COLUMBIA, Md., Feb. 27 /PRNewswire/ -- Anita Gentle Newcomb, founder and president of A.G. Newcomb & Co., a strategic advisory firm for the banking industry, was recently featured on the Washington DC business radio show and website, The Leaders Spot. The show features top business leaders discussing their leadership styles, philosophies, challenges, successes, and industry trends.
Ms. Newcomb, an expert on banking strategies, illuminated part of the banking story that has been absent from most media coverage. Her work has provided insight into the fiscal health of many of the nation's 8,200 community banks. She believes that the state of "most of the nation's banks is quite different than what is currently being highlighted."
According to Ms. Newcomb, "Despite dire banking headlines, 98% of banks are 'well capitalized,' the highest capital level designation accorded by the FDIC." Ms. Newcomb points out that "Community banks have been painted with the same broad brush as larger banks and investment and mortgage companies. This has created a view that the banking industry is failing. But, the foundation of the banking industry, the smaller community banks, is sound and well positioned." She states that community banks are better positioned because many do not have a critical mass of high-risk loans, they have a loyal clientele, and they are working "daily and proactively" with their clients to mitigate damage. Ms. Newcomb noted, "Small banks are on the front line, already doing things that are being touted in the recovery plans. My clients are working with customers to bridge difficult circumstances." Contrary to what is being said in the media, community banks' loans increased last year.
She states that, "Customers and banks are in uncharted waters. Most customers have never felt such anxiety about their financial service relationships. This has created a tipping point in which consumers and businesses are reconsidering their banking relationships. There is a heightened sensitivity to security and trustworthiness, whereas in the past it was about convenience. Community banks have been the recipients of this influx of customers. Most community banks reported an increase in loans and deposits in the third quarter of 2008." Ms. Newcomb acknowledges that big banks play a critical role in the recovery and that it is imperative that they return to the fundamentals of banking: the building of sound, trusting relationships with their customers, "We are entering a new time that calls for new banking."
A podcast of Ms. Newcomb's interview can be heard at http://theleadersspot.com/archives/990.
Ms. Newcomb formed A.G. Newcomb & Co., headquartered in Columbia, Maryland, in 1999. The firm provides strategic advisory services to banks and their partners nationwide. The firm's expertise includes: consumer and business banking strategies; strategic planning; geographic and business line expansions; and acquisitions and divestitures.
www.AGNewcomb.com
