Bank Of Lancaster

Area banks generally see Q2 profit gains | Philadelphia Inquirer | 2011-08-02

Despite persistent economic weakness here and nationally, most publicly traded local banks gained strength in the second quarter, with higher profits and continued progress in eliminating troubled loans from their books.

Thirteen area banks with nearly $60 billion in combined assets had reported second-quarter earnings through last week. Nine posted gains compared with the same quarter a year earlier, and 11 recorded higher net income than in this year's first quarter.

Stronger profits and ample capital have some bank chiefs thinking about acquisitions.

National Penn Bancshares Inc., of Boyertown, Pa., for example, has climbed out of a deep hole since the beginning of 2010 and, aided by an infusion of capital from new investors, is eager to expand its branch network in Philadelphia and Delaware County.

Fulton Financial Corp.'s chairman and chief executive officer told investors that the bank needs "some critical mass between where I sit right now and Philadelphia," referring to the bank's Lancaster headquarters.

Another Lancaster County bank, Susquehanna Bancshares Inc., already has taken steps to expand closer to Philadelphia, with its pending purchase of Abington Bancorp Inc. and Tower Bancorp Inc., which bought the First National Bank of Chester County.

Slow loan growth - only seven of the 13 banks reported loan growth, and that was usually slight - is one reason banks are eyeing competitors that can help fill in holes in their markets.

Scott Fainor, National Penn's CEO, said many of his bank's customers did not feel as though they had entirely escaped the recession. They "feel that things have stabilized, but they are still very cautious," he said.

At Bryn Mawr Bank Corp., "loan demand from our existing customers has been fairly soft, as it has been at most banks just because of the economy," Joseph G. Keefer, the bank's chief lending officer, told analysts Friday. New loans are coming from customers who have left competitors, he said.

Sun Bancorp Inc., of Vineland, N.J., which posted a second-quarter loss and has the longest string of quarterly losses among the 13 banks, at nine, reported a strong gain in commercial lending in the second quarter. The bank made $121 million in new loans in the quarter, up from $40 million in the first quarter.

"Our commercial-loan pipeline is the strongest it's been in two years," CEO Thomas X. Geisel said.

Phishing targets Bank of Lancaster County customers - News

Shelly Crider sensed immediately that something wasn't right when a caller on her cell phone informed her that her Bank of Lancaster County credit card was suspended.

The first clue that the call was a "phishing" scam designed to collect her personal financial information, she said, was that "I don't have any kind of card from Bank of Lancaster County."

Crider, of Lancaster, said that, secondly, "Anyone calling from the bank would know how to pronounce 'Lancaster.'!\p "

Phishing activity aimed at customers of various banks in Lancaster County have been somewhat common in recent months. But it's possible that scammers are focusing on customers of Bank of Lancaster County as it prepares to convert to the PNC Bank name Aug. 8.

Fred Solomon, PNC spokesman, said it appears that the current phishing operation, reported by Crider and others on Friday, has been aimed at cell phone users.

When Chuck George of Ephrata got to his car Friday after leaving the Lancaster Barnstormers game, he found a message on his cell phone. It too was supposedly from a Bank of Lancaster County representative, who advised him to call an area code he didn't recognize to clear up a matter involving his credit card. "I had an account with them years ago, not anymore, so I knew it was bogus," George said.

Susan Stoler of Lititz said she received a similar call on her cell phone at 8:43 p.m. Friday. A woman claimed her Bank of Lancaster County credit card had been deactivated.

Crider, George and Stoler reported the incidents to Bank of Lancaster County.

Solomon said phishing is common in the banking industry and that he was unaware of a sudden focus on Bank of Lancaster County customers.

"I don't believe this is limited to PNC," he said. "Similar messages have been used with other banks' names."

Susquehanna Bank customers earlier this month reported that they received fraudulent e-mails designed to look as if they came from the bank, complete with the company's logo.

George said he received another bogus message Monday, this time in text form, on his cell phone from a caller in the 515 area code saying his Susquehanna Bank credit card had been locked. "I have an account with Susquehanna, but I knew the text was not a good deal — I never text," he said.

PNC Financial Services Group completed its purchase of Sterling Financial — the owner of Bank of Lancaster County — for $535 million in April. In preparation for the conversion, many Bank of Lancaster County customers have already received new PNC credit and debit cards that don't go into effect until 8 a.m. on Aug. 8.

A history of the Farmers bank of Lancaster, the Farmers national bank and the Farmers trust company of Lancaster, 1810-1910

Lawyers' reports annotated

The Bankers magazine

Congressional edition

The Southeastern reporter