, SAP and the Ewing Marion
Kauffman Foundation.
About Entrepreneur Of The
Year®Founded in 1986, Entrepreneur Of The
Year® has celebrated more than 11,000 ambitious visionaries who are
leading successful, dynamic businesses in the US, and it has since
expanded to nearly 80 countries and territories globally.
The US program consists of 17 regional programs whose panels of
independent judges select the regional award winners every
June. Those winners compete for national recognition at
the Strategic Growth Forum® in November where National
finalists and award winners are announced. The overall
National winner represents the US at the World Entrepreneur Of
The Year® competition. Visit ey.com/us/eoy.
About EYEY exists to build a better working
world, helping to create long-term value for clients, people and
society and build trust in the capital markets.
Enabled by data and technology, diverse EY teams in over 150
countries provide trust through assurance and help clients grow,
transform and operate.
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the complex issues facing our world today.
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About Climate First BankClimate First Bank is a
Certified B Corp, values-based digital community bank offering a
complete, full-service portfolio of simple and easy-to-use
traditional banking products. These products are powered by
technology to meet the expectations of today’s consumers. In
addition to offering standard banking services, the company places
a special emphasis on non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and
businesses committed to sustainability. Eco-conscious customers
will find dedicated loan options for solar photovoltaic (PV),
energy retrofits and infrastructure to help combat the climate
crisis. The bank reports annually on its impact in line with
corporate social responsibility goals, read the most recent Impact
Report here. Member FDIC.
Abigail Lacaillade Uproar PR for Climate First Bank
alacaillade@uproarpr.com