IBAT News

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IBAT's goal is to provide a diversity of opinions and viewpoints
about national banking news.  Some news articles do not necessarily
reflect the opinion of the Independent Bankers Association of Texas.

Bankers Digest Current Feature - November 8, 2010 Issue
Excerpt from Speech By Sheila C. Bair, FDIC Chairman

“If we want to rebuild housing finance into a more solid foundation for our economic future, we will need to act decisively to fix the underlying problems that led to the current crisis,” said FDIC Chairman Sheila C. Bair in her keynote address on October 25 to the “Mortgages and the Future of Housing Finance” symposium sponsored by the FDIC and the Federal Reserve System in Arlington, VA... read more.

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IBAT's goal is to provide a diversity of opinions and viewpoints
about national banking news.  Some news articles do not necessarily
reflect the opinion of the Independent Bankers Association of Texas.

Small Banks Cheer Premium Plan, Larger Ones Fear Impact on Funding Strategy
American Banker  |  Tuesday, November 9, 2010
By Joe Adler

The FDIC is set to make a massive change to the way it calculates premiums, releasing a proposal Tuesday that would force banks to pay assessments based on total liabilities... read more.

You can read American Banker for free through IBAT's subscription program. Click here to learn more.

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Tuesday morning, the FDIC moved forward with the implementation of one of the biggest victories for community banks to come out of the Dodd-Frank Act: the ICBA and IBAT-initiated change of the assessment base used for calculating deposit insurance assessments.

You’ll remember that, under a provision of the Dodd-Frank Act, the assessment base shifted from domestic deposits to the average consolidated total assets minus average tangible equity.  Currently, assessments based on domestic deposits run 12-15 basis points.  The new Risk Category I rate, calculated on the revised assessment base is 5-9 basis points.  This surpasses even the most optimistic of expectations, which anticipated a rate in range of 10-11 basis points.

Further, the FDIC’s proposed rule did away with the “secured liability adjustment factor,” which acted as a penalty on banks holding advances from Federal Home Loan Banks.  

Under the FDIC’s rule proposed today, the adjustment will be calculated for the quarter beginning April 1, 2011 and reflected in invoices for assessments due September 30, 2011.

“I believe that this proposal achieves the goals of the Dodd-Frank Act to change the assessment base to better reflect risks to the deposit insurance fund,” said FDIC Chairman Sheila Bair.  

Chairman Bair’s statement should come as music to the ears of community bankers in Texas and across the country, as it signals a shift from the days in which community banks carried the burden for the entire banking industry to a more fair and equitable system placing risk squarely on the shoulders where it most belongs.   

The FDIC’s proposed rule is now open for comments.  You can view the proposed rule in full online by clicking this link.

Also available is the FDIC’s proposed rule for Large Bank Risk Assessments which can be found here.

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The history of Mills County State Bank dates back to the humble beginning of D. H. Trent, Banker, on June 4, 1888, with deposits of $4,181.61 and Stock Account of $11,449.50.

Four years later in 1892, the First National Bank of Goldthwaite was organized.  In 1901 the stockholders of the First National Bank voted to liquidate and the building, furniture, and fixtures were sold to D. H. Trent.

In 1908, the first meeting of the Stockholders of the Trent State Bank was held.  Charter No. 369 was granted, under which the Mills County State Bank still operates today.  In 1988, C. T. Head was elected President of Mills County State Bank and President of Goldthwaite Bancshares, Inc.

The history of Mills County State Bank dates back to a humble beginning of D. H. Trent, Banker, on June 4, 1888, with deposits of $4,181.61 and Stock Account of $11,449.50.

Four years later in 1892, the First National Bank of Goldthwaite was organized.  In 1901 the stockholders of the First National Bank voted to liquidate and the building, furniture, and fixtures were sold to D. H. Trent, Banker.

In 1908 the first meeting of the Stockholders of the Trent State Bank was held.  Charter No. 369 was granted, under which the Mills County State Bank still operates today.

In 1909 the Mullin Bank was discontinued and W. C. Dew came into the Trent State Bank and served as President for about 28 years.

After Mr. Dew’s death in 1937, W. E. Fairman was elected President and served until he died in January 1941, when Mrs. W. E. Fairman was elected to serve the bank as President.  In the latter part of 1941 she sold her interest to E. T. Fairman who served as President.

Directors of the Trent State Bank voted on January 1, 1952 to change the name of the bank to Mills County State Bank.  In 1953 Dr. J. C. Terrell became associated with the bank as Chairman of the Board and W. P. Duren was elected President of the bank.

In June of 1961 the location of the bank was moved from the corner of 4th and Fisher Street to new facilities at 1017 Parker Street.

In 1979 a one-bank holding company, Goldthwaite Bancshares, Inc. was formed to own the bank.  Dr. J. C. Terrell was named Chairman and W. P. Duren was named President of the holding company.

Following the death of Dr. J. C. Terrell, W. L. Nix was elected Chairman of Goldthwaite Bancshares, Inc. and Chairman of the Board of Mills County State Bank in 1980.  At the end of 1980, W. P. Duren retired and Glynn Collier was elected President of the bank.

In 1984 the local stockholders of Goldthwaite Bancshares, Inc. purchased control of the holding company that owns Mills County State Bank.  Dr. T. C. Graves was elected Chairman of Goldthwaite Bancshares, Inc, and W. P. Duren was elected Chairman of the Board of Mills County State Bank.

W. P. Duren retired as Chairman of the Board of Mills County State Bank on July 1, 1988 and Dr. Tom Cody Graves was elected Chairman.

Glynn Collier retired July 1, 1988 and C. T. Head was elected President of Mills County State Bank and President of Goldthwaite Bancshares, Inc.

In January 1993, Mills County State Bank opened an office in Brownwood, Texas, at 3711 Austin Ave., with William A. Hamilton as Manager.

In July 1995, Mills County State Bank opened another location in Early, Texas, at 411 Early, Blvd., with Coleta Newton as Manager.  Coleta retired as of December 31, 2005 and Brandon Bartek was named as Branch Manager.

In April 1998, the Brownwood location moved to a new building at 3101 Austin Ave., Brownwood, Texas.

In October 2005, Mills County State Bank opened another location in Hamilton, Texas, at 1005 E. Main St. (also known as Hamilton Banking Center) with Don Gromatzky as Manager.

The Board of Directors of Goldthwaite Bancshares, Inc., as of January 2006, include Dr. Tom Cody Graves, Martha Carolyn Goode, C. T. Head, Glynn Collier, Bill Blackwell, Tom Duren, Milton Schwartz, Elam Miles, Dr. Melanie Bartek, Dr. Cody Graves, and T.A. Head, Director Emeritus.  Mills County State Bank’s Board of Directors also include the same Directors, with the exception of Martha Carolyn Goode.

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IBAT's goal is to provide a diversity of opinions and viewpoints
about national banking news.  Some news articles do not necessarily
reflect the opinion of the Independent Bankers Association of Texas.


Posted November 3, 2010 |  Rusty Cloutier

As the community bankers look over the midterm elections of 2010 I am sure that they see both good and bad news.

Of course, for years the smaller banks in America have often been at a disadvantage to their larger competitors who have large lobbing staffs in Washington D.C. to address the issues that affect the value of their franchise... read more.

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How Can You Get Involved in the Legislative Process? IBAT gives you two big opportunities:

1. IBAT Community Banking Day at the Texas Capitol - January 25-26, 2011
2. IBAT Congressional Visit to Washington, DC - May 3-5, 2011

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Jefferson Bank is a family-owned community bank serving communities in San Antonio and surrounding areas in the Texas Hill Country. Through the years, the Bank has created an elite team of highly skilled, family-oriented and civic-minded individuals who contribute to the Bank’s continuing success. The Bank was founded just after World War II in the Jefferson neighborhood area in San Antonio. It has grown from a single location on Fredericksburg Road in San Antonio to one of Texas’ most respected independent banks with 11 banking centers in San Antonio, New Braunfels, & Boerne, including residential mortgage offices and a trust & wealth management division. The Bank, characterized by consistent and conservative growth throughout its 64 year history, boasts assets close to $725 million.

IBAT features one member bank a week in the Bottom Line and on the IBAT website. If you'd like your bank to be included, send us a photo(s) of your bank. Perhaps you'd like to include how many years your bank has been open; community projects in which your bank is involved; special staff accomplishments or any other information you feel sets your bank apart from the "big guys". You may also want to include your bank's Facebook page and Twitter account. What a great (and easy) way to highlight your bank, employees and directors. Just send your information to Mae Beth at mbpalone@ibat.org and we'll see you online!

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IBAT's goal is to provide a diversity of opinions and viewpoints
about national banking news.  Some news articles do not necessarily
reflect the opinion of the Independent Bankers Association of Texas.

American Banker  |  Friday, October 29, 2010
By Cheyenne Hopkins

While loan servicers get much of the blame for improperly following foreclosure procedures, some others are pointing to another culprit: the patchwork of state standards... read more.

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You can read American Banker for free through IBAT's subscription program. Click here to learn more.

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IBAT’s General Counsel Karen Neeley, also of Cox, Smith Matthews Inc. has been selected by her peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America® 2011  In addition, she was named Best Lawyers’ “Lawyer of the Year” for 2011 in Austin in the Banking Law category.
 
Since its inception in 1983, Best Lawyers has become universally regarded as the definitive guide to legal excellence. Because Best Lawyers is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey in which more than 39,000 leading attorneys cast almost 3.1 million votes on the legal abilities of other lawyers in their practice areas, and because lawyers are not required or allowed to pay a fee to be listed, inclusion in Best Lawyers is considered a singular honor. Only one lawyer in each practice area in each community is honored as the “Lawyer of the Year” for 2011.  View the entire list.

With over 30 years of experience, Karen Neeley is widely recognized throughout the Texas financial institution community in the areas of regulatory and compliance law. She was selected in the banking category for Texas Lawyer’s prestigious Go-To Guide, which is only published every five years and includes only five attorneys in each category, and is also recognized by Chambers USA, a prestigious annual legal guide that compiles rankings of the nation’s best lawyers through research, client interviews and testimony.

“Karen’s reputation as a banking attorney is well-known in the halls of the State Capitol.  When it comes to banking law, Karen can quote you scripture and verse,” said IBAT President and CEO Chris Williston.  “We’re very proud of Karen and no one is more deserving of this prestigious honor.”

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IBAT's goal is to provide a diversity of opinions and viewpoints about national banking news.  Some news articles do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the Independent Bankers Association of Texas.

Bankers Digest Current Feature: October 25, 2010 Issue
Reprinted with permission by Peter G. Weinstock, Hunton & Williams, L.L.P.

The regulatory response to problem financial institutions now has approached the point that, for many, the cure is worse than the disease. If a financial institution is a “troubled bank” (Camels 4 or 5 rated), then almost invariably it will receive a formal administrative action. To be sure, a Camels 3-rated institution has problems, but a formal administrative action triggers a cascade of limitations and costs that may cripple banks that would otherwise survive... read more.

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It all started with a routine appointment with the dentist and a request for a donation to help save Meals on Wheels of Walker County.  The result was a city-wide  30-day fund-raising campaign led by First State Bank that earned the Huntsville financial institution Best of Show honors in the Independent Bankers Association of  Texas (IBAT) 2010 Best of Community Banking Awards.

The message that Dr. Tom Rushing brought to banker James E. Baine was that Meals on Wheels was in real trouble.  There was a severe shortfall of funds due to poor management.  Also, the Internal Revenue Service was threatening to seize bank accounts because the previous administration had failed to pay Social Security taxes on employees for several years.

Baine took the shocking news to First State Bank co-owner Walter G. Nelson and the board of directors.  The result was “The Huntsville Challenge”, a community wide capital campaign to raise enough funding to relieve The Senior Center/Meals on Wheels program of the IRS debt and continue operations.

The Walker County community responded immediately.  With the help of the local media and a speaking blitz to Huntsville civic organizations, the one-month emergency drive brought in $125,994.26 including a match by First State Bank of $50,000,

An independent panel of judges also awarded “The Huntsvillle Challenge” with one of seven gold medals presented at IBAT’s 36th annual convention in Fort Worth.  It was also the only entry submitted from the 500-plus member banks to be recognized as the Best in Show.

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There's a new option for pledging collateral for public fund deposits - "pooled collateral".  The Comptroller of Public Accounts published final rules implementing this voluntary new program.  We encourage you to become familiar with this new program.

In a nutshell, pooled collateral is a form of pledging in which the bank pledges eligible collateral to its participating public fund accounts "generally" rather than on a per entity basis.  The Comptroller will administer the program, provide for daily reporting of balances and market value of pledged securities and charge fees to the participating banks.  It is completely voluntary for both the bank and the public entities.  Nothing changes if you wish to continue to handle your public fund relationships as you always have.  

As we anticipated the publication of these rules, IBAT has scheduled a webinar on November 9, 2010 from 9:00 AM until 11:00 AM.  We are pleased to have Tom Smelker, Director of Treasury Operations for the Comptroller's Office as our speaker.  Tom is the "point man" on this issue, and is uniquely qualified to discuss this new program.  Additional information and registration may be accessed through our website or by contacting Julie Courtney at 800.749.4228.