Congratulations to Steve Jordan, President and CEO of Bank of Monticello, on his installation as GBA Chairman at our Annual Convention June 15-18. Outgoing Chairman Jim Williams, President and CEO of Citizens Bank and Trust in Eastman, presented Steve to the convention delegates with these words of praise, “Our members are going to be well-served by the experience and leadership Steve is going to provide.” Steve’s first official duty was to present, on behalf of the membership, a gift of thanks to Jim and his wife, LaMae, a for their service as 2007-2008 Chairman and First Lady. “Your dedication, enthusiasm and commitment to our industry were evident throughout your year as Chairman,” Steve said.

Aside from Steve Jordan’s election to the GBA Chairman’s role, delegates to the annual convention also voted to install two new officers and eight new board members. The new officers are:

• Chairman-elect, Andy Williams, President and COO, United Community Bank, Blairsville

• Vice-chairman, Chuck Williams, President and CEO, North Georgia Bank, Watkinsville

Randy Eaves, President of First National Bank of Georgia, Buchanan, is in the second year of his three-year term as secretary-treasurer.

• Group 1 -- Mike Viers, President, First Chatham Bank, Savannah

• Group 3 – Kelly Hillis, President, the The Bank of Perry

• Group 5 – Chuck Lewis, President, One Georgia Bank, Atlanta

• Group 7 – Scott Smith, President, Northwest Georgia Bank, Ringgold

• Group 9 – Andy Walker, President, Forsyth Community Bank, Cumming

• At Large – Jim Edwards, President, United Bank, Griffin

• At Large – G. W. Johnson, President, Durden Banking Company, Twin City

• Associate Representative – Chris Bledsoe, CEO of Banker's Dashboard, Stockbridge.

The Department of Justice (DOJ) and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) have sent letters to certain members of Congress opposing proposed card-payment-system interchange legislation (H.R. 5546) that will probably be taken up by the House Judiciary Committee after the July 4 congressional recess. The agencies’ concerns are that the legislation would provide exemptions from antitrust laws, is unconstitutional and may harm consumers by increasing the cost of credit and reducing benefits such as rewards programs.  Our ongoing opposition to this legislation is important. The bill, and its Senate companion (S. 3086), would create a new federal bureaucracy to regulate fees paid by retail merchants to financial institutions for access

• 346, or 97.7 percent, are “well-capitalized” based on the generally accepted threshold of having a Total Risk Based Capital Ratio of 10 percent or more. 208 of those, or 58.8 percent, had Total Risk Based Capital Ratios of 12 percent or more.

• 264, or 74.6 percent, made a profit in the first quarter, one of the toughest quarters on record. Of the 90 banks recording losses, 46 percent were less than three years old. We all know  it takes a while for a de novo bank to show a profit.

• 231, or 65.3 percent, had Non Performing Assets of less than two percent of Total Assets.

With the troubles in the economy, there are some of our members and other institutions that are facing tough sledding in our industry right now. We don’t want to gloss over that fact. However, we do think it is important to add this type of context to any discussion about the state of banking in Georgia.

Each year at the Annual Convention, we honor bankers who have dedicated 50 years of service to our industry. This year, we salute eight bankers for their longstanding commitment to banking, their customers and their shareholders. We were pleased that five of these bankers attended the convention. One particularly interesting note about this year’s honorees -- four of them serve a single institution, Community Bank & Trust. Please join us in congratulating all of our 50-year bankers:

• Edwin “Pete” Burr – Chairman and Director, Community Bank & Trust, Cornelia

• S.J. Shirley – Director, Community Bank & Trust, Cornelia

• George Telford – Director, Community Bank & Trust, Cornelia

• Thomas Sheffield – Director, Community Bank & Trust, LaGrange

• Jimmy Burnsed – Chairman and CEO, Bryan Bank & Trust, Richmond Hill

• John Barker, Jr. – CEO, First Bank of Pike, Molena

• Robert Kellum, Jr. – Advisory Board Chairman, Meriwether Bank & Trust, Manchester

• Edward Davis – Director, Bank of Dudley and Citizens Corporation, Eastman.

Pictured from left: Jimmy Burnsed, S.J. Shirley, Pete Burr, George Telford, and Thomas Sheffield

Congratulations to the following companies that were approved for Associate Membership at the recent Board of Directors meeting:

• Decision Dynamics, Lexington, SC, Ann Gunning, Project Manager

• Federal Flood Certification Corp., Irving, TX, Ed McLin, Senior Vice President, Marketing

• Georgia Capital, LLC, Atlanta, Whit Marshall, Partner

• SE Real Estate Management, LLC., Lawrenceville, Michael Guynn, Manager

• ServiceLink, Coraopolis, PA, Kevin Gugenhiem

• Sutherland, LLP, Atlanta, Annette Tripp, Partner

• Synergistics Research Corporation, Atlanta, William McCracken, CEO

As Associate Members, more than 200 businesses enjoy increased visibility and expanded marketing opportunities and banks have more options for top-quality, cost-effective products and services.  Company descriptions and contact information are available on our web site, or please call GBA’s Kenyetta Parks at 404.420.2035 for more information.

The Georgia Bankers Insurance Trust (GBAIT) elected new board members at this year’s Annual Convention. GBA Insurance Trust board members serve four year terms and are charged with directing GBAIT’s efforts to provide a stable, financially-sound source of employee benefits to Trust members. More than 300 banks participate in the benefit program which is unmatched in the industry.

Congratulations to the following new directors:

• Larry Kuglar, President and CEO, First National Bank of Polk County, Cedartown

• Glenn Willis, President, South Georgia Banking Company, Tifton

• Ray Chitty, President, Guardian Bank, Valdosta

• Eddie Tyson, retired from Darby Bank, Vidalia, Director Emeritus.

Our sincere apologies to three member bank companies we inadvertently left out of last week’s summary of Georgia Banks listed in the recent U.S. Banker magazine’s annual list of the top 200 publicly traded community banks.

The following AIB online classes begin the week of July 21.  Please register two weeks in advance to secure a seat in the class.  These courses are instructor-facilitated with weekly assignments, and 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.  (Classes with an asterisk * require Microsoft Excel Software.)

• ABA Online Review Course for the CTFA Exam (open enrollment), 12 weeks, $795

• Consumer Lending, 16 weeks, $385

• Law & Banking:  Applications, 16 weeks, $435

• Money & Banking, 16 weeks, $385

• Principles of Banking, Accelerated, 10 weeks, $315

• Today's Teller: Developing Basic Skills* (open enrollment), 8 weeks, $295

• Trust Basics, 16 weeks, $385

There is still availability in the following AIB Online classes beginning July 14.

• Economics for Bankers, 16 weeks, $385

• Introduction to Mortgage Lending, 16 weeks, $385

• Principles of Banking, 16 weeks, $385

• Sales Manager Certificate, 16 weeks, $695

Please see the AIB Online Course Schedule for a complete listing or call GBA’s Alison Moreau at 404.420.2034 with questions.

Just a reminder that GBA will offer the following webinars during the week of July 7:

• Bank Technology Best Practices, Part 2 – July 8

• How to Properly Handle Adverse Action – July 10

• Lending Essentials: Financial Analysis Tools, Part 3 – July 11

AIB classes meet three hours each week for two to 15 weeks and are held at a local financial institution.  If you would like to see a specific AIB course offered in your area or if you have questions about AIB classroom courses, please call GBA’s Alison Moreau at 404.420.2034.  Here are the upcoming AIB classroom courses for Fall 2008:

• Economics for Bankers taught by Cassie Parker of McIntosh State Bank, McDonough
  Beginning  August 18, 10 weeks, $195, text $79

• Principles of Banking taught by Michelle Collings of Georgian Bank, Atlanta
  Beginning September 11, 10 weeks, $195, text $65

Affinion Group, a Strategic Partner of the Georgia Bankers Association, offers banks the ability to provide $1,000 of complimentary accidental death and dismemberment insurance to their DDA, credit card and mortgage customers through its Customer Appreciation Program at no cost to the bank..  Additionally, at the time of the offering, the customer has the option to buy additional amounts of insurance at a low monthly charge.  More than 4,600 financial institutions have implemented the Customer Appreciation Program. Banks range in size from small rural community banks to money center banks.  

The benefits to the bank include:

• Increased business deposits

• Diversification within their commercial loan portfolios

• Safer, lower-risk commercial loans in a time of credit market volatility

• Increased loan margins

• Account visibility and control

• Customer acquisition and retention.

For more information, please contact FTRANS’ John Hayes at 678.268.4040, or GBA’s Chad Wilson at 404.420.2031.

Some of the Services Available Through GBA Services, Inc.

We Will Miss…
Our sympathies to the family of E. G. (Buddy) Sparks, who began his banking career at Liberty National Bank, Cedartown. Buddy also served as President and Chairman of the Board of the National Bank of Fort Benning, Ga., was a Past President of the Georgia Bankers Association, and retired from C & S Bank in Clemson. He is survived by his wife of 61 years, Hazel Blythe Sparks, and two sons, John and James.
 

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Georgia Bankers Association • 50 Hurt Plaza, Suite 1050, Atlanta, GA 30303 • Phone 404.522.1501 • Fax 404.522.9848 • www.gabankers.com