LAKE HAVASU CITY, Ariz., March 20, 2009 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- State Bank Corp. (OTCBB:SBAZ), the holding company for Mohave State Bank, today announced the retirement of its President & CEO, Ralph E. Tapscott. Mr. Tapscott announced his retirement at the Company's Annual Meeting of Shareholders held on March 19, 2009. The retirement is effective March 31, 2009. "We want to thank Ralph for his leadership during the past seven years. He guided us through one of the most significant growth periods in the Bank's history. We wish him well in all of his future endeavors," commented James E. Baker, Chairman of the Board. A successor to Mr. Tapscott will be announced by the Board of Directors in the next few weeks.
The Board of Directors also announced at the Annual Meeting of Shareholders that it will be suspending the payment of the $0.10 per share quarterly cash dividend. "With all of the current economic challenges, maintaining capital is absolutely critical to ongoing success. In recent quarters, the Company has experienced higher nonperforming assets and, as a result, an increased level of loan loss provisions. While the Company has slowed growth to maintain capital at a more than a "well-capitalized" level, the Board of Directors of State Bank Corp. believes it is necessary and prudent to suspend the payment of cash dividends until such time as the Company is able to generate sufficient earnings to support its current loan loss provisioning and ongoing capital needs," commented James E. Baker, Chairman of the Board. The suspension of cash dividends is expected to preserve approximately $1.5 million of annual cash flow.
At the Annual Meeting of Shareholders, an interim update was provided on the following items:
* Nonperforming assets have continued to increase since the end of 2008. As of February 28, 2009, nonperforming assets totaled $29.8 million, or 8.1 percent of total assets. * Loan loss provisions totaled $1.6 million for the first two months of 2009. As of the end of February, the total reserve for loan losses equaled $8.5 million, or 2.97 percent of total loans. * The Company reduced staff by 6.5 percent in early March. This move is expected to result in annual cost savings of approximately $375,000. * Deposit growth has been consistent so far in 2009 as the Company has added approximately $17 million in new deposits. As a result, the Company's overall liquidity position has improved and it has been able to reduce Federal Home Loan Bank borrowings by $14 million. * The Company has purchased a permanent branch facility in Yuma that it expects to open in June 2009.
About the Company
State Bank Corp., headquartered in Lake Havasu City, Arizona, is the parent company of Mohave State Bank, the largest locally-owned bank in Mohave County, with $361 million in assets as of December 31, 2008. Mohave State Bank is a full-service bank providing deposit and loan products, and convenient on-line banking to individuals, businesses and professionals. The Bank was established in October 1991, and the holding company was formed in 2004. The Bank has six full-service branches: two in Lake Havasu City, two in Kingman, one in Bullhead City, and one in Yuma, Arizona. The Company is traded over-the-counter as SBAZ. For further information, please visit the web site: www.mohavestbank.com.
This press release may include forward-looking statements about the corporation for which the corporation claims the protection of safe harbor provisions contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are based on management's knowledge and belief as of today and include information concerning the corporation's possible or assumed future financial condition, and its results of operations and business. Forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties. A number of important factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. Those factors include fluctuations in interest rates, government policies and regulations (including monetary and fiscal policies), legislation, economic conditions, credit quality of borrowers, operational factors and competition in the geographic and business areas in which the Company conducts its operations. All forward-looking statements included in this press release are based on information available at the time of the release, and the Company assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking statement.