Bank Branches › Closed and merged banks › Texas › SUNWEST Bank of El Paso, National Association
What happened to SUNWEST Bank of El Paso, National Association?
SUNWEST Bank of El Paso, National Association in El Paso, TX (earlier called American Bank of Commerce and 1 other name) merged into NationsBank, National Association of Charlotte, NC on Jul 9, 1998. After 1 more change of hands, what was SUNWEST Bank of El Paso, National Association is today part of Bank of America, National Association (Charlotte, NC).
The chain, step by step
From the day it opened to the bank at the end of the chain today. Each step is one entry in the FDIC's record.
- 1964American Bank of Commerce opens in El Paso, TX
- Mar 1, 1988renamed SUNWEST Bank of El Paso
- Apr 15, 1998renamed SUNWEST Bank of El Paso, National Association
- Jul 9, 1998MERGEDSUNWEST Bank of El Paso, National Association merged into NationsBank, National Association of Charlotte, NC.FDIC certificate 19197 ends; its business continues under certificate 15802.
- Jul 23, 1999MERGEDNationsBank, National Association (by then renamed Bank of America, National Association) of Charlotte, NC merged into Bank of America National Trust and Savings Association of Charlotte, NC.FDIC certificate 15802 ends; its business continues under certificate 3510.
- TodayOPEN
Bank of America, National AssociationMain office Charlotte, NC · FDIC certificate 3510 · 3,598 offices in 39 states on June 30, 2026Every Bank of America, National Association office → Website on file with the FDIC: www.bankofamerica.com
If you still have something from SUNWEST Bank of El Paso, National Association
A lien that was never released
If a paid-off mortgage, home-equity line or car loan still shows SUNWEST Bank of El Paso, National Association as lienholder, start with Bank of America, National Association. In a merger the surviving bank takes over the other bank's loans, so it is the bank to ask for a recordable lien release; if the loan was sold along the way, it can tell you to whom.
The FDIC says it cannot process lien releases for banks that merged or were acquired without government assistance, which is what the record shows here.
Record the release with the same county office that recorded the original mortgage or deed of trust.
An old account, passbook or CD
Ask Bank of America, National Association to search for the account under the name SUNWEST Bank of El Paso, National Association. A passbook or certificate shows an account existed. It doesn't show the money is still there, and the OCC notes that federal rules require banks to keep most account records for five years.
Accounts nobody touches are eventually turned over to a state. The OCC puts the usual wait at three to five years with no activity, set by each state's law. Search the unclaimed-property program of the state of the owner's last known address on the bank's records, and any other state they lived in. It is free to search and to claim through a state's own site, and MissingMoney.com, an official site of the state administrators' association, searches most states at once.
A safe deposit box
Ask Bank of America, National Association which branch now holds boxes from the SUNWEST Bank of El Paso, National Association office you used. The OCC says a box with no activity for three to five years (the period is set by state statute) is likely treated as dormant, and its contents may be turned over to the state's unclaimed-property program.
Box contents are not covered by FDIC insurance.
Not sure this is your bank?
Many banks shared a name. Match the city and the years above against your paperwork, or search again with the town.
Credit unions were never FDIC-insured and are not in this record; the NCUA credit union lookup covers those. Banks that closed before about 1970 are not in the FDIC's list either.
One caution: banks also sell single branches. If the office you used was sold to a different bank along the way, the account went with the branch, not with this chain. The office list below shows which bank each office reports under now.
This page is drawn from FDIC records and federal guidance. It is not legal advice, and BankBranches is not a bank or a government office. More detail: lien releases · old passbooks and CDs · safe deposit boxes · unclaimed money.
Where the guidance comes from ▾
Its offices in the FDIC deposit reports
12 offices filed under this charter in some year from 1994 on. 3 are still open as of June 30, 2026.
| Office | Now |
|---|---|
| 685 Sunland Park DrEl Paso, TX | OpenBank of America, National Association |
| 1330 N Lee Trevino DrEl Paso, TX | OpenBank of America, National Association |
| 9101 Dyer StEl Paso, TX | OpenBank of America, National Association |
| 330 N Mesa StEl Paso, TX | No longer reported |
| 11320 Montwood DriveEl Paso, TX | No longer reported |
| 5200 MontanaEl Paso, TX | No longer reported |
| 5210 Fairbanks DriveEl Paso, TX | No longer reported |
| 701 North Zaragosa RoadEl Paso, TX | No longer reported |
| 1575 BelvidereEl Paso, TX | No longer reported |
| 7750 Lilac WayEl Paso, TX | No longer reported |
| 1831 MurchisonEl Paso, TX | No longer reported |
| 299 Shadow MountainEl Paso, TX | No longer reported |
Banks folded into SUNWEST Bank of El Paso, National Association
2 banks merged directly into this charter; counting the banks those had absorbed earlier, 5 charters end up inside it.
| Bank | Ended |
|---|---|
| New First City, Texas - El Paso, National AssociationEl Paso, TX | Mar 6, 1993 |
| Sunwest Bank of El Paso-East National AssociationEl Paso, TX | Jan 6, 1989 |
Source: FDIC BankFind institution and history records, read Nov 15, 2026. The FDIC's list covers banks that ended in about 1970 or later. Look up certificate 19197 in the FDIC BankFind Suite to see the government's own entry. Corrections: me@byclaude.net.