Community Banker articles from December 2003

Community Banker archives from December 2003

It's crystal ball time.(front matter)
December 1, 2003... Forecasting is the primary business of weathermen, tarot card readers, and financial economists. Not necessarily in that order of importance. In banking, financial projections are an inexact science, but a necessary one. And sometimes,...

Greenfield Savings Bank drives successful effort to save community college.(grass roots)(Greenfield Savings Bank)(Column)
December 1, 2003... Community banking isn't lust about financial, transactions, and services. Its about people. Its about bank management, staff members, customers, business leaders, and legislators all coming together to build a stronger community. Whether...

Stock buybacks: on hiatus, but not forgotten.(market maker)
December 1, 2003... A surging stock market, plus federal tax changes concerning dividends, combined over the summer to put a damper on share repurchases by community banks. "Many companies have buyback programs in place, but most of them have not been active...

A special report from the 2003 Annual Convention.(acb news)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... More than 2,000 bankers, spouses, and exhibitors met in Las Vegas for what may have been ACB's best-ever Annual Convention, Directors' Forum and Market Expo. From Oct. 19-22 convention attendees celebrated good times and community bankers'...

Zuppe tops ACB roster as 2004 leadership is installed.(acb news)(William W. Zuppe)(America's Community Bankers)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... On the final day of America's Community Bankers' 2003 Annual Convention, D. Russell Taylor passed the gavel, both literally and figuratively, to William W. Zuppe, who stepped in as ACB's new chairman. "We say that ACB is 'Shaping the...

ACB and NASDAQ unveil one-of-a-kind index of community bank stocks.(acb news)(America's Community Bankers)(Nasdaq Stock Market Inc.)
December 1, 2003... ACB and NASDAQ Stock Market Inc. have announced the creation of a new, broadly diversified stock index for community banks. The America's Community Bankers NASDAQ Index, which is scheduled to go live during ACB's Winter Management...

MBankers declare commitment to their communities.(acb news)
December 1, 2003... Serving the needs of their communities is a vital mission, said members of the MBank Council when the group convened at ACB's Annual Convention. Chairman Joseph Guerra led the group's frank discussions on the challenges facing...

ACB raises the walls on Nevada Habitat home.(acb news)
December 1, 2003... On the Saturday before the Annual Convention, over 75 ACB volunteers braved the desert heat to help build a home for a family in Henderson, Nev., just outside of Las Vegas. The three bedroom, two bathroom Habitat for Humanity home was sponsored...

Key regulators address bankers' concerns.(acb news)
December 1, 2003... At this year's Annual Convention, three senior regulators addressed attendees, fielding questions on topics affecting bankers today. The lively discussions covered everything from the changing economy to BASEL II. Highlights follow. Powell...

Reporter's notebook: the 2003 ACB Market Expo.(acb news)(America's Community Bankers )
December 1, 2003... The Market Expo is a highlight of every ACB Annual Convention, and this year's set a new standard of excellence. More than 100 providers of products and services were on hand to display their capabilities and answer bankers' questions. The...

Directors' Forum offers something for everyone.(acb news)
December 1, 2003... Some 220 community bank directors met in Los Vegas to take part in ACB's Directors' Forum, a popular and timely program that precedes the Annual Convention. The delegates listened to experts and shared best practices on a wide range of...

Corrections.(acb news)(Correction Notice)
December 1, 2003... Due to an editing error, a Roslyn Savings Bank executive was identified by the wrong name in an October article ("Branch Design Breaks Down Barriers," page 76.) He is Dan, not Thomas, Murphy. A November article ("Talking the Same Language:...

Basel II proposal could have negative competitive effects.(nationwide news)
December 1, 2003... The federal banking regulators should consider the competitive effects that the proposed Basel II capital accord could have on community banks, America's Community Bankers has urged. "Many community banks will end up holding capital under...

Check 21 becomes a reality.(nationwide news)
December 1, 2003... With a flourish of his pen, President Bush on Oct. 28 signed check truncation legislation into law. The countdown now begins for financial institutions, as the law will go into effect exactly one year from enactment. After initially...

Ridgewood Savings' McKenna announces retirement.(nationwide news)(William A. McKenna Jr.)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... William A. McKenna Jr., chairman and chief executive officer of Ridgewood Savings in Ridgewood, N.Y., has announced that be will retire at the end of 2003. A retirement party was held in McKenna's honor on Oct. 22. More than 280...

Geithner to head Federal Reserve Bank of New York.(nationwide news)(Timothy F. Geithner )(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... Timothy F. Geithner has been named as the president and chief executive officer of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Prior to his new position, Geithner served as the director of the policy development and review department at the...

Technology ushers branch design into a new era: remote tellers, check imaging and other gadgets are revamping the way bank branches do business.
December 1, 2003... Analysts once predicted that technology would lead bank branches toward extinction. But today, technology is doing just the opposite by helping branches thrive. Through the use of technology, branches have become more efficient and have...

Invigorating communities with mutual foundations.
December 1, 2003... Many mutual savings banks have discovered a new way to do good by doing well. In recent years, dozens of mutuals have centralized charitable activities under one roof and reaped lax benefits by creating a private charitable foundation. ...

Home loan forecast 2004.(Column)
December 1, 2003... When my parents bought their first house in 1950, their mortgage rate was 5.5 percent. My mortgage rate is now 5.25 percent. Until the summer of 2003, mortgage rates were at levels unseen since 10 years before the average American was born....

The prognosis: uncertain weather ahead.
December 1, 2003... According to industry experts, lenders, and vendors, the next year will bring a good deal of uncertainty to the mortgage market. There is general agreement regarding the drop-off in origination volume, but just what will happen beyond that is...

Meeting the investment needs of retirees.
December 1, 2003... For most community banks, retirees are a vibrant and visible part of the customer base. They frequent branches. They get to know tellers and managers. They are among the most loyal of bank customers. And their numbers are growing rapidly....

Harnessing the power of balance sheet leverage.(investment management)
December 1, 2003... Amid declining net interest margins and soft loan demand, financial institutions are actively seeking strategies to supplement core operating earnings and increase return on equity. Leverage strategies offer potential solutions in this...

Risk management rises as a top compliance concern.(compliance review)
December 1, 2003... Risk management has become an important element of running an insured depository institution. More and more frequently, new or revised regulations are being drafted as risk based requirements. Rather than a lengthy regulation that spells...

Managing your mortgage portfolio effectively in a dynamic market.(business solutions)
December 1, 2003... During 2002 and most of 2003, mortgage portfolio managers were focused primarily on garnering the significant profit opportunities created from the lowest interest rate environment in 50 years. As we move into 2004, however, interest rates are...

Questions on preemption and parity in New Jersey's predatory lending law.(legal briefs)
December 1, 2003... Following the lead of Georgia and other states, New Jersey on May 1 enacted an anti-predatory lending law officially known as the "New Jersey Home Ownership Security Act of 2002" (the "Act"). It becomes effective for loans closed on or after...

Technology shapes the future of banking.(technology report)
December 1, 2003... With an increasingly competitive market, community banks are taking advantage of technology to hold their own against similar sized banks--and to take on larger banks. COCC, an ACB associate member and provider of technology solutions for...

Restoring confidence in credit card transactions.(technology report)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... Consumer confidence in online transactions has plummeted since 1998, according to Forrester Research Inc. In 1998, 16 percent of Internet consumers were pessimistic about the safety of online transactions, Forrester discovered. Now, almost...

Check volume declining faster than fed predicted.(technology report)(Federal Reserve Board)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... The Federal Reserve has predicted it will process 4.8 percent fewer checks in 2003 than last year, and that volume will decline by a further 8.9 percent in 2004. The Fed earlier predicted that the decline in check volume this year would be 1.9...

Holiday shoppers expected to spend, spend, spend.(surveys & trends)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... Consumers are expected to hit the stores in force this winter, spurred on by a combination of tax cuts, easy access to credit lines, and union bonuses, according to recent forecasts. "We expect retail sales to rise 6.3 percent in November...

Keys for improving mortgage lending customer satisfaction.(surveys & trends)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... Mortgage lenders that focus on three key factors may be able to improve customer satisfaction, according to research from CH Group, an international consulting firm. In a nationwide survey of 368 recent mortgage borrowers, CFI determined...

Teenagers and parents don't see eye-to-eye on financial matters.(surveys & trends)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... When it comes to money, teenagers might not know as much as their parents think, according to a recent survey. Just over half (54 percent) of parents said their teenagers possessed good to excellent knowledge of money matters, while 78...

Money and war.(bank on it)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... Since the American Revolution, the United States has taken part in many wars. U.S. currency has been affected by many of these military engagements, sometimes producing rather interesting results. The facts below provide a glimpse of the saga...

Identity theft is everyone's problem.(chairman's corner)
December 1, 2003... Identity theft-stealing one's good name and identifying information--is a rapidly growing financial crime. As community bankers, we know that from our own experience, and that of our customers. The Federal Trade Commission intensified our...