Northwest Bancorporation Announces Retirement and Appointment of Director


SPOKANE, Wash., Feb. 26, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Northwest Bancorporation, Inc. (OTC Pink:NBCT) (the “Company”), the holding company for Inland Northwest Bank (“INB”) today announced the retirement of Byron “Jay” Wernz from the Company’s and INB’s Board of Directors effective February 20, 2018.  Mr. Wernz began serving as a director in 2015 when the Company merged with Bank of Fairfield.

Nancy C. Allen, Vice President of Real Estate and General Counsel for Stay Alfred, was appointed to the Company’s and INB’s Board of Directors effective February 20, 2018 to fill the vacancy left by Mr. Wernz.

Russ Lee, President and CEO of the Company and the Bank, said, “We greatly appreciate the contributions Jay has made to INB and his role in helping guide us through two successful mergers.”  Lee continued, “We are also very excited to add Nancy to our board as she brings energy, a unique perspective, and a wealth of business knowledge that we can apply at the board level.”

Tony Bonanzino, Chairman of the Board of both the Company and INB, said, “Jay was instrumental in lending his expertise in dry land agricultural banking and through his connections helped us grow into irrigated agricultural banking in Central Washington.  We are also very fortunate to add Nancy to our board. She brings a unique background and strong resume to the table.”

About Northwest Bancorporation, Inc.
Northwest Bancorporation, Inc. is the parent company of Inland Northwest Bank, a state-chartered community bank which currently operates 21 offices across Washington, Idaho and Oregon.  INB specializes in meeting the financial needs of individuals and small to medium-sized businesses, including professional corporations and agriculture-related operations, by providing a full line of commercial, retail, agricultural, and mortgage and private banking products and services.  More information about INB can be found on its website at www.inb.com.  The Company’s stock is quoted on the OTC Market’s Pink Marketplace, www.otcmarkets.com, under the symbol NBCT.

Forward-Looking Statements
This release contains forward-looking statements that are not historical facts and that are intended to be “forward-looking statements” as that term is defined by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.  These forward-looking statements may include, but are not limited to, statements about the Company’s plans, objectives, expectations and intentions and other statements contained in this release that are not historical facts and pertain to the Company’s future operating results.  When used in this release, the words “expects,” “anticipates,” “intends,” “plans,” “believes,” “seeks,” “estimates” and similar expressions are generally intended to identify forward-looking statements.  Actual results may differ materially from the results discussed in these forward-looking statements, because such statements are inherently subject to significant assumptions, risks and uncertainties, many of which are difficult to predict and are generally beyond the Company’s control.  These include but are not limited to: the possibility of adverse economic developments that may, among other things, increase default and delinquency risks in the Company’s loan portfolios; shifts in interest rates; shifts in the rate of inflation; shifts in the demand for the Company’s loan and other products; unforeseen increases in costs and expenses; lower-than-expected revenue or cost savings in connection with acquisitions; changes in accounting policies; changes in the monetary and fiscal policies of the federal government; and changes in laws, regulations and the competitive environment.  Unless legally required, the Company disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

For more information contact:

Russell A. Lee, President and CEO
Holly Poquette, Chief Financial Officer
509.456.8888
nbct@inb.com