Charter Financial Announces Metro Atlanta Leadership Team

WEST POINT, Ga., Sept. 20, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Charter Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:CHFN) (the "Company" or "Charter") announced today its wholly-owned subsidiary, CharterBank (the "Bank"), named its new leadership team throughout Metro Atlanta following the acquisition of Resurgens Bancorp ("Resurgens") completed Friday, September 1, 2017, Charter's second completed merger in the area in the last two years. The Resurgens acquisition continues the Company's strategy of leveraging its excess capital through acquisitions in attractive growth markets.

"Following the acquisition of Resurgens, we now have $668.7 million of loans and $711.8 million of deposits in our 11 branches in the Atlanta metropolitan area," said Robert L. Johnson, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Company and the Bank. "Additionally, we are now No. 9 among community banks in Metro Atlanta in deposit market shares. Approximately 55% of our loans and deposits are in the Atlanta MSA. We are well positioned to continue to capitalize on our position as an Atlanta-centric bank."

Charles M. DeWitt III, 50, former CEO of Resurgens, will lead the Company's team in North Atlanta as North Atlanta President. Bob Chapin, 55, leads the Norcross construction and commercial real estate lending operation, and Marvin Cosgray, 67, leads as Private Banking President, based in Buckhead.

"We are pleased with the depth and experience of our Metro Atlanta team," said Lee Washam, President of the Company and the Bank. "Charles, Bob and Marvin are all leaders in their fields. As we continue the transition to a metro bank, these experienced professionals working as a team provide the leadership we need to become a major player in our growth markets."

Mr. DeWitt has more than 28 years of experience in the banking industry, including the last nine with Resurgens, where he was the founding CEO. He has served in retail, commercial lending, credit, capital markets and merger and acquisition capacities during his time in banking. He has also served on the Board of Trustees of the Northlake Community Alliance, and as a board member of Intown Community School Foundation and Tucker Northlake Community Improvement District, as well as involvement in various other roles within the community. He will manage the two former Resurgens branches in DeKalb County, as well as the Company's four existing Cobb County branches.

Mr. Chapin has served 35 years in the banking industry, including the last nine with the Company. Mr. Chapin is President of the Norcross unit focusing on residential construction and commercial real estate lending. In 2013, he was a recipient of the Lewis Cenker Award, honoring an individual's lifetime achievements in and contributions to the advancement of the housing industry, by the Greater Atlanta Home Builders Association, the first non-builder to receive the award. He is also a lifetime board member of the association. He is a board member and past president of the Norcross High School Foundation for Excellence, has been Assistant Scoutmaster of Boy Scout Troop 525 for the last five years, and is involved in numerous leadership roles at Mary Our Queen Catholic Church.

Mr. Cosgray has served as President of Private Banking since he and his team were brought on in October 2015, working in a temporary location until the branch's opening this year. Mr. Cosgray is based in CharterBank's new location in the Gateway Center on Roswell Road. He has been a banking leader in Buckhead for the last 20 years. He has 46 years of community banking experience, including serving as President and CEO of several banks that he helped organize. His vast experience includes serving on the board of directors and loan, investment, marketing and strategic planning committees, as well as overseeing daily operations of several banks. His past banks have won such awards as the Buckhead Business of the Year, Atlanta's Best Place to Work, Catalyst Magazine Top Entrepreneur and NABOW Business of the Year. He has been President of the Buckhead Business Association, co-founder and director of the Alpharetta Business Alliance, served two terms as Chairman of the North Fulton District of the Boy Scouts of America, a board member of the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce, and a board member of the Buckhead coalition, among numerous other civic roles.

"Charles brings new energy and excitement to our Metro Atlanta leadership," Mr. Johnson said. "His banking experience and familiarity with the market should allow for a seamless transition for our new team members in DeKalb County, as well as our existing Cobb County team. With Charles, Bob and Marvin, we will continue to build our market share and brand in the Atlanta area."

Mr. DeWitt's responsibilities in Cobb County include branches formerly managed by Sylvia D. Hamby, who elected to retire August 31. Mrs. Hamby served more than 42 years in community banking and the last 16 months with Charter as Cobb County President. She has been recognized the last two years as one of the Atlanta area's Top 100 Leaders in Finance by the Atlanta Business Chronicle.

"We want to thank Sylvia for her service to CharterBank as well as her many years of service to the banking community in the Atlanta area," Mr. Johnson said. "She will be missed, but we share her excitement in her retirement and wish her nothing but the best going forward."

About Charter Financial Corporation

Charter Financial Corporation is a savings and loan holding company and the parent company of CharterBank, a full-service community bank and a federal savings institution. CharterBank is headquartered in West Point, Georgia, and operates branches in Metro Atlanta, the I-85 corridor south to Auburn, Alabama, and the Florida Gulf Coast. CharterBank's deposits are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. Investors may obtain additional information about Charter Financial Corporation and CharterBank on the internet at www.charterbk.com under About Us.

Forward-Looking Statements

This release may contain “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the federal securities laws. These statements may be identified by use of such words as “believe,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “should,” “well-positioned,” “planned,” “intend,” “strive,” “probably,” “focused on,” “estimated,” “working on,” “continue to,” “seek,” "leverage," "building," and “potential.” Examples of forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding future growth, profitability, expense reduction, improvements in income and margins, increasing stockholder value, and estimates with respect to our financial condition and results of operation and business that are subject to various factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from these estimates. These factors include but are not limited to the Company's inability to implement its business strategy; general and local economic conditions; changes in interest rates, deposit flows, demand for mortgages and other loans, real estate values, and competition; changes in loan defaults and charge-off rates; changes in the value of securities and other assets, adequacy of loan loss reserves, or deposit levels necessitating an increase in borrowing to fund loans and investments; the changing exposure to credit risk; the inability to identify suitable future acquisition targets; the potential inability to effectively integrate and manage the new businesses and lending teams that transitioned from Community Bank of the South and Resurgens Bank; the inability to properly leverage the expansion into the North Atlanta market; changes in legislation or regulation; other economic, competitive, governmental, regulatory, and technological factors affecting our operations, pricing, products, and services; the effect of cyberterrorism and system failures; the uncertainty in global markets resulting from the new administration; and the effects of geopolitical instability and risks such as terrorist attacks, the effects of weather and natural disasters such as floods, droughts, wind, tornadoes and hurricanes, and the effect of any damage to our reputation resulting from developments relating to any of the factors listed herein. Any or all forward-looking statements in this release and in any other public statements we make may turn out to be wrong. They can be affected by inaccurate assumptions we might make or known or unknown risks and uncertainties. Consequently, no forward-looking statements can be guaranteed. Except as required by law, the Company disclaims any obligation to subsequently revise or update any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date of such statements or to reflect the occurrence of anticipated or unanticipated events. Additional information concerning factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those forward-looking statements is contained from time to time in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company refers you to the section entitled “Risk Factors” contained in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2016. Copies of each filing may be obtained from the Company or the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The risks included here are not exhaustive and undue reliance should not be placed on any forward-looking statements, which are based on current expectations. All written and oral forward-looking statements attributable to the Company, its management, or persons acting on their behalf are qualified in their entirety by these cautionary statements. Further, forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made, and the Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise forward-looking statements to reflect changed assumptions, the occurrence of unanticipated events or changes to future operating results over time unless otherwise required by law.