Centier Bank, Merrillville, was recognized by the Regional Development Company as its Bank of the Year with the most funded loans based on quantity and dollar amount. The RDC is a Valparaiso-based nonprofit administering U.S. Small Business Administration 504 loans for small business growth. It partners with local financial institutions to provide business financing for large capital projects in Indiana, Illinois and Michigan. The bank’s business bankers were recognized and awarded for their lending accomplishments.
(left to right) Tim Spoelman, business banking officer; Tom Wilk, chief lending officer; Tim Warner, vice president – business banking; and Greg Gordon, SVP – business banking, accepted the Bank of the Year award at the RDC’s annual awards ceremony, Nov. 9, 2023.
Tina Patton, director of nonprofit & foundation engagement at Indiana Trust Wealth Management, Mishawaka, and Julia Kaercher, executive director of Merchants Foundation, the charitable arm of Merchants Bancorp and its subsidiaries, including Merchants Bank of Indiana, Carmel, graduated from the Mutz Philanthropic Leadership Institute on Oct. 10, 2023 (pictured below). The Institute identifies and develops transformational philanthropic leaders across Indiana and offers a continuing education experience for board and executive roles at foundations, corporations and social impact organizations. Patton and Kaercher were members of the Institution’s third cohort.
Tina Patton
Julia Kaercher
Five IBA-member banks made American Banker’s list of the Top 90 Best Banks to Work For. Centier Bank, Merrillville, was the top-rated bank out of all IBA member institutions and No. 10 overall. First Merchants Bank, Muncie, ranked No. 60; Stock Yards Bank & Trust Company, Louisville, came in at No. 70; Civista Bank, Sandusky, Ohio, was close behind at No. 73; and Busey Bank, Champaign, Illinois, was No. 87. IBA associate member TIB-The Independent Bankers’ Bank, Farmers Branch, TX, also made the list at No. 30. See the full list of the Top 90 Best Banks to Work.
Five IBA members were named to the Piper Sandler Sm-All Stars Class of 2023, a list of the 31 top-performing small-cap banks and thrifts in the country: 1st Source Corporation, holding company of 1st Source Bank, South Bend; Civista Bancshares, Inc., holding company of Civista Bank, Sandusky, OH; First Financial Bancorp., holding company of First Financial Bank, Cincinnati; Merchants Bancorp., holding company of Merchants Bank of Indiana, Carmel; and Premier Financial Corp., holding company of Premier Bank, Defiance, OH. To make the list, companies needed to have a market cap below $2.5 billion as of Sept. 15, 2023, and clear numerous hurdles related to growth, profitability, credit quality and capital strength. The 31 banks and thrifts that made the list represent just 9% of all companies screened.
