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April 28, 2006

Federal Home Loan Bank Changes Possible
On March 15, 2006 the Federal Housing Finance Board (Finance Board) published a proposed rule that would change the capital structure of all the Federal Home Loan Banks (FHLBank) by requiring a minimum amount of retained earnings and restricting the amount of excess stock that an FHLBank can accumulate.  GBA has heard from some of our members asking about the change and questioning the need for certain provisions in the new rules.  We will be discussing this matter further with the Federal Home Loan Bank of Atlanta to get more information, but in the meantime, Ray Christman, President of the Atlanta bank has sent a letter to their members along with a Question and Answer about the proposal.  GBA will most likely file a comment letter with the Finance Board on the proposal.  If you have specific comments you would like GBA to consider putting in our comment letter, please send an email to GBA's Joe Brannen outlining your suggestions.  Thank you in advance for your assistance.

Georgia Bankers Going to Washington
A delegation of bankers representing the GBA Board of Directors, Public Affairs Committee and BankPAC Board will be in Washington, D.C. the week of May 1.  This annual trip is the major focus of the association’s federal legislative and regulatory efforts.  While in Washington, the delegation will be meeting with the major federal banking agencies including the FDIC, Comptroller of the Currency, Federal Reserve Board and the U.S. Treasury Department.  The bankers will also be meeting with Georgia’s two U.S. Senators and members of the Georgia House delegation.  “This annual trip lets our federal legislators and regulators know we are interested in their actions, while at the same time gives us a chance to state our views on the major issues being considered,” said GBA Chairman, Tom Wiley, CEO of Flag Bank in Atlanta.  Click here for the white paper on the major federal issues we will be discussing.  “We have a full plate of issues we will be discussing.  From unfair competition by the credit unions and the Farm Credit System to pushing for regulatory burden relief and reasonableness in the proposed commercial real estate regulations, we have a lot to cover.  We need our members’ help in prioritizing the issues we will be discussing, so please let our GBA staff know what is most important to you,” Tom concluded.  After reviewing the white paper, please either call or email GBA President Joe Brannen, (404) 420-2026, with your thoughts

FDIC Hears More Opposition to Wal-Mart Application for Insurance
The FDIC has completed their public hearings on Wal-Mart’s application for deposit insurance for its proposed industrial loan company when the agency met in Overland Park, Kansas.  Bankers testifying were unanimous in their opposition to the proposal as were most of the other witnesses.  FDIC has not announced a date for their decision.  We understand the actual ILC application has not been formally accepted by the Utah banking department as there are some provisions still outstanding to be completed.  FDIC is weighing the precedent already set in their granting of insurance to other commercially-owned ILCs.  GBA filed a comment letter several weeks ago along with several other state bankers association in opposition to the granting of FDIC insurance.  With questions, please contact GBA's Elizabeth Chandler at (404) 420-2027.

The FDIC Revises Compliance Examination Procedures
The FDIC has announced a revision in compliance examination procedures.  The new procedures are the result of a series of outreach meetings held by the agency around the country getting banker input.  Most bankers were supportive of the agency’s expanding reliance on offsite procedures.  The bankers also were positive about the way the agency was focusing on compliance management systems and how those systems were being used by the institution.  Bankers made a number of suggestions to improve the current system and many were adopted.  This week’s release included a new interview sheet, entry letter and Compliance Information and Document Request, and the Report of Examination forms.  Templates for the exams have been distributed to the compliance examination force.  With questions about the new release, please call GBA’s Elizabeth Chandler at (404) 420-2027.

Community Bankers Committee to Meet
GBA's Community Bankers Committee will meet in Macon on May 18 to begin planning for the annual President/CEO Conference which is slated for the Hyatt-Regency, Savannah, October 8-10.  The 2006-2007 committee is chaired by Mark Stevens, CEO of Atlantic Southern Bank in Macon.  "We are looking forward to another great conference and encourage any of our members to let us know of any topics you would like on the conference agenda," Mark said.  The conference will be held concurrently with the annual Bank Counsel Conference planned by the Bank Counsel Section which is chaired this year by Ray Fortin, General Counsel to SunTrust Banks, Inc. 

ABA’s Kathryn Kelly to Speak at Leadership Conference
Registrations are coming in at a steady pace for Leadership GBA’s 46^th Annual Leadership Conference slated for July 16-19 at the Omni Orlando Resort at Championsgate in Orlando, Florida.  Kathryn Kelly, Associate Director of the ABA Education Foundation in Washington, D.C. will be on hand to share tips on how you and your bank can provide financial education in the communities you serve.  Not only can you differentiate yourself at work, you can also bring acclaim to your bank, and advance your banking career.  Financial education isn’t just a “nice” thing to do.  It pays dividends for banks big and small.  With questions, call GBA’s Susie McGehee at (404) 420-2010 or Fran Williams at (404) 420-2015. 

Last Call for Business Continuity Seminar
If a natural disaster hit your community, does your bank a have business continuity program in place that you KNOW will work?  If you would like to hear about ways you can build or improve your bank’s program, come to GBA’s seminar entitled, “How to Build and Maintain a Successful Business Continuity Program.”  It will be held on Wednesday, May 10 at the Holiday Hotel & Conference Center in Macon.   Here are some highlights of the seminar:

• Value Proposition
  Why a comprehensive recovery program is vital to a bank’s survival and reputation

• Consolidating IT Recovery and Business Recovery
  Why is this important? Using existing recovery plans and extending them to incorporate the entire enterprise.

• Strategies for Implementation
  Processes that are available, and affordable for a bank to move people and infrastructure to an alternate location

• Maintenance
  Managing a recovery program that maintains its value and exposure

The seminar is designed for IT Directors and Senior Operation Officers, System Administrators and Information Security Officers.  Our instructor is Dennie Clark, President, CyberVAULT Services, Inc. in Marietta.  The registration fee for members is $195. To register, please click here to register online.  With questions, please contact GBA’s Fran Williams at (404) 420-2010 with questions.

Register Today for AIB Online Courses
Just a reminder that the following AIB online classes begin on May 22.  Please register no later than two weeks ahead of time to secure a seat in the class.

• Banking Today, 5 weeks, $275

• Commercial Lending, 16 weeks, $375

• Financial Accounting, 16 weeks, $475

• Understanding Your Construction Borrower, 10 weeks, $375

• Today's Teller: Developing Basic Skills (open enrollment), 8 weeks, $275

• ABA Online Review Course for the CTFA Exam (open enrollment), 12 weeks, $750

These courses are instructor-facilitated with weekly assignments.  They can be taken from the comfort of your home or the convenience of your office. All you need is a computer, printer and Internet access.  With questions, please call GBA’s Fran Williams at (404) 420-2015.

Positive Cash Plus™ - The largest lending opportunity for Georgia banks since
the residential real estate mortgage
GBA has entered into a strategic partnership with FTRANS to bring Georgia banks a new commercial loan program that may be second only to residential real estate in lending potential.  FTRANS, an Atlanta-based financial service company, provides outsourced management and credit guarantees on the operating assets of the business, enabling banks to make revolving commercial loans to small and mid-sized businesses with the certainty, simplicity, and safety of real estate lending.  Positive Cash Plus provides the bank with the opportunity of safely increasing its’ commercial lending while offering the bank’s client the advantages of outsourcing the burden and risk of granting trade credit.  The program is primarily designed for the nearly two million businesses in the United States each with sales to other businesses and governments of over $500,000 annually.  FTRANS estimates that there are more than 75,000 of these businesses in Georgia with a total lending opportunity exceeding $50 billion.  The Positive Cash Plus program provides the bank with an easy to use, online system that simplifies loan administration and makes the program very efficient to use.  The strength of collateral offered by Positive Cash Plus allows the bank to lend in situations where it might not have been able to otherwise, due to a lack of real estate or other collateral.  The alternative of outsourcing the loan itself creates a program that should work within the credit culture of every bank in Georgia.  For more information, please contact John Hayes, CEO of FTRANS, at (678) 268-4040.

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 Kenyetta Parks at (404) 420-2035.

Some of the Services Available Through GBA Services, Inc.

GBA Services, Inc. is governed by a board composed primarily of community bank presidents who look for the best products and services available.  They do the due diligence for you and you can rely on their efforts.  For more information or to order any of these products or services, please call (404) 522-1501.

Newsmakers:

Atlanta - Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
Gale Simons-Poole has been appointed to the position of Deputy Regional Director (Risk Management) of the FDIC Division of Supervision and Consumer Protection's (DSC) Atlanta Region.  Ms. Simons-Poole, a 20-year FDIC veteran, is currently Assistant Regional Director in the Atlanta Region, a position she has held since 2001. As Deputy Director, Ms. Simons-Poole will oversee the Atlanta Region's risk management program. Ms. Simons-Poole previously served as Acting Deputy Regional Director in both the New York and Atlanta Regions. She joined the FDIC in 1986 as a liquidation assistant in Bossier City, Louisiana. She was commissioned as a bank examiner in 1990 and served in various offices before being appointed Assistant Regional Director in Atlanta.

Clayton - Stephens Federal Bank
Congratulations to Joe Ferguson, CEO, and the officers, directors and staff on the recent grand opening of their new banking office in Clayton.

Atlanta - Georgia Bankers Association
Congratulations to Frankie Harris, GBA's Operations Administrator, on his sixth anniversary with the association.  Frankie is shown on the right in the adjacent picture with GBA President Joe Brannen presenting Frankie his anniversary certificate at a recent staff recognition event.

 

Calendar of Events

Details for May   Conferences   May 25-26 Rural Development and Lending Conference St. Simons Island July 16-19 Leadership Conference Orlando, FL Sept. 5-7 GACHA's Solutions 2006 Atlanta Oct. 8-10 Bank Counsel Conference Savannah Oct. 8-10 President/CEO Conference Savannah Oct. 26-27 Marketing Conference Atlanta       Conventions/Events   June 18-21 Annual Convention Naples, FL Oct. 25 Georgia BankPAC Golf Classic Valdosta         Schools   April 30-May 4 Georgia Banking School Athens May 21-26 Southeastern School of Commercial Lending Nashville, TN May 21 - June 2 Graduate School of Banking at LSU Baton Rouge, LA June 18 - 26 Southern Trust School Mobile, AL Nov. 5-11 Southern Operations & Technology School Athens         Seminars   May 2 Problem Loans: Session 2 - Commercial Telephone May 3/4 Legal Issues of New Account Documentation & Compliance Gainesville/Macon May 4 Risk Based Auditing Webinar May 9 Identity Theft Webinar May 10 How to Build & Maintain a Successful Business Continuity Program Macon May 10 Regulation Z: An Overview Webinar May 11 How to Properly Handle Adverse Action Telephone May 11 Hiring the New Employee: Legal Issues Webinar May 16 Managing a Successful Branch, Part 1 Telephone May 16 Power of Attorney & Living Trust Webinar May 18 Bankruptcy, Garnishment, Liens & Levies Macon May 18 Network & Internet Security Best Practices Telephone May 23 Managing a Successful Branch, Part 2 Telephone May 24 Analyzing Personal Financial Statements & Tax Returns Cartersville May 24 Anti-Money Laundering Webinar May 25 CIP, Customer Due Diligence & Enhanced Due Diligence Telephone May 25 Safe Deposit Fundamentals Webinar June 2 Frequent Mistakes in Lending Compliance Telephone June 6 Opening Fiduciary Accounts Telephone June 8 Managing Problem Loans Macon June 13 Handling Return Items Telephone June 15 Building a Culture of Superior Performance Macon June 28 Call Reporting Macon       AIB - American Institute of Banking   May 2 General Accounting Ringgold       Board/Committee Meetings   May 18 Community Bankers Committee Macon June 18 GBA Board of Directors Naples, FL July 26-27 GBA Retirement Services, Inc. Board of Directors Highlands, NC July 27-28 GBA Insurance Trust, Inc. Board of Directors Highlands, NC www.gabankers.com