Strategy
12/07/2010

The Recipe for Success at Reliant Bank

Snapshot Interactive


recipe.jpgWith the end of 2010 quickly approaching, there’s no doubt that many bankers won’t be sad to see the end of yet another tumultuous year for the financial industry. However, the outlook for this badly bruised industry is beginning to show signs of improvement per a historical trends analysis shared by Ben Plotkin, EVP and vice chairman at the investment banking firm Stifel Nicolaus Weisel, during our recent Bank Executive and Board Compensation event.

Looking Toward the Future

Looking ahead to 2011, I had the opportunity to speak with fellow Nashvillian and CEO of Reliant Bank, DeVan Ard, who coincidentally will be speaking at our upcoming Acquire or Be Acquired conference scheduled for January 29th through February 1st in Scottsdale, Arizona. After briefly catching up, DeVan reiterated to me a theme that I have heard throughout the past few months, that this is most definitely a challenging time for bankers.

But the question on my mind was how did Reliant Bank, a $400-million community bank, manage to achieve over 46% growth in assets from 2008 to 2010 despite one of the worst economic downturns this country as faced since the 1930s? The answer to that question also happens to be the focus of DeVan’s panel next month, as he and Andrew Samuel, the CEO of Tower Bancorp Inc. in Enola, PA, will share their philosophies and methods for profitably growing their institutions during these competitive and challenging times.

Recipe of Success

As a non-TARP bank, DeVan attributes the continuing success of Reliant Bank to a talented team of employees, a strong board of directors invested financially and personally into the bank, and the continued dedication of building solid customer relationships.

Although DeVan ponders if he would even join the board of a bank today with all the regulations and liability piled on already stretched bank directors, he is confident that smart business decisions and good strategic planning goes a long way. Over the next few years, as loan demand continues to decline, Reliant Bank plans to improve interest margins, reduce expenses across the institution and look for non-interest partnerships to stretch profitability rather than focus on growth.

Results vs. Regulation

The trickle down effect of regulations aimed at larger institutions will most certainly hurt many small community banks proving once again that a few bad apples spoil the bunch. But with an engaged and invested group of directors who aid in the business development of the bank and are determined to make a positive impact in their community, hopefully Reliant Bank’s results will speak louder than regulations.

Snapshot Interactive