Springfield banks change little in latest FDIC report

Some area banks saw a dip in deposits during the past year due to a softening loan market, while others managed to only slightly increase - except for two cases - their share of nearly $8 billion resting in local accounts.

By and large, banks in the Springfield metropolitan statistical area haven't budged much when it comes to deposit market share, according to a recently released report by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. The report measures deposits as of June 30 and ranks the banks by market share.

The big five

Great Southern Bank, with deposits of $1.5 billion, still holds nearly 20 percent of the local deposits. However, in the 12 months prior, the Springfield-based bank's deposits only grew by $18 million at its 23 banks in the five-county metro.

The six banks trailing Great Southern also held their rankings from June 2007, but one of them - No. 3 Empire Bank - actually saw total deposits drop by $7 million, according to FDIC.

No. 2 Commerce Bank increased deposits to $803 million for a half-percent gain in market share. Kansas City-based Commerce now holds more than 10 percent of the metro area's deposits at its 12 locations.

Tupelo, Miss.-based BancorpSouth ranks No. 4 in deposit market share, replacing its Springfield-based predecessor, The Signature Bank, from a year ago. BancorpSouth entered the market last year through a $170 million merger with The Signature Bank, a community bank with roots dating back to 1997.

As of June 30, 2007, The Signature Bank had about $575 million in local deposits, but BancorpSouth's deposit total was just $473 million when the FDIC tallied the market share at the end of June.

BancorpSouth President Rob Fulp said the $100 million drop in deposits likely reflected brokered deposits previously managed by The Signature Bank that rolled off after the merger.

Some BancorpSouth customers with strong ties to Signature Bank also are investors in the newly formed Springfield First Community Bank, which received a state charter from the Missouri Division of Finance late last month. Springfield First Chief Financial Officer Kirk Bossert said shareholders with BancorpSouth accounts shifted about $10 million from the bank to aid the startup effort.

BancorpSouth, meanwhile, is actively growing its deposits by offering "very competitive" interest rates, Fulp said, adding that activity has been particularly strong in the last 30 to 45 days.

"It's about the supply and demand," he said. "Currently, our credit demand is still considerably strong. And when you make loans, you need deposits."

BancorpSouth has guaranteed a 3.5 percent rate of return on its money market deposit accounts through end of the year, and the bank offers a performance checking account that accrues about 4 percent interest, said Deposit Coordinator Sarah Schrader.

No. 5 Bank of America trails BancorpSouth by just $9 million in deposits.

Middle of the pack

Banks in the sixth and seventh spots - Guaranty Bank and Liberty Bank, respectively - each posted gains in deposits, with Guaranty exhibiting greater growth.

Guaranty increased its deposits by more than $50 million in a year's time for a half-percent gain in market share, according to the FDIC figures.

In June 2007, Mid-Missouri Bank and U.S. Bank held the eighth and ninth spots, respectively, but both banks have lost deposit market share, allowing Citizens National Bank and Metropolitan National Bank - two other banks that lost market share - to move into the Top 10 this year.

John Wilson, regional president for Minneapolis-based U.S. Bank in Springfield, said his bank has been "judiciously managing" its spread by using its size to its advantage.

"By design, we were not paying interest rates on our savings deposits at the top of the market," Wilson said. "One of the reasons we do that is we also have other markets where we can get deposits for free.

"So we benefit from having a broad geographic range. This is an extremely competitive market with a lot of banks very aggressively pricing CDs."

In contrast, Mid-Missouri's deposits have dropped in response to a softening loan demand reflecting the housing slowdown, said President and CEO Lee Keith. Consequently, he said, the bank shifted its focus to core deposits and away from "hot money," which are short-term, high-yield investments.

"If we see a good pipeline in the works on our loan demand, then we will begin to be more aggressive on the deposit side," Keith said. "Used to be, you just managed your deposits and then you did your loans. Now, there's such a close connection because of the pricing models."

Mid-Missouri closed its mortgage lending division in July 2007 but still offers mortgages in-house.

Top climbers

Kansas City-based Bank Midwest and OakStar Bank, which is locally owned and operated, are two banks that made some of the largest gains in deposit market share from 2007-08.

Bank Midwest more than doubled its deposits to about $86 million from $39 million a year ago. Bank Midwest has five locations in area Wal-Mart Supercenters and a single standalone branch on West Republic Road.

OakStar grew its deposits to $75 million from $50 million a year ago.

That's an impressive accomplishment for a three-year-old startup bank with a single location on East Battlefield Road, said President and Chief Operating Officer Mark McFatridge.

"Growing 52 percent in a year is not something that's sustainable as much as I would love for it to be," McFatridge said. "It won't surprise me to see us move up a few notches over the next year as well. ... It's really a motivating factor for us. It's fun."