Capitol Bancorp Announces the Planned Consolidations of Banks in Nevada and Washington

LANSING, Mich. and PHOENIX, Sept. 8  /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Capitol Bancorp Limited (NYSE:CBC) announced today that it plans two separate consolidations involving four Nevada affiliate banks and four Washington affiliate banks.  Pending regulatory approval, Bank of Las Vegas, Black Mountain Community Bank, Desert Community Bank and Red Rock Community Bank will consolidate and operate as one charter, Bank of Las Vegas, in Nevada.  Pending regulatory and shareholder approval, Bank of Bellevue, Bank of Everett, Bank of Tacoma and Issaquah Community Bank will consolidate and operate as one charter, Bank of the Northwest, in Washington.

Capitol's Chairman and CEO Joseph D. Reid said, "Following the successful consolidation and centralization of operations for nine of Capitol's affiliates in the state of Michigan, we are deploying similar models to strategically realign our resources, and capitalize on the collective strengths of our Nevada and Washington affiliates and their respective operations.  We will create efficiencies and strengthen risk management practices, allowing Capitol to more efficiently allocate capital and resources within the banks' communities."

Leadership for the consolidated bank in Nevada will be headed by Capitol's Nevada Regional President Thomas Mangione, who will serve as the Chairman and CEO.  Capitol's Northwest Regional President Thomas Giovanelli will serve as the Chairman, President and CEO of the consolidated bank in Washington.

"Our top priority is to ensure that customers do not notice any changes in the quality customer service and community commitment they have grown to expect at each bank location.  I have the utmost confidence that our existing team of bankers will continue to exceed our customers' expectations," commented Giovanelli.

"This realignment of resources is part of Capitol's long-term strategy to assist the banks in adjusting to current market conditions and optimally position the banks for future opportunities that may present themselves.  The centralization of the banks' backroom operations will allow the banks to continue building on their existing foundations, help mitigate credit and operational risks, and establish advanced methods to improve processes," added Mangione.

About Capitol Bancorp Limited

Capitol Bancorp Limited (NYSE:CBC) is a $5.7 billion national community bank development company, with a network of separately chartered banks in 17 states. It is the holder of the most individual bank charters in the country. Founded in 1988, Capitol Bancorp Limited has executive offices in Lansing, Michigan, and Phoenix, Arizona.

Forward Looking Statement

Certain statements in this announcement contain forward-looking statements that are based on management's expectations, estimates, projections and assumptions. Words such as "expects," "anticipates," "plans," "believes," "scheduled," "estimates" and variations of these words and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, as amended. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve certain risks and uncertainties, which are difficult to predict. Therefore, actual future results and trends may differ materially from what is forecast in forward-looking statements due to a variety of factors.

All forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this press release. All subsequent written and oral forward-looking statements attributable to the company or any person acting on the Corporation's behalf are qualified by the cautionary statements in this press release. The Corporation does not undertake any obligation to update or publicly release any revisions to forward-looking statements to reflect events, circumstances or changes in expectations after the date of this press release.

http://www.capitolbancorp.com/ 

DATASOURCE: Capitol Bancorp Limited



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