Independent Banker - January 2024 - 37

realized we've taken losses on investments of lower
yields and shorter maturity dates. And we reinvested
that for higher profi ts and income going forward.
THOMAS BATES, JR.: The continued rate
environment and deposit gathering will be our most
signifi cant challenges. And when trying to maintain
an acceptable net interest margin, you have to be
intentional about the kind of customers you go after.
Opportunity-wise, we have acquired some mortgage
originators from a large group of strong producers
that shut their operations down. So, going into
the spring buying season, we see the potential for
greater volume, even with an elevated rate.
with treasury management services, which
is part of the strategy to increase accounts
from small- to medium-sized businesses. We
see that as an area where we can earn some
fee income through merchant services and
additional non-interest-bearing deposits.
FRAZIER: We just announced a new business
line for us: government contract banking.
Being this close to Washington, D.C., we have
a lot of government contractors in the area.
We spent several years searching for the right
leader with the expertise we need that fi ts
our culture and understands and appreciates
our conservatism related to that. That person
just joined us, and we look to that division to
add new lending and deposit opportunities to
drive income for next year.
35%
The percentage of employees who
would seek employment elsewhere if
they had the option to work remotely
Source: Topia
RADCLIFFE: We're not looking at anything
new to roll out. It's more about enhancing
our existing abilities. We are working on
further implementing our commercial loan
origination platform and developing our
e-sign capability for our loan closing and
deposit side. Let's face it: People expect the
Amazon experience. Click a button and, in 30
seconds, be done. The critical piece for us is
being able to deliver on that experience.
PILARSKI: I can't say that, at this point, there
are specifi c products or services that we plan
to introduce. In 2024, we will focus more on
educating our clients on the tools we have
to help them handle their fi nances more
eff ectively and minimize their fraud risk.
What new technology is your community
bank considering in 2024 to service its
customers' needs?
What products or services does
your community bank anticipate
introducing, if any, to increase its
income in 2024?
BATES: We're not going to introduce anything
particularly new. We just signed up with TCM
Bank to do our credit cards, so we intend a
more signifi cant push on retail and business
payment cards. We'll also focus on leading
RADCLIFFE: We are implementing Zoom as our
telecommunications software. It will replace four
systems and signifi cantly reduce our annual outlay
for communications, which currently amounts to
more than $100,000. Specifi cally, Zoom will replace
our long-distance and local calling, our annual
WebEx subscription, our annual conferencing
hardware support, our contact center, our calling
management software and our yearly calling fee.
Zoom's business enterprise plan also provides an
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Independent Banker - January 2024

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