Tracy French, Former Centennial Bank CEO, Dies at 2026

Tracy French, who spent more than two decades shaping Centennial Bank into a durable regional institution, died on August 2, 2026, leaving behind a career that traced the arc of Arkansas banking through consolidation, crisis, and recovery. He rose from the acquisition of a community bank in 2003 to the chairmanship of Centennial by 2019, guiding the organization through some of its most consequential years. His death closes a chapter for Home BancShares — one defined not only by growth metrics, but by the quieter work of mentorship and institutional memory that rarely appears on a balance shee