Community bank not endangered, but mascot is. (First Bank of Florida uses sea turtle for its advertising campaign)

Say hello to banking in the 1990s, when ATM transactions are replacing in-bank visits, a Mastercard will cover overdrafts, and one South Florida bank is betting that a loggerhead turtle will have more drawing power than a toaster.

First Bank of Florida, one of the largest community banks in the region, has tapped the endangered sea turtle as the centerpiece of a $400,000 advertising campaign. It will target 10,000 new checking account customers in 10 weeks, or almost as many new accounts as the bank averages during eight months.

The West Palm Beach-based bank operates more than 50 locations in Palm Beach, Broward, Miami-Dade, Martin and Lee counties.

The …