Ameris Bank Sees Favorable Outlook in Albany
Tuesday, December 4th, 2012
As a true community bank, Ameris Bank in Albany works to custom-fit its loans to specific customer needs. That means taking into account the full customer relationship – both loan side and deposit side – when setting interest rates.
"We may offer the same interest rate on a small business loan as a commercial bank but we also have the flexibility to set rates on the deposits a business has with us," said Ameris Bank Albany Market President Cal McMillan. "It's important for the customer to look at the total relationship to realize what they are getting."
Ameris Bank was founded more than 40 years ago. It is headquartered in Moultrie, Ga. and has more than 65 branches located in four states – Georgia, Florida, Alabama and South Carolina. According to McMillan, the bank has more than $325 million in Tier 1 capital. As a result of its financial strength, within the last 30 months, Ameris Bank has been able to grow through 10 FDIC-assisted transactions resulting in $1.4 billion in total asset growth assumed under the loss share. These 10 transactions are part of the total 28 acquisitions the company has made throughout its 40-year history.
"We've been in the Albany/Leesburg area for over 20 years, but because we don’t advertise much, it might appear to some that we are an unknown quantity in Albany," McMillan said.
A Community Advantage
In addition to custom-fitting bank products to customers and their needs, Ameris Bank offers local decision making. The bank also has a strong focus on customer service.
"We have excellent business bankers and I always tell them to focus on one customer at a time. That's how we deliver exceptional customer service," McMillan said.
Ameris Bank offers the full gamut of traditional financial products and services including small business loans, treasury services and investment and mortgage products. It also offers the latest technologies including remote business deposit capabilities.
"I think the outlook for Ameris Bank in Albany is really favorable. The local economy is stable, Ameris Bank is a very strong and stable financial institution, our professionals are first-class and we are consistently looking for ways to increase our exposure in the marketplace," McMillan said.
A Community Connection
Each year Ameris Bank raises food and funds to help fight hunger in the communities in which it operates. 2012 marked Ameris Bank’s 3rd annual Helping Fight Hunger campaign, held from Oct. 1 to Oct. 31.
"Companywide, we collected and distributed nearly 158,000 food items and Ameris Bancorp made a $60,000 donation to food banks throughout the four states in which we operate. Locally, we collected over 1,476 items," McMillan said.
Customers and employees contribute food items to the campaign. All the items collected in the branches are donated to a local food bank; therefore, a food bank in every town will receive the items collected at the local Ameris Bank location.
More information on Ameris Bank is available at www.amerisbank.com.
