Bangor Savings charts growth in Portland and beyond
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Jim Conlon, president and CEO of Bangor Savings Bank
Jim Conlon is pleased that Bangor Savings Bank will add four more branches in the Greater Portland region, but he has his sights set on a much larger goal.
Conlon, the bank's president and CEO, told Mainebiz on Monday he would one day like to establish branches all over the state as opportunities arise with the same careful, measured approach the bank presently employs.
"We're very sincere in what we try to do," says Conlon about the bank's emphasis on doing what is best for its customers. "It's all about stewardship."
Starting with a new branch at 180 Middle St. in Portland's Old Port that will open by July, the bank will open two other city branches at Allen Avenue/Northgate and Forest Avenue and another one in Falmouth by January 2011. The four new branches and 23 new jobs represent a $4 million investment that Conlon knows will pay strong dividends.
Conlon says the new jobs will bring the total Portland-area based employees to 80 and give the bank 650 employees statewide who work in 52 branches from York to Houlton.
Since opening its first branch in Portland in 2005, Conlon says Bangor Savings has picked up 6,000 personal customers and almost 1,200 new business customers. The total Portland region deposits and repurchase agreements have grown from $25.4 million in 2005 to $194.5 million, but there is still room for much more, since the bank currently has only 2% of the market share in the Portland area. "We still have an awful lot of growth we can do in this Portland market," Conlon says.
Today, Bangor Savings Bank has more than $2.2 billion in assets after it was founded in 1852, and has logged 158 years of service to Maine residents.
Conlon told Mainebiz in June 2009 the Greater Portland region presented the best opportunities for the community bank to grow. The bank's timing couldn't have been any better at a time when several smaller, Maine-based banks had been bought out by larger, national banks.
Conlon said then that by growing thoughtfully and staying away from the subprime loans and toxic assets that contributed to the financial meltdown in September 2008, the community bank's plan worked.
Conlon says the bank has 59 loans that are 90 days past due or in a state of distress, which is four times better than the rest of the industry. Small business lending has also been up 11% over the last year despite intense competition from other community banks that also want a greater share of that revenue.
Bangor Savings Bank has placed a real emphasis on strong customer service and providing fair priced products and services, Conlon says, noting the bank is also investing in state-of-the-art technology to provide better online banking services for personal customers.
Conlon says the bank's decision to reimburse its customers all ATM fees they would normally be charged at non-Bangor Savings Bank ATMs and its commitment to donate money to worthy causes such as the $5,000 check Conlon presented to the Maine Children's Cancer Program during Monday's press conference in Portland inspires customer loyalty and generates new business. The bank has rebated more than $1 million in ATM fees for its customers since it introduced that benefit in 2006.
Yellow Light Breen, the bank's senior vice president of strategy, communications, marketing and philanthropy, says they are offering competitive products and services to businesses with larger, corporate banks in an effort to get them to switch. The personal, banking relationships that the bank prides itself on could be attractive to commercial customers who have not been happy with how their big banks operated during the recession.
More importantly, more businesses are asking themselves, "who do I want to be with if I struggle?" says Conlon.
The bank's 2009 annual report attests to its continued success.
Assets and net loans of Bangor Bancorp MHC, the bank's parent company, were close to 2008 at $2.26 billion in assets with net loans of $1.64 billion, down 1.1%.
The bank has seen tremendous growth with its commercial and small business loans of 7.6%, or $49.7 million, according to the annual report. Residential mortgages also grew by 21.4% in 2009 and were up $66.6 million despite the difficult economy. Meanwhile, the bank's auto loan business saw a $133.4 million decrease in 2009 after bank officials decided to exit this line of business in August 2008.
The annual report noted total customer deposits and repurchase agreements grew by $49.5 million, or 3.1%, in a year of aggressive competition for local deposits.
Driving this growth were non-CD deposit categories for both individuals and businesses, which together grew $60.9 million. The capital levels continue to be strong, as total retained earnings, or capital, grew by $19.4 million, or 9%, to $235.4 million.
When asked how much Bangor Savings Bank could grow in 2010, Breen replied, "I think we will do as well these next few years as we have the last five."
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