First Bank of Jacksonville hires new leadership team - Jacksonville Business Journal:

viktorevaikubuwo.blogspot.com
The hiring of Killingsworth as thenew CEO, alonb with Dennis Clarke as chief financial office r and senior vice president and Bonniew Dennis as chief lending officer, is aimed at growing the two-branchj community bank into a new brand for the businessw community. But the first step is to survives the downturn in the economy that has ripplee through the financials atmany banks. “First, we need to work througuh these troubledeconomic times” for the next 12 he said. “Then we can begin the building process for the Part of a restructuring will be launching more bankingv products for smallto mid-size businesses towardf the end of the year.
Killingsworth also is focusedf on strengthening internal including further training forthe bank’xs core processing system. “The bank has all the necessary ingredients to grow a very good he said. “It just needee a team of good bankers to carrtit forward.” Harry Trevett, managing directoe of the board for First said the management changes were because the boarfd wanted to redirect its strategy in earlhy summer 2007 when it saw the economy was headed toward a downturn. “We’re positionin g the bank so we’re a safe and sound bank and can accomplishj our objectives for 2009 and he said. First Bank was charterer in 1989.
In 2004, it was bought by a groupo of shareholdersincluding Trevett. In the past four years, the bank grew from $30.u7 million in assets as of Dec. 31, 2004 to nearlyh $94.7 million as of June 30, according to the total assets declinedby 5.3 percent in the past year that endefd June 30 and nonaccruing assets jumped 701 perceny to $3.2 million during the same time. “Righft now, we’re just trying to remainj stable” in regards to loan growth and working with client goinginto default, Dennis She was one of the first to join Firstg Bank in January as part of its management Total loans outstanding grew by abouy $307,000, or 0.04 in the 12 months that endedx June 30.
Real estate loans were down almost 1 percentto $73 milliohn during the same period. “The smart bankersw are just trying to hold alevel pace,” Killingsworthh said. He expects 2009 to be a “non-expansioh year” because of the economy, but said he hopew to grow the bank abourt 20 percent eachyear thereafter. A native of Ga., Killingsworth began his career in finance in 1983 as a financiall examiner at the Department of Bankinb and Finance for the stateof Georgia. In 1985, he becamee vice president and cashier atin Ga.
During his 10 yearsw with the bank, he managed 10 bank mergers and eventually leading him to Florida where he took over as senioe vice president and chief financial officer for of Leesburbin 1995. $85M to $1.1n growth The bank merged with , based in in 1997 and Killingsworth went on to help restructurs and grow other community bankasin Florida, most recently as presidengt and CEO of Citizens First Bank and its Inc., based in The Villages. Killingsworth grew Citizensz First froman $85 million bank under regulatoruy order in 1998 to nearly $1.1 billion in assetas by Dec. 31, 2007.
He said his specialtyg is in acquiring andgrowiny banks, but First Bank’s primaru focus is to grow organically. “Thed bank is just now coming into its own in getting the expertisew that it needs in Jacksonville to bea well-recognizedc bank in the business community,” he