Second New Branch This Year
3 or 4 More New Branches Expected in 2009
SMITHTOWN, N.Y., March 9, 2009 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Bank of Smithtown, a subsidiary of Smithtown Bancorp (Nasdaq:SMTB), has opened its first branch in New York City. The branch is in the Chelsea section of Manhattan at the corner of Seventh Avenue and W. 18th Street.
The Bank's Chairman and CEO, Brad Rock, commented: "For many years now, we have done a considerable amount of real estate lending and small business lending in New York City. We think that we can capture more deposit business from these customers if we have locations that are more convenient for them. This Chelsea office is the first of these branches, and we think it's at an ideal location. The branch is on the ground floor of a residential building that has received much attention for its outstanding design, it is very close to a stop on the subway line that goes to Wall Street, it is in an affluent section of Manhattan, and it is near some of our existing deposit and loan customers. We look forward to building our consumer and small business customer base there very quickly."
The manager of the Chelsea branch will be Claude Colimon. Mr. Colimon has more than 10 years experience in banking, including having recently served as the manager of Bank of Smithtown's branch in Setauket. Mr. Colimon said: "My team and I are excited about opening in Chelsea. We are building upon relationships with existing customers, and have already received commitments from dozens of new customers."
The Bank's new branches have been very successful with some of them collecting as much as $1 million a day in deposits for the first two months they are open, which helps the branches reach profitability very quickly. For example, the Bank's new Huntington branch which opened in November already has more than $94 million in deposits. The Bank's next branch in New York City will be downtown at the corner of Houston Street and Mulberry Street, which is known as the entrance to the "Little Italy" section of Manhattan. That branch is expected to open during the second half of this year. The Bank is also in the process of developing branches in mid-town Manhattan and Brooklyn.
The Chelsea branch is Bank of Smithtown's 21st branch. The Bank presently expects to open three or four more new branches during 2009. In addition to the Houston Street branch in New York City, the Bank is currently developing sites in Nassau and Suffolk Counties on Long Island. Those locations include Deer Park, East Setauket, St. James, Hicksville and East Northport. Some of those branches are expected to open during the third and fourth quarters of this year. The balance will open during 2010, together with other sites for which the Bank is currently in negotiations.
Bank of Smithtown opened four new branches last year. The Bank opened branches in Greenvale in April, Nesconset in June, Garden City in August, and Huntington in November. The branches have all been successful, collecting $187 million in new deposits during 2008. Bankwide, Bank of Smithtown grew deposits by 38% last year. Mr. Rock has emphasized: "These new branches help us fund the strong loan growth opportunities we have been experiencing since credit from the so-called 'shadow banking' system shut down entirely. With the secondary markets gone, and some of our bank competitors having reduced lending significantly, we continue to experience strong loan growth opportunities. As I have said before, there are good loans to be made even during hard economic times. You just have to have the capital and funding, and choose your opportunities wisely." Bank of Smithtown increased its loan portfolio by more than $700 million last year.
Founded in 1910, Bank of Smithtown is nearing its 100th anniversary as a community bank and is the largest independent commercial bank headquartered on Long Island. The stock of its parent holding company, Smithtown Bancorp, is traded on the NASDAQ Global Market under the symbol "SMTB". Smithtown Bancorp has often been ranked among the top bank holding companies in the country, including having been rated #1 by U.S. Banker and other rating services.
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