January 10, 2005 www.bankersdigest.com Volume 126, No. 2 Your Bank, Ponchatoula, Louisiana, Opens as Sterling Bank Names First De Novo in Louisiana Since January 2000 Brown Regional CEO Your Bank, located at 1639 Highway will target small businesses and con- Sterling Bank, Houston, Texas, has 51 in Ponchatoula, Tangipahoa Parish, sumers. named Allen D. Brown to be its new Louisiana, opened for business on Your Bank’s initial board of directors regional CEO. November 3, 2004. Your Bank success- is comprised of 12 members. Frank T. Brown will oversee Sterling Bank’s fully raised $4,500,000 in capital from Vallot, owner of Acadiana Hardwood wealth management, international approximately 235 local investors. and Cypress, Ponchatoula, will serve banking, SBA lending, and energy The bank’s capital has subsequently as chairman of the board; Glenn R. lending departments. He most re- increased to $5 million. Bartels as CEO and CFO, and A. Glenn cently served as CEO of Metrobank, The de novo bank is believed to be the Geddis as president of the new state first new bank charter in the fast growing chartered commercial bank. Rounding N.A., Houston, Texas, and president of Northshore community of Ponchatoula out the management team is Gwen Metrocorp Bancshares Inc., a Houston- in the last 70 years. The bank had its Bartone will serve as vice president/ based bank holding company. grand opening on December 11, 2004. operations. Sterling Bank, a subsidiary of Sterling Your Bank is located east of I-55 and Commissioner John Ducrest of the Bancshares Inc., operates 36 banking south of I-12 in a permanent facility Office of Financial Institutions stated offices in the Houston, San Antonio, which has two drive-thru lanes and a Your Bank is the first new commercial and Dallas metro areas Q drive-up ATM. The full-service bank bank to be chartered in Louisiana since January 2000 when First Community First Fidelity Taps BOK Financial Corp., Tulsa, Oklahoma, Buys Short First Fidelity Bank, N.A., Oklahoma City, Valley Commerce Bancorp, Phoeniz, Arizona has named Marc Short Tulsa division BOK Financial, Tulsa, Oklahoma, has Valley Commerce Bank has assets of president. The 20-year banker joins entered into an agreement to acquire $152 million, net loans of $89 million, First Fidelity from Bank of America Phoenix-based Valley Commerce Ban- and deposits of $112 million. The bank, where he served five years as senior corp and its Valley Commerce Bank sub- founded in 1995, has two full-service vice president of the commercial group sidiary, allowing the $14.4 billion-asset offices, one each in Phoeniz and Scott- in Tulsa. Earlier, he served in corporate regional financial services company sdale. banking and commercial lending with to expand into the nation’s sixth-larg- The Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale area Bank of Oklahoma and Bank One est city with full-service banking, BOK has growing incomes and five year pop- Q Financial Vice Chairman Burns Hargis ulation growth approaching 13 percent. Please route this issue to: announced on December 1. During the 1990s, the population grew BOK’s planned acquisition is part of by more than 45 percent, according to a strategy of expanding into growing a statement issued by BOK. metropolitan markets. BOK’s subsidiary BOK will pay $32 million in cash for In This Issue... bank, Bank of Oklahoma, opened an all outstanding shares of Valley Com- LPO in Phoenix during the summer of merce, subject to possible adjustments Financial Institutions Continue to 2004. in accordance with the terms of the make S Corporation conversions; “We look for fast-growing, large agreement. The transaction, subject trend to continue. metropolitan areas that have a highly to necessary approvals, is expected to Feature............................................3 consolidated banking presence - large close in the first quarter of 2005. national banks, but not many middle- BOK Financial also owns Bank of Al- Charter Activity..........................11 market banks. ... we can come in and buquerque, Bank of Arkansas, Bank of provide all the services of a national Texas, Colorado State Bank and Trust, Classified.....................................13 bank but with a more community bank broker/dealer BOSC, and the TransFund approach,” Hargis said. P E O P L E TEXAS Retired First of Abilene Chairman Johnson Dies at Age 88 Sterling Names He- Walter Fred Johnson Sr., died in born November 15, 1916, in Lyford in Abilene on December 21, 2004. He was the Rio Grande Valley. aney CEO, MedCentre Johnson began his banking career Sterling Bank, Houston, has announced at the age of 18 as a bookkeeper at the the appointment of banking veteran Jim First National Bank of Raymondville. Heaney as CEO for its MedCentre office at 8525 Wurzbach He rose to cashier at that bank before in San Antonio. serving as a national bank examiner. The announcement He moved to Abilene in 1954 to be- was made by Danny come president of the First National Buck, Regional CEO Bank of Abilene, then known as the of Sterling Bank. Farmers and Merchants National Heaney has more Bank. than 25 years of He served as president and chairman executive level of First National Bank of Abilene. In banking experience. 1973, he was instrumental in forming The last four year First Abilene Bankshares (now First Fi- he served as CEO for the San Antonio nancial Bankshares), a multi-bank hold- market of Birmingham, AL-based ing company with First National Bank SouthTrust Bank. Earlier, he served of Abilene as its lead bank. He served as executive vice president/lending at RED BOOK as chairman of that company until his Security National Bank, San Antonio, retirement in 1986. He continued to which SouthTrust acquired in 2000. Before joining Security National, he serve as a member of that board until served as a lending officer at NBC Bank 1992. Corp. of Texas and InterFirst Bank, both He also served as vice president in San Antonio and president of the Texas Bankers As- Q sociation from 1965-1967. He served as chairman of the Regional Advisory www.bankersdigest.com BANKERS DI- Established 1942 MAZON A Weekly Bank News Magazine (USPS 041180) Published every Monday at Dallas, Texas Copyright 2005 Bankers Digest® BONNIE JAMISON BLACKMAN, Publisher/Editor R. GILBERT BLACKMAN, Managing Editor 9550 Forest Lane, Suite 125 Dallas, Texas 75243-5928 Phone 214/221-4544 Fax 214/221-4546 E-mail: [email protected] website: www.bankersdigest.com Subscription rate: One year $29.00, single copy $1.00 Opinions expressed by columnists and writ- ers of bylined articles are not necessarily BD COUPON those of Bankers Digest. Editorial guidelines may be obtained upon request. Articles and photos may be submitted to above address or sent via e-mail. Periodical postage paid at Dallas, Texas POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Bankers Digest®, 9550 Forest Lane, Suite 125, Dallas, Texas 75243-5928. Page 2 BANKERS DIGEST January 10, 2005 F E A T U R E S CorporatION to make the S Corporation election, S Corporations — 37.7% of banks and according to the annual S Corporation 22.0% of stock-thrifts. Following closely Financial institutions con- analysis conducted by global accounting behind are banks in the Midwest with tinue to make S Corporation firm Grant Thornton LLP. The number 33.6 % and stock-thrifts in the Southeast conversions; trend expected of banks and thrifts making the election with 17.8 %. is expected to increase in the coming • Fourteen banks and eight stock-thrifts to continue. years due to these changes. “The with more than $1 billion in total assets enactment of these changes late in have successfully made the S Corpora- By Grant Thornton LLP 2004 undoubtedly did not give some tion conversion. 2004 S Corporation Analysis financial institutions enough time to • Of the 2,137 existing bank and thrift www.GrantThornton.com restructure in time to make the election S Corporations, 503 will reach the 10 for 2005,” says John Ziegelbauer, partner year mark from their initial conversion In the last in charge of Grant Thornton’s financial date in 2007; another 414 will do so in eight years institutions practice and co-author of 2008. “The S Corporation conversion that banks and the study. “Accordingly, it would not be has universal appeal to financial institu- thrifts have surprising if a surge in the number of tions across both geographies and as- been able to banks and thrifts making the S Corpora- set sizes,” says Dick Soukup, co-author convert to S tion election is spread out over two or of the study and a financial services Corporation more years.” industry assurance partner with Grant status, the number of financial institu- Additional findings of Grant Thornton’s Thornton’s Chicago office. “As bank and tions making the election has steadily analysis include: thrift S Corporations approach the 10 increased each year. Today, over 24 • A total of 2,137 — 24.4% of the 8,755 year mark from their initial conversion percent of eligible financial institutions eligible Federal Deposit Insurance date to S Corporation status, they may are S Corporations. As of March 31, Corp.-insured banks and thrifts as of make attractive acquisition targets due 2004, a total of 2,137 banks and thrifts March 31, 2004 — are currently S Cor- to tax laws that favor S Corporations.” are S Corporations. porations. This represents a 128 net To receive a complimentary copy of Changes made by the American Jobs increase of S Corporations over 2003. Grant Thornton’s 2004 S Corporation Creation Act 2004 (AJCA) will generally • The Southwest region has the high- analysis, e-mail Kristi Grgeta at kristi. make it easier for financial institutions est percentage of financial institution [email protected] or call 877/835-1723 Q JACK HENRY + SPOT/NEW AD COPY January 10, 2005 BANKERS DIGEST Page P E O P L E TEXAS Frost Bank Announces Officer Promotions in appointed senior vice president, Dallas real estate lend- Houston,Dallas, Fort Worth, and San Antonio ing.