News & Publications
Mercantile Bancorp, Inc. Enters Indianapolis-Area Market
▪ Opens Loan Production Office in Carmel
▪ Indianapolis Bank Executive Kevin Murphy Name Regional President
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KEVIN P. MURPHY NAMED REGIONAL PRESIDENT |
Quincy, Illinois, February 19, 2008 - Mercantile Bancorp, Inc. (AMEX: MBR) today announced it has opened a loan production office in Carmel, Ind., adjacent to the north side of Indianapolis. The company said its intent is to develop this office into a full service banking facility, subject to Indiana regulatory approval. Kevin P. Murphy, 46, most recently senior vice president and group manager, commercial lending for M & I Bank, Indianapolis, has joined Mercantile as regional president of this office. This is Quincy, Ill.-based Mercantile Bancorp’s first facility in Indiana.
This loan production office will be an adjunct of Mercantile Bank, the company’s flagship bank. Murphy will work closely to begin the start-up with H. Blaine Strock III, president and CEO of Mercantile Bank, and Ted T. Awerkamp, president and CEO of Mercantile Bancorp, the holding company, and an advisory board comprised of Indianapolis business and financial leaders to develop the franchise. The office will focus on business lending.
Carmel has grown rapidly in the past 10 years. Since 1996, its population has doubled to 69,000 and it has tripled in physical size. Carmel has become a major business hub for central Indiana – its Meridian Corridor hosts the second largest concentration of office workers in Indiana and is home to numerous large corporate offices and small businesses.
"Although it’s adjacent to Indianapolis, Carmel has become a significant business center in its own right," noted Awerkamp. "Its size and demographics are similar to Illinois, Missouri and Florida markets in which we operate, giving us the confidence that we understand this market and how to serve it. Kevin brings to us 24 years of experience in business banking, and extensive knowledge of the Indianapolis area market. This gives us the opportunity to provide personal community bank service backed by the strength, resources and cost efficiencies of a larger financial organization."
Strock added: "Our strategy in entering new markets is to find the best local people possible to help us build our presence. This is a particularly exciting opportunity for us because Kevin is a true hometown product, in addition to being an experienced banker. The essence of successful community banking is to know your market, and how to tailor products and services to meet customers’ needs. Kevin brings all these capabilities to the table."
Murphy, who lives in Carmel, joined First Indiana Bank in 1999 in the business banking area. Before that, he was a first vice president in commercial lending with Union Planters Bank and held a number of positions in commercial lending at NBD Bank, Indianapolis. He received his MBA from Butler University in Indianapolis and his bachelor’s degree in finance from the Indiana University in Bloomington. He is active in youth hockey programs as a board member and coach.
About Mercantile Bancorp
Mercantile Bancorp, Inc. is a Quincy, Illinois-based bank holding company with majority-owned subsidiaries consisting of one bank each in Illinois, Kansas and Florida, where the Company conducts full-service commercial and consumer banking business, engages in mortgage banking, trust services and asset management, and provides other financial services and products. The Company also operates Mercantile Bank branch offices in Indiana and three in Missouri. In addition, the Company has minority investments in eight community banks in Missouri, Georgia, Florida, Colorado, California and Tennessee.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release may contain "forward-looking statements" which reflect the Company’s current views with respect to future events and financial performance. The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (“the Act”) provides a safe harbor for forward-looking statements that are identified as such and are accompanied by the identification of important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements. For these statements, the Company, together with its subsidiaries, claims the protection afforded by the safe harbor in the Act. Forward-looking statements are not based on historical information, but rather are related to future operations, strategies, financial results or other developments. Forward-looking statements are based on management’s expectations as well as certain assumptions and estimates made by, and information available to, management at the time the statements are made. Those statements are based on general assumptions and are subject to various risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from the views, beliefs and projections expressed in such statements. These risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results to differ from expectations, are set forth in our Annual Report on Form 10-K, and Form 10-Q as on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission, and include, among other factors, the following: general business and economic conditions on both a regional and national level; fluctuations in real estate values; the level and volatility of the capital markets, interest rates, and other market indices; changes in consumer and investor confidence in, and the related impact on, financial markets and institutions; estimates of fair value of certain Company assets and liabilities; federal and state legislative and regulatory actions; various monetary and fiscal policies and governmental regulations; changes in accounting standards, rules and interpretations and their impact on the Company’s financial statements. The words "believe," "expect," "anticipate," "project," and similar expressions often signify forward-looking statements. You should not place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements. Any forward-looking statements in this release speak only as of the date of the release, and we do not assume any obligation to update the forward-looking statements or to update the reasons why actual results could differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements.
