Santa Cruz County Bank In The News

July 22, 2004

The following is an article from the Santa Cruz Sentinel

July 22, 2004 Santa Cruz County Bank nears $33 million in assets Sentinel staff report SANTA CRUZ — The county’s lone locally owned bank boasted a 69 percent increase in deposits in its second quarter of operations. Total deposits were up $13.4 million in Santa Cruz County Bank’s second quarter, which ended June 30. The bank has been in operation for five months. Financial highlights for the second quarter 2004 compared to the bank’s partial first quarter 2004 were: Total deposits increased $13.4 million to $21.3 million. Total loans increased $11.9 million to $15.3 million. Total assets increased $12.9 million to $32.9 million. New loans consisted primarily of loans and lines of credit to local small businesses, residential construction loans in Santa Cruz County, and lines of credit to local entrepreneurs. Deposits came from a broad array of individuals and businesses throughout the county. Advertisement President and Chief Executive Officer John Rossell said, "We are pleased to see the same level of enthusiasm for the bank’s services as we experienced with regard to the initial public offering of our stock. This county supports local business. After the last round of bank mergers, Santa Cruz County found itself without a local bank. More than 400 local investors pitched in to fill that void." The bank opened Feb. 3, five days after the close of its public stock offering of 1.32 million shares of common stock at $10 per share. The bank has one office at 325 Soquel Ave. in Santa Cruz and is pursuing plans to open a full service banking office in Watsonville in the first quarter of 2005. Santa Cruz County Bank’s common stock is listed on the Over the Counter (OTC) Bulletin Board under the stock symbol SCZC.