Three Missouri banks on Forbes list

by David Reed

January 8,2010

Three Missouri banks with operations in Columbia made the top 10 of a Forbes list of the best banks in the United States.

UMB Bank, based in Kansas City, ranked second behind Bank of Hawaii. UMB was listed as having $10.2 billion in assets and a nonperforming loan ration of 0.7 percent.

Commerce Bank, also based in Kansas City, ranked third, with $18 billion in assets and a nonperforming loan ratio of 1.6 percent.

Central Bancompany, based in Jefferson City and the parent of Boone County National Bank, ranked eighth. It had $9 billion in assets and a nonperforming loan ratio of 1.7 percent.

Forbes used researchers from SNL Financial to examine the health of the 100 largest banks and thrifts and listed the best 10 and the worst 10. The firm based in Virginia looked at eight financial measures that gauge asset quality, capital adequacy and profitability. The size of the banks ranged from a community bank with $5.2 billion in assets to Bank of America with $2.3 trillion of assets.

"To be recognized nationally as a top 10 bank is an honor," said Steve Erdel, Boone County National Bank president and CEO. "We're proud to have contributed to our holding company's success through our community leadership, exemplary customer service and financial expertise. We believe our accomplishments are because of our strong roots and our commitment to making good decisions for the long term."

Mariner Kemper, CEO of UMB Bank parent UMB Financial Corp, said the ranking "shows that the regional banking model works. UMB sticks to our time-tested prudent business practices, such as making loans within our territory, building relationships with our customers and understanding that strong underwriting practices produce quality results."