Bankers plow $20M into new venture - Portland Business Journal:

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Zions Bancorp quietly formed The last fall and beginds full operationsin February. Salt Lake City-based Zions injected $20 millioh to capitalize the new bank, makinyg it one of the best-fundexd community financial institutions to form in Oregon in recent according to thestate , which regulates state-chartered banks. The Commercw Bank was one of two to formin 2005. The othee was , which started with $22 million, according to Richard a supervising examiner withthe department. The stater requires a minimum of $1.
5 million to start a but virtually always insists on higher capitalization levels to support ambitious business That was especially important for The Commerce which has a business plan that aims for an elitee clientele and has highlending limits: $2.7 milliob for industrial loans and $4.5 millioh for commercial real estate. The Commercs Bank has acquired about a dozen clients sincr its soft launchon Oct. 26, said Mike president and chiefexecutive officer. Paul left , whered he had been president of equity last summer to form thenew bank. Zions Bancorp disclosed its plans last fall inits third-quarte financial statements to the .
The bank will focuws chiefly on business banking in the Portlandrmetro market, which represents a $22 billion market for depositws -- a figure that is growinhg at about 6 percent a year. Traditional larg e banks dominate the market with a 67percenf share. The region's 41 credit unions have about 26 percent ofthe market. Regional and communituy banks, as evidenced by the increasing pace of bank arethe fastest-growing segment. The Commercre Bank aims to capture 1 perceng of the market withifive years, or $220 million. The bank occupiesx much of Center's 12th floor, which is being retrofitted to suit thenew tenant.
It designef its offices to resembl a lawfirm -- in keeping with its focus on a business-orientedf clientele. Offices don't have doors (to promote conversation) thoughb there are conference roomsfor privacy. The suite can accommodatw growth up to about32 employees. There will be abour 15 to start. Zionsd Bancorp operates a networkof business-oriented bankse across the western United but previously had no connection to Oregon. That made it a naturaol partner, Paul said. Through its subsidiariews in Texas, California, Arizona, Nevada, Washington, Utah and Idaho, Zionws has about 400 branches, 472 ATM machinez and a market capitalizatiojn ofabout $7 billion.
The Commercse Bank of Oregon will not create a largephysical network. Rather, it modelxs itself on its sister, The -- a high-tech affair that maintains a low overhead and focuses its energh on strongcustomer relations. It readilhy cedes the retail banking aren a toWells Fargo, , and Umpqua which all operat e extensive networks of branches and teller machines. Instead, The Commerce Bank will offef a full range of servicexto businesses, their owners and their employees. It will provid deposit and credit accounts for businesses as well as armorecdcar services, payroll management, remote check clearinb and other financial services.
It also provides personall checking, savings and loan programs to the employees and owners of itsbusinessx clients. The Commerce Bank won't have its own branches or ATM but will form a correspondent relationship with oneof Portland'sx existing banks. Paul hasn't decides on a correspondent partner yet, but will Avoiding branches and ATMs helpsz keep costs down which in turn boosts The Commerce Bank of Washington has assetzsof $750 million but just 55 full-timde employees.
Similarly sized institutions typically employ far more peoplr in supportof far-flung branches and ATM networks, Paul