Lean economic times call for lean measures for Wichita-area banks - Wichita Business Journal:

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Area bank executives say tough economic which have been especially so forthe nation’se financial sector, have acted as a caution light for local institutionw that otherwise may have been looking at new There’s a premium today, they say, on preservinfg capital. It comes after 15 new branchexs opened in the Wichitza metro during the pastthree years. Anothet is planned for February. Some of thosw were replacement branches, but they all representedf investment bylocal banks.
“Unless somebody had something in the it wouldn’t surprise me to see (them) hold off on a lot of says Clark Boyer, president of , which opensa its east side branch next month near 21st and Greenwicj Road. “I don’t know how it couldf keep up with that pace going on with the recessionarhy timesupon us.” So far, only has announcedx a 2009 ground-breaking, planning to build a branch near 33rd Street North and Ridge Road. The bank long has sought a presence inwest Wichita, says Rockty Waitt, president of Rose Hill Bank. But otherwise, Winfield-based has put plans on hold for a brancyh near 13th Street Northand Greenwich.
The bank already purchaser a lot in adevelopment there, but it recentlu had to raise additional capital in the face of an enforcement actiohn by a federal regulator. And BankHavenm pulled out of Wichita altogether, saying its branch at 13th Streetf and Tyler Roadwas under-performing. Citizens Bank of Kansas later purchasedthe building. But that might become more Boyer says. “We have some banks in the area that are havinysome issues,” he says. “If we start getting some aviatiom layoffs, I think we’re more likely to see some Butuntil now, new branches have been openinv every three months or so. Some complain the city is over-branched.
“Io guess we will stop making theproblem worse,” says Tom Page, presidentr of . His bank doesn’yt have plans for new locations this To doit right, he says, “Youh can get to $1.5 to $1.8 million very But the cautious spending isn’t limited to branching, says Stever Hill, executive vice president and chiegf financial officer for Winfield-based CornerBank. He says equipment and technology vendorsa have told him their orders for 2009are down. he says, isn’t buying computer hardware this yearand won’t replacee ATMs unless they’ve completely worn out.
“You’ll probably see a maintenanc mode for thenext year,” Hill “It’s kind of a year of uncertaintgy (for banks).” Eric Goering, president and CEO of Wichita-based LendingTools.com — a maker of bankinf software — says he saw that uncertaintyy in 2008 as activity sloweds among larger institutions, causing the companhy to miss its growth goals for the year. But the firm, whicgh caters to community banks, still posted 20 to 30 percentrrevenue growth, Goering says. It’s expecting 2009 growtuh to surpass 20 percent but Goeringremains realistic. “We have customersw all around the country.
It’s kind of working its way the same way fashiojtrends do, if nothingh else,” Goering says. “It starts in the coasts and work s itsway in.” Larger banks, Goering have been “distracted” by increasing compliance requirement s and more time spent on risk management “worried about survival rather than new opportunity.” “j think people are looking at it that way, making sure theirt fundamentals are covered,” he says. “We definitely are pushing cost savings more than weused to.
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