Pub. 6 2016 Issue 2

T H IS YEAR’S ARIZONA BANKERS ASSOCIATION (“AzBA”) CONVENTION AT THE BEAUTIFUL ENCHANTMENT RE- SORT IN SEDONA DID NOT DISAPPOINT. NESTLED IN THE RED ROCKS, AzBA MEMBERS, BANKERS AND BANKING industry supporters from all parts of Arizona gathered to celebrate the AzBA’s 113th Meeting and Convention. Ryley Carlock & Applewhite was honored to sponsor this year’s Convention and gain additional insight into the evolving and complex operating environment faced by all banks, and, in particular, banks in Arizona. The speakers were diverse and highly qualified: hey discussed regional, national and interna- tional issues impacting the banking industry today. One international topic on everyone’s minds was Brexit. The Convention took place 10 days before the Brexit vote and you could feel the uncertainty in the air. The speakers took turns fielding questions from bankers about whether Brexit would occur and the potential effects of it. One of the speak- ers, Chris Aimsworth, an economist and managing director of U.S. Trust, Bank of America Private Wealth Management, told the attendees that he hoped the U.K. would stay but cau- tioned that if it left, the U.S. market would feel the pain. He was right. The day after the U.K. voted to leave the European Union, the Dow Jones fell 500 points in early morning trading and closed down 610 points, its eighth largest point loss ever. Mr. Aimsworth advised the attendees that it would take at least two years for the U.K. to completely exit the European Union. Another highly anticipated topic was the state of Arizona’s real estate market. An experienced real estate panel discussed the future of residential real estate in Arizona, particularly in the Phoenix area. Nate Nathan of Nathan and Associates, Inc. was optimistic about the future of Arizona’s real estate. He predicted significant growth in the southeast, northwest and southwest parts of the Phoenix valley: areas where growth had significantly contracted after 2008. Another pan- elist, Michael “Frenchy” IlesCremieux, a Division President at Richmond American Homes, offered the homebuilder’s perspective and also believed that there was significant op- portunity for investment in these areas. The last panelist, Jim Belfiore of Belfiore Real Estate Consulting, advised attendees that while permits are increasing, they are not where they were at the height of the market. Finally, technology was a hot topic at the Convention. JB Nicols, a professor at the Pacific Coast Banking School and innovation expert, discussed the importance of FinTech. He cautioned against banks that were unwilling to incorpo- rate advances in technology and respond to the demands of customers who wished to bank almost exclusively online. He advised attendees that in the past five years, bank customers have trended towards using mobile banking more frequently than traditional branch banking. Bankers actively participated in a discussion about the remaining benefits of traditional bank branches and shared that business had flourished for banks in areas where new branches were built. Mr. Nicols did not diminish the importance of bank branches but strongly encouraged banks to embrace and familiarize themselves with financial technology and partner with new technology players to ensure their lasting presence in the market. Overall, the Convention was educational, forward-think- ing, and a great way to escape the heat with colleagues and friends. w At Ryley Carlock & Applewhite, we appreciate the importance of banks at the forefront of Arizona’s economic cycle and the critical role banks play in fueling business growth. That is why we have serviced banks since our firm opened its doors almost 70 years ago. We have worked with some of Arizona’s original community banks. We enjoy partnering with an industry that is such a driving force in Arizona’s economy. We thank the AzBA for letting us join them on another successful Convention. AzBA ANNUAL CONVENTION A SUCCESS! A snapshot of the event from the eyes of Platinum Sponsor, Ryley Carlock and Applewhite 6 www.azbankers.org