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Georgia Banks Outperform Peers
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Georgia Bankers Heading to D.C.
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New Overtime Rules Affect Banks
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2004 BankPAC Campaign Kicks Off
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Executive Management Academy
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Special Training CD for Bank Security
Conference Attendees
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Agriculture Conference Coming in May
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Online Registration
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Today’s Health and Wellness Magazine
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Excellent 12 Months in Stock Market
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Progressive #1 on Business Week 50
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> GBA Job Bank
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> Congratulations
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April Professional Development Calendar
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May
Professional Development Calendar
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2004 Calendar of Events
The FDIC has reported the banking industry’s year-end numbers and the results were excellent for Georgia banks. Once again, banks chartered in Georgia outperformed their peers nationally in every category of financial performance, capital adequacy and asset quality.
|
|
All Banks Nationally |
Georgia Banks |
|
Return on Assets |
1.38% |
1.68% |
|
Return on Equity |
15.04% |
17.15% |
|
Capital |
7.88% |
8.99% |
|
Non-performing Loans |
0.75% |
0.59% |
GBA Chairman Ed Milligan, Chairman and CEO of Main Street Banks, Inc., Atlanta, said of the results, “Our members as a whole have been up to the challenge of managing their banks in an historically low interest environment and with compressed spreads. As the economy continues to improve, I see an even brighter future ahead.”
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Georgia Bankers Heading to D.C.
A group of Georgia bankers will be going to Washington, D.C. the first week of May as part of the Association’s annual visit with legislators and regulators. The bankers will
be meeting with each of Georgia’s 13 members in the
Congressional Delegation, the heads of the
FDIC,
Comptroller of the Currency and with
Federal Reserve Governor Roger Ferguson. Leading the
bankers will be GBA’s Chairman-elect and
Public Affairs Committee Chair Dan Blanton, President
and CEO of
Georgia Bank and Trust in Augusta. “It is anyone’s guess
what banking issues will finally be considered by Congress this
year, but we felt it was important to let the both the Congressional
Delegation and our principal regulators know we are engaged in the
process,” Dan said. Among the issues expected to be discussed will
be credit union competition, regulatory burden relief, Subchapter S
enhancements, SBA funding, deposit insurance reform, bankruptcy
reform and the new legislation regulating government sponsored
enterprises such as the Federal Home Loan Banks. On the regulatory
side, the bankers expect to talk about the new Check 21 rules and
the revisions to the Community Reinvestment Act. The bankers will
also be asking questions about the Comptroller’s recently enacted
regulations preempting many state laws. “We applauded the
Comptroller for his preemption of the
Georgia Fair Lending Act and look forward to talking with
him and others about the other regulation that extended preemption
even further. It is important to preserve the dual banking system.
The new rule enhanced the national bank charter, so we want to
discuss how the state bank charter can be enhanced as well,” said
Dan.Back to Top
New Overtime Rules Affect Banks
The U.S. Department of Labor issued new regulations this week that will impact what positions within banks qualify for an exemption from federal overtime payment obligations. The new regulations contain significant changes from the current standards and the new regulations will be effective in 120 days. Realizing the time restraints pertaining to the regulations, the GBA, along with ELC, are preparing a product to assist our members in conducting self-assessments of these regulations. The product is intended to allow banks to internally evaluate how the regulations will impact specific positions and which jobs need to be converted to exempt or non-exempt status. Our target release date of this product is May 15. The GBA will notify you of this availability but if you have questions in the meantime, please feel free to contact GBA’s Renee Valdez (404) 420-2036.
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2004 BankPAC Campaign Kicks Off
The BankPAC Board of Directors recently kicked off the 2004 BankPAC Campaign and by now you should have received the letter and brochure asking for your help in reaching the goals of both the StatePAC and the FedPAC. “By any measure, 2003
was a record setting
year for Georgia BankPAC and the Board is grateful for the efforts
put forth by so many in our industry,” said George Butler,
President and CEO of
The First National Bank of Barnesville and Chair of the
BankPAC Board of Directors. “We are counting on the 2004 campaign
to further strengthen our efforts in presenting a unified view on
banking issues,” he added. Since 2004 is an election year, it is
imperative that we reach our goals of $122,400 for the StatePAC and
$52,100 for the FedPAC. The requests from candidates are arriving
at a fairly quick pace and we must begin making decisions soon.
Therefore, to refresh your memory, the GBA StatePAC may accept
contributions from a state chartered bank or through a holding
company of a national bank while the GBA FedPAC may accept only
personal contributions from any salaried employee, bank officer,
director or stockholder. The BankPAC Board of Directors looks
forward to hearing from you soon. Should you have any questions
about this year’s campaign, please call GBA’s
Elizabeth Chandler at (404) 420-2027.Back to Top
Executive Management Academy
The fifth session of the Executive Management Academy will be held May 17th at the 1842 Inn in Macon and will focus on Asset/Liability Management. Rob Cochran, Senior Vice President and Treasurer at United Community Banks, Inc. in Blairsville, will facilitate the session. Discussion will include the objectives of the investment portfolio, risk/return characteristics of the investment portfolio, portfolio strategies, the purpose of liquidity management, alternate sources of funding, how to measure and monitor interest rate risk, interest rate derivatives and balance sheet strategies. The Executive Management Academy is designed in a peer-to-peer roundtable format and addresses issues of importance to executive management. You may attend all six sessions or select individual sessions based on the content. For more information, call GBA’s Elizabeth Todd at (404) 420-2031.
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Special Training CD for Bank Security Conference Attendees
The program topics for the Bank Security Conference on May 20-21 at Callaway were specifically chosen by GBA-member security officers who were asked to select issues most relevant to their activities. As a result, the program represents current “hot topics” and the speakers selected are a team of high profile experts in each area. A unique feature of this conference is the “Train the Trainer” approach. Each attendee will receive an individual PowerPoint presentation on CD for each topic, which will enable them to enhance their own training program back at the bank. Thanks to Kay Moon, Committee Chair and Vice President of West Georgia National Bank in Carrollton, and the Security Committee for their expertise in planning this event. You may call Callaway for room reservations at 1-800-CALLAWAY or GBA’s Marybeth Jones at (404) 420-2032 for more details.
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Agriculture Conference Coming in May
There is still time to register for the annual Agriculture Conference on May 13-14 at Jekyll Island. Our thanks to Agriculture Committee chair, Bill Twomey, Cook Community Bank, Adel, for leading the committee this year. In addition to an excellent agenda, this year’s program also offers an inshore fishing trip. To register or for more information, please contact GBA’s Marybeth Jones at (404) 420-2032.
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Online Registration
GBA has added online registration to virtually every professional development program. Members are able to quickly review our entire educational program through the Calendar of Events. By clicking through on the online registration link, members are directed to a simple form to complete. It’s that easy. GBA will bill the bank for the registration. With questions, please call GBA’s Lydia Thomas at (404) 420-2039.
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Today’s Health and Wellness Magazine
As an added member benefit, employees with medical coverage will begin receiving the Today’s Health and Wellness magazine at home. The magazine, provided by Blue Cross Blue Shield of Georgia, will be published twice annually, in April and October, and will replace the Vitality magazine. Today’s Health and Wellness will include more in depth coverage of issues such as fitness, prevention, food, women’s health, men’s health, and family health–many of the “hot-topic” issues your employees will be hearing or reading about in the news. To ensure that all covered employees receive this new magazine, please notify GBA’s Lee Belaus of any address changes at (404) 420-2013.
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Excellent 12 Months in Stock Market
GBA Retirement Services, Inc. is pleased with the investment returns as of March 31, 2004 of both investment managers, Atlanta Capital Management and Reliance Trust Company. Both firms are still outperforming most of their comparative long-term benchmarks and first quarter returns caused the 12-month returns since this time last year to be remarkable. Please refer to the enclosed update for detailed returns. Retirement plans are a great incentive for banks to offer employees. They help to ensure employee morale and superior performance. The programs offered through the GBA Master Trust provide flexibility to meet the needs of any bank or associate member who may be looking at adding or changing their qualified retirement plan. Please contact Mandy Richards at (404) 420-2025 for information on how GBA Retirement Services can help design a retirement plan for your bank.
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Progressive #1 on Business Week 50
GBA’s Strategic Partner for Bond & D&O coverage, Progressive Insurance, has been selected as the top performing company in the S&P 500, according to the 8th annual analysis by Business Week magazine. Last year, Progressive was ranked 5th. Business Week made its selections based on criteria including growth in revenues, profits, and returns to shareholders over one- and three-year periods. It also examined net margins, debt levels and sales volume. Progressive received high marks for improving the efficiency of its operations and for its history of industry innovations, such as being the first to offer comparison rates, its innovations in claims service and its newest innovation of specially-designed claims centers providing a concierge-level of service as well as its constant drive to find ways to do things better, faster and cheaper for its 12 million customers. Progressive Casualty Insurance Company is the underwriter for the ABA-sponsored insurance program, GBA’s Strategic Partner for D&O and Bond coverages, and provides them to over 1,700 community banks nationwide and 84 Georgia Banks. Progressive maintains an "A+" (Superior) rating from A.M. Best Company, which reflects the strength of a company’s balance sheet, operating performance and business profile. To learn more about participating or to receive a quote, please contact GBA’s Renee Valdez at (404) 420-2036.
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GBA and Clarke American Checks Celebrate 10 years!
Customer Service at it’s BEST
Clarke American Checks has been a Strategic Partner with GBA since 1994, a decade of superior customer service and leading edge technology. The Georgia Bankers Association took over twelve months to review every facet of Clarke American’s operation and we were, and continue to be, impressed. Clarke American is the industry leader in quality and service and offers many advantages including:
· An audit of your bank’s current program showing actual volumes, pricing, delivery cost, bank expense and incentives, as well as ongoing management performance review reports
· Help in pricing products through market research, maximizing profits on your check business
· Leading edge automated order-entry system
· Accurate, real-time information showing the status of your customer’s order in any plant nationwide
· Online access to three years of order history for banks
Clarke American Checks maintains 3 local representatives in Georgia who are committed to excellence in business relationships. Steve Garrett, Pat McMahon and Cindy Herron have a combined 30 years of experience with Clarke American Checks and GBA feels very fortunate to have such a qualified team. To learn more about Clarke American Checks, please call GBA’s Renee Valdez (404) 420-2036 or Steve Garrett (800) 382-0818, ext 2808.
2001 Malcolm Baldrige Award
The U.S. Department of Commerce selected Clarke American as a recipient of the prestigious Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award in the manufacturing category. The top honor a U.S. company can receive, the Baldrige Award is given by the President of the United States.
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GBA Job Bank
The Georgia Bankers Association offers free job posting resources
for our member banks. These listings can be viewed
online or
through our bi-weekly publication included in the GBA Bulletin.
Resume postings are also available. For more information please
contact GBA’s
Renee Valdez
(404) 420-2036 or
Kenyetta
Parks (404) 420-2035.
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Congratulations to the
following:
Atlanta -
The Bankers Bank
Tom Bryan has been named President and Chief Executive
Officer.
Atlanta -
Citizens Trust Bank
Roger Botwin has joined the bank as Executive Vice President
and Chief Credit Officer.
Claxton - The Claxton Bank
Nancy Anderson has been promoted to Assistant Vice President
and Becky Skeens to Assistant Vice President and Technology
Officer.
Fitzgerald -
Colony Bank of Fitzgerald
Larry E. Stevenson has joined the bank as President and CEO.
Gainesville -
Gainesville Bank & Trust
Kimberly West has joined the bank as Banking Officer and Main
Office Branch Manager; LeAnne Walters as Banking Officer,
Retail Lending; and Chad Thomason as Branch Manager of the
East Hall Office.
Glennville - First Citizens Bank
Lee Pierce Sr., Robert ‘Bob’ Sprinkel, Jr. and Jim
Woods have been named to the bank’s Liberty County Advisory
Board.
Savannah -
The Coastal Bank
Kevin Pashke has joined the bank as Loan Administrator and
Chief Risk Officer.
Thomaston -
United Bank
Scott Swafford has been promoted to President.
www.gabankers.com
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