August 28 - CBA Today eNewsletter - Community Bankers Association of Georgia

John McNair, CBA; Charles Potts, ATDC

The Advanced Technology Development Center (ATDC), the state of Georgia’s technology startup incubator, announced a new initiative with the Community Bankers Association of Georgia (CBA) that will identify, develop, and refine financial technology (FinTech) solutions for community banks.

With a key objective to bring forward new ideas, issues, and concerns regarding the technology needs at community banks, CBA members will actively participate with ATDC in the piloting and testing of these new initiatives as well as provide financial support to entrepreneurs across the state. This was made possible through the creation of a CBA FinTech Committee, which will collaborate in the development of educational and outreach programming for the ATDC FinTech community. Read the full press release.

GA DBF Approves De Novo Charter for Loyal Trust Bank in Johns Creek
The Georgia Department of Banking and Finance has approved the charter for Johns Creek-based Loyal Trust Bank, In Organization, a planned $20 million financial institution that aims to serve the Asian American and business community in the north Fulton County area. Loyal Trust Bank, I.O. represents the second new bank charter approved in Georgia this year and the second given the go-ahead since 2008, when the financial crisis rocked the banking industry. On May 2, the GA DBF approved the de novo community bank charter for Tandem Bank, to be based in Tucker. Read more.

Georgia’s community bankers do great things in their communities every day. Here are some recent highlights from CBA Members:

Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms recently announced that a gift of about $114,000 from Ameris Bank, Moultrie, has closed out the $50 million HomeFirst Atlanta Initiative, which will create affordable housing and alleviate homelessness in the city. View the recorded live stream.
The Anti-Bullying Day Committee and employees of Morris Bank, Dublin, presented a $2,000 check to the Georgia Police K9 Foundation with the proceeds from Anti-Bullying Day. The bank along with Vaden Nissan were the main sponsors of Anti-Bullying Day.
Each year The Peoples Bank, Eatonton, presents grants to college bound children of employees. The bank recently announced that this year’s recipient is Nash Sinclair, son of bank teller Dawn Sinclair, who is about to begin his freshman year at Georgia Military College.
Southwest Georgia Bank, Moultrie, and SGB Insurance recently held a seafood dinner and insurance coverage meeting for the Colquitt County Volunteer Firefighters Association. The bank also gave a $250 donation to each volunteer fire department in Colquitt County. Pictured are the association officers, the captains of each department, and representatives from SGB.
BankSouth, Watkinsville, was recently recognized by Oconee County Schools as a district partner for their support of the county's students, teachers and staff. Pictured are Kenneth Mann and Lorie Petersen from the bank.
The Bank of Soperton and Million Pines Community Bank, Vidalia, recently provided lunch for the Faith & Finance workshop hosted by The Mercy Ministries, Paul Anderson Youth Home and Dream Center Vidalia.
United Community Bank, Cornelia, recently helped Habersham Ninth Grade Academy students beat the heat by donating 300 water bottles for bus riders on their ride home.
Bank of Dudley, Dublin, recently partnered with Dublin City Schools to install a Book Nook at the bank’s Veterans Blvd. branch.
Adam Hutchins, partner with Hutchins Clenney Rumsey Huckaby, PC, was named the recipient of the Albany Area Chamber of Commerce 2019 Albany Under 40 Award for financial services. The Albany Under 40 program celebrates the Albany Area’s emerging leaders and professionals in a variety of business sectors, each representing a component of the area’s diversified talent pool and economy.

CBA PAC/PR Fund Update
We are pleased to announce a recent contribution to the CBA Political Affairs Committee and Public Relations (PAC/PR) Fund.

Special thanks to our recent contributor:

Clark Hungerford
Leonard Bateman
Bank of Camilla
Lindsay Greene
South Georgia Bank
F & M Bank

In order to achieve our goals, we will need the help of your institution, Board members, officers, and employees. Your contributions are greatly appreciated and will go towards the only Georgia State PAC exclusively committed to representing the interests in community banks. Click here for contribution forms. For more information, contact Lori Godfrey.

Harold Wyatt III has been named Chairman of SouthCrest Financial Group Inc., the holding company for SouthCrest Bank N.A., Atlanta.

Tony Scavuzzo has been named Vice Chairman of SouthCrest Financial Group Inc., the holding company for SouthCrest Bank N.A., Atlanta.

Carol Arflin has joined Planters First Bank, Cordele, as Senior Vice President and Commercial Lender.

Michelle H. Piper has joined Queensborough National Bank & Trust Co., Augusta, as Vice President and Business Development Officer.

Richard Finamore has joined Quantum National Bank, Suwanee, as Vice President, SBA Portfolio Manager.

Kecia Smith as joined Georgia Primary Bank, Atlanta, as a Deposit Operations Specialist and Banking Officer.

Jake Ellington from Morris Bank, Dublin, has been promoted to Credit Analyst/Officer.

Caleb Stevens has joined the Correspondent Division of CenterState Bank as a Business Development Officer.

Bankers Gather in Savannah for CBA’s annual Cyber Risk Summit.
Just under 50 bankers gathered in Savannah to participate in CBA’s annual Cyber Risk Summit last week. The program kicked off with Ron Plesco, a former prosecutor who is an internationally known information security and privacy attorney who brought eye opening information that increased our knowledge of cyber vulnerabilities. “He was awesome.” Ron brought examples of cyber forensics that gave us all a new way to think about the risks of fraudulent activity. The day and half program was packed full of knowledge building opportunities. Here are just a few more highlights:

ISO’s had the chance to consider how and what to educate their bank’s board of directors in terms of IT and cyber crime, presented by Richard Snitzer, IT specialist from the FDIC.
A fellow banker, Marisa Reynolds, SVP at Oconee State Bank, covered the key factors for having an effective Cyber Risk Assessment at your financial institution. We appreciate Marisa working closely with one of our associate members, Jim Rumph of Porter Keadle Moore to cover this topic.
Zack Duke, Finosec, outlined, with examples, the five pillars of cyber security which include, identify, protect, detect, respond and recover.
Did you know that as much as 50% of identity theft originates in the workplace? And nearly 15 million Americans had their identities stolen in 2018. Thanks to Bill Kroll of the The Casey Group for organizing a panel. The cyber risk panelists presented resources to support our community banks as well as how we can train internally.
Cyber claims surpassed all other bank liability insurance claims in 2018. Kris St. Martin, CBIZ, covered what to look for in your cyber insurance policies to determine what is and is not covered.
We wrapped up the summit this year, with a table top exercise provided by Jackie Marshall and Holly Hooks of Safe Systems. This activity gave everyone a chance to discuss the lessons learned and talk about what to do if certain ‘abnormal’ incidents take place.
Bankers had opportunities to network and share best practices throughout the conference as cyber experts presented topics that allowed our participants to create action plans that will bring value to your community banks.

We would like to thank our program sponsors again for your partnership as we held another successful Cyber Risk Summit for our community bankers. Enjoy some pictures from the event.

Scenes from the 2019 Cyber Risk Summit

CBA Webinar: Are You Tracking Your Bank’s Online Reputation?
October 17, 2019 | 10:00 am | $49 per person

Hear from Lincoln Parks from WebMobileFusion, McDonough, on how to maintain a great online reputation. With the ever-changing online climate and the increase of citation websites, it is imperative that you focus your attention on your brand and reputation. If you don’t have a way to see and hear what people are saying about your bank, you are missing a huge opportunity to stop bad press. Register here.

Farmer Mac Road Show 2019
Friday, October 25, 2019 | 9:30 am - 1:30 pm | Moultrie, GA

CBA Associate Member Farmer Mac is bringing its popular Road Show to Moultrie, GA. Come meet the Farmer Mac underwriting and business development teams, have lunch, network with other local lenders and join the conversation as they will discuss capital, liquidity, and credit risk management options for ag lenders, the US agricultural outlook, and more. Space is limited, so sign up today. Register here. For the flyer, click here.

Think CBA First for Your Professional Development Needs!
Be sure to think of CBA first when it comes to your training and Professional Development needs. Here are some upcoming CBA events:

Here are some of the latest national news stories relevant to community banking and the financial services industry:

AUGUST 28, 2019