2025 ISSUE 3 BACKGROUND ON Mark Jenkins President of the Bank of Billings PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE Fueling Growth and Market Expansion Vigilante Justice? Financial Markets React Quickly to Policy Changes
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INSIDE THIS ISSUE PO Box 1765 Jefferson City, MO 65102 (573) 636-2751 | miba.net Editor: MATTHEW S. RUGE Executive Director ©2025 The Missouri Independent Bankers Association (MIBA) | The newsLINK Group LLC. All rights reserved. The Show-Me Banker is published six times per year by The newsLINK Group LLC for MIBA and is the official publication for this association. The information contained in this publication is intended to provide general information for review, consideration and education. The contents do not constitute legal advice and should not be relied on as such. If you need legal advice or assistance, it is strongly recommended that you contact an attorney as to your circumstances. The statements and opinions expressed in this publication are those of the individual authors and do not necessarily represent the views of MIBA, its board of directors or the publisher. Likewise, the appearance of advertisements within this publication does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation of any product or service advertised. The Show-Me Banker is a collective work, and as such, some articles are submitted by authors who are independent of MIBA. While a first-print policy is encouraged, in cases where this is not possible, every effort has been made to comply with any known reprint guidelines or restrictions. Content may not be reproduced or reprinted without prior written permission. For further information, please contact the publisher at (855) 747-4003. Published for the Missouri Independent Bankers Association 4 PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE Fueling Growth and Market Expansion 5 MIBA 48th Annual Convention & Expo 6 FLOURISH Let’s Come Together To Address Fraud 7 FROM THE TOP The Key to Driving Down Fraud Risk 8 2025 Directors & Officers Seminar The Lodge of Four Seasons 10 BACKGROUND ON Mark Jenkins President of the Bank of Billings 12 Financial Fraud Advisory Committee Invitation 13 2025 MIBA Financial Directories Are Available 14 MEET YOUR MISSOURI BANKER Derek Hoehns Loan, Compliance and BSA Officer, The Citizens-Farmers Bank 16 2025 Leadership Division Day at the Capitol Jefferson City, Missouri 18 LEGAL EAGLE SPOTLIGHT Lenders’ Rights in Single Asset Real Estate Cases 20 MIBA Lobbying Report 20 2025 Upcoming Events 21 2025 Scholarship Winners 22 Vigilante Justice? Financial Markets React Quickly to Policy Changes 24 Free Tools to Maximize Your Bank’s Marketing 26 2025 ICBA Capital Summit 28 Cybersecurity is EVERYONE’s Responsibility 29 News From You 29 35th Annual Scholarship Auction 30 2025 PAC Honor Roll April 1, 2025 31 Welcome New Associate Member 31 MIBA Endorsed Vendors 32 MIBA Associate Members 34 Upcoming Webinar Schedule 36 48th Annual Golf Tournament Monday, Sept. 8, 2025 10 8 16 22 Cover photo courtesy of VisitMo.com The Show-Me Banker Magazine | 3
Fueling Growth and Market Expansion We celebrated Community Banking Month in April. We spent the entire month marketing our story, sharing all the positive impacts we have made in our communities and highlighting the value we bring to our customers. Telling our many positive stories was an easy process. In today’s competitive business environment, to successfully tell your bank’s story, marketing and business development are two critical functions that often intersect but serve distinct purposes. When aligned strategically, they form a powerful engine that fuels growth and market expansion. Although marketing and business development are sometimes used interchangeably, they play different roles in any bank’s growth strategy. Marketing is about generating awareness and interest in a bank’s products and services. It includes activities like branding, advertising, content creation, social media and market research. Business development focuses on identifying new business opportunities, forming strategic partnerships and expanding the bank’s reach into new markets or customer segments. In simple terms, marketing attracts while business development converts and expands. Marketing professionals are charged with creating a brand identity that resonates with the target audience. This is done by creating leads through SEO, social media and email marketing campaigns; growing prospects with valuable content and engagement strategies; conducting market research to understand customer needs and the competitive landscapes; and building trust through consistent messaging and positive customer experiences. Effective marketing creates the conditions for business development to succeed by building a strong foundation. Business development professionals are charged with identifying new markets and customer segments. This is done by pursuing strategic partnerships and alliances; building relationships with key customers, decision-makers and stakeholders; and creating proposals to develop business. Business development professionals are inherently outward-facing and relationship-driven, requiring strategic thinking, networking and a deep understanding of market dynamics. Best practices for alignment of marketing and business development include shared goals and metrics. This can be done by aligning growth KPIs, including lead/prospect quality, conversion rates and revenue impact. Frequent meetings and collaboration help both teams stay informed and responsive. CRM and marketing automation tools are helpful as they track contacts and interactions and measure results. Consistent messages across marketing and business development will strengthen the bank’s brand and build trust. Collaboration is vital for long-term success. When marketing and business development work as one, they make our banks successful by creating new growth opportunities and outpacing our competitors. We need to continuously tell our community banking story, not just during the month of April but 24/7/365. PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE Doug Fish MIBA President BTC Bank, Bethany, MO 4 | The Show-Me Banker Magazine
www.miba.net All exhibits questions should be directed to Jessica Rogers, MIBA Exhibits Coordinator at the MIBA Office: (573) 636-2751 or jrogers@miba.net. Registration is now open to all Member & Non-member vendors. September 8-10, 2025 - There are still a few booth spaces available but they are going fast! The MIBA 48th Annual Convention & Expo will put you in front of a higher percentage of our CEOs and decision makers than many other trade shows. As an Association Member Exhibitor, remember you are also accorded one complimentary registration for the entire convention at no additional cost. If you have not received your copy, you can go online to www.miba.net, click on the Annual Convention link. The entire prospectus will be available to download and print, along with the application. Get your booth space request in ASAP as this exhibition hall always sells out!
FLOURISH Let’s Come Together To Address Fraud Rebeca Romero Rainey President and CEO, ICBA When it comes to fraud, it takes a village. That may be partly because fraudsters continue to get more sophisticated, and fraud’s effect on banking is skyrocketing. According to the Federal Trade Commission, consumers lost upwards of $12.5 billion to fraud in 2024 — a 25% increase year after year. Additionally, community banks ranked cybersecurity as the highest internal risk to their banks, notes the Conference of State Bank Supervisors. Fortunately, the core pillars of ICBA — education, innovation and advocacy — all address fraud risks by providing information, tools and resources to circumvent mounting threats. We’re empowering you with knowledge of the latest attacks and ways to protect against them, technology solutions solution to an immediate problem. It’s also this connection that enables you to alert one another to the latest scams and advise each other on how to prevent losses for your customers and your banks. ICBA Community (community.icba.org) offers a platform to facilitate these conversations in a secure, digital fashion all year round. Outside the individual relationships you have with colleagues, ICBA Community allows you to connect with new bankers, throw out a question to see who’s experienced something similar, share a strategy about what worked in preventing an attack, and so much more. This spirit of helping one another makes community banking unique. We come together to offer advice and support for the common good. Very few industries can point to the level of collective positive impact we have. For fraud, that makes all the difference, because fraud is everyone’s problem. To hit it head on, we have to approach it holistically across the industry, taking advantage of all the tools in our toolboxes. It takes this community of community bankers to make a difference. Collectively, we will continue to have an impact, thwarting one fraud attempt at a time. to employ to shield your organizations, and connection to government agencies to ensure just and fair fraud protections, as well as collaborations to stop it in its tracks. Case in point: Consider our partnership with the U.S. Postal Inspection Service to combat the threat of check fraud. We are working together to deliver in-branch educational materials with step-by-step instructions to help consumers safeguard their financial assets and respond if they experience this type of fraud. Yet, some of the most effective approaches to fraud prevention emerge through conversations about what has worked within your banks. That firsthand knowledge goes a long way in providing a tried-and-true
The Key to Driving Down Fraud Risk FROM THE TOP But in a complex fraud environment, you need more than knowledge alone to thwart fraud. That’s where technological tools enter the picture. For instance, we’ve recently tightened down our Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) software, and we also implemented a detailed wire transfer questionnaire. As part of our wire process, we have begun asking a series of questions on the transaction, including where it’s going and what it’s being used for, and we’ve stopped quite many fraudulent transactions by digging deeper into purpose. In the past year, between our software and this questionnaire, we estimate we’ve stopped upwards of $750,000 in fraudulent transactions. The fraud environment requires community banks to become detectives, charged with determining the legitimacy of a transaction. Fortunately, today’s technology can help us in doing that. ICBA Innovation (icba.org/innovation), through the ThinkTECH Accelerator and Preferred Service Providers, gives a shortlist of strong fraud mitigation partners that can serve as important assets in our fight against fraud and are worth considering for your bank’s needs. Because stopping fraud requires the right mix of technology tools and current knowledge, it’s up to each community bank to ensure we have appropriate solutions in place to address both. Fortunately, we have ICBA in our corner to support our work and keep us armed with the latest fraud prevention information and tools. My Top 3 Ways to stop fraud: 1. Invest in strong BSA software. 2. Provide constant fraud trend education for staff and customers. 3. Use Positive Pay with business customers. Jack E. Hopkins Chairman, ICBA In today’s environment, community banks are battling increasingly sophisticated forms of fraud. AI impersonation has grown more prevalent, and we must be a lot more vigilant, increasing our reviews of transactions that on the surface appear normal. That added scrutiny requires a two-fold approach in the form of ongoing education and technological support. With such complex scams and fraud scenarios in play, community banks must prioritize staff training. If someone’s trying to impersonate a customer using AI or victimizing them via a scam, our teams need to be able to identify red flags and unusual behavior. To protect both our banks and our customers, we need to go that extra mile to verify every transaction is legitimate. Fortunately, this type of scrutiny speaks to an existing community bank strength — knowing our customers — but it’s also about ensuring we are up to speed on the latest scams. At my bank, we sign up for different alerts, including those from ICBA, that summarize the latest fraud attacks. Then, we not only share that information internally but also make it available to our customers, raising awareness of all the types of fraud we’re seeing and sharing examples of the latest scams to help protect them, because knowledge is power. The Show-Me Banker Magazine | 7
2025 Directors & Officers Seminar The Lodge of Four Seasons 8 | The Show-Me Banker Magazine
THANK YOU TO THE SEMINAR SPONSORS! The Show-Me Banker Magazine | 9
BACKGROUND ON Mark Jenkins President of the Bank of Billings As a fifth-generation banker, Mark Jenkins is proud to carry forward a long-held family tradition of caring for the community. Mark’s great-great-grandfather, Irving Jenkins, helped start the Citizens Bank of Sparta in 1919 as a primary investor. Mark’s great-grandfather, Harvey Jenkins, worked there as well, serving as the bank president and as a cashier. Mark’s grandfather, James I. Jenkins, started working at the bank in 1935. Mark’s father, James R. Jenkins, started working at the bank in 1970 after he got back from Vietnam. Mark was born in 1974 and was raised on a small farm in the close-knit community of Sparta. During the time he attended Sparta High School, he could often be seen mowing the lawn at the bank and doing odd jobs like shredding paper. Mark attended Southwest Baptist University, located only about an hour away from Sparta. During this time, Mark started working as a teller at the bank, then as a bookkeeper and then on to loan processing. Upon graduating with an accounting degree, he stepped into the role of a loan officer. “My path to banking was made easy for me. My parents never pressured me to go into banking. They simply told me if I wanted a job, the opportunity would be there,” Mark recalled. “At one point, I worked with my dad, my grandfather, my uncle, a great aunt and a couple of cousins. If you called the bank and asked for Mr. Jenkins, you could have gotten any one of many Mr. Jenkinses.” Mark has many fond memories of working with his father, but perhaps one of his favorites was from early on in his career. “My office was an old boardroom that had been partitioned off with glass windows that made a wall. My dad sat in the office next to me and our desks faced each other,” Mark recalled. “As I would be interviewing or talking to a customer, I could look over their shoulder and see my dad in the background giving me the thumbs up or thumbs down based on how I was doing.” The number one thing Mark’s father emphasized was integrity and honesty. “They are the pillars of what it means to be a banker; if you don’t have your integrity, you don’t have anything,” his father would say. When Mark’s grandfather passed away in 2002, the banks’ outside shareholders wanted to sell their shares. Efforts were made to form a holding company, but a few holdouts wouldn’t allow it to go through unless an agreement was signed guaranteeing that they would be paid two times book value. This forced the bank to be sold. “I ended up leaving the bank and went to work for Jack 10 | The Show-Me Banker Magazine
Henry for about six months on a traveling conversion team,” Mark said. “Trying to raise a family while traveling wasn’t the best logistical move for me.” Mark called his friend, Frank Hilton, who worked at Citizens National Bank, and asked if they had any job openings, and they did — Citizens National Bank was getting ready to open a new branch in Ozark, which was where he lived. Mark worked there from 2000 to 2010, when they were sold to Empire Bank. Most of the lenders were laid off during that merger, and Mark found himself looking for a job once again. He ended up going to work at Systematic Savings Bank in downtown Springfield. Systematic Savings Bank was an old savings and loan that was in the process of converting to a bank. “They brought me on to help get them converted over. At that point, they didn’t have anything but fixed-rate loans and CDs. They didn’t have checking accounts, debit cards or ATMs,” Mark said. “I set them up with standard policies for all different types of loans, implemented debit cards, checking accounts and savings accounts — basically, all the different types of accounts that a traditional community bank would have.” A year-and-a-half later, Mark received a call from a recruiter telling him about an opportunity at Bank of Billings. Mark told him that he already had a job. With great insistence, the recruiter told him, “You need to look at this position.” The Bank of Billings had been without a president for a while and was in some trouble. Mark rose to the challenge and came on as president of Bank of Billings in 2012. He got to work cleaning things up, and in no time, the bank was profitable and in good shape. Today, Bank of Billings is used as a training bank for examination staff to come and get their people trained. “We run a pretty clean ship,” Mark said. “We’ve been in a growth mode over the last 13 years. When I came to the bank, we were just over $50 million in size, and now we’re at $95 million. We’ve had steady growth.” Outside of the office, it is important for Mark to give back to his community. He recently served a three-year term on the Ozark School Board and is actively involved in the Ozarks Sertoma Club. Sertoma is an acronym, meaning “SERvice TO MAnkind.” The main beneficiary of their fundraising efforts is the Boys and Girls Club of Springfield. Mark is a member of the local Lions Club and is active in his local congregation. Mark has learned so much throughout his career, and sharing that knowledge through teaching opportunities and presentations is something he’d like to start doing more of. “I’m getting ready to teach a fraud prevention presentation to an elderly group at church,” Mark said. “My mom never had to deal with finances until my dad passed away two and a half years ago. Three months ago, she was approached by an online fraudster and didn’t know what to do. She panicked. Instead of calling me, she took out $10,000 and loaded it into a Bitcoin machine because she thought she was protecting her money.” When Mark found out about this, he reached out to his network and involved the courts. The money is still sitting in a Bitcoin account, but as soon as it is transferred, it can be seized and returned. Although this story is not over, it will have a better ending than most because the fraud was caught early. The rising wave of crypto scams against the elderly is alarming. Mark and his mother will be sharing their story to help bring awareness to this situation and prevent it from happening to others in their community. As chair of MIBA’s Legislative Committee, Mark welcomes the opportunity to do more to help shine a spotlight on issues like these. A good example is SB 99, which creates new provisions to prevent fraudulent activity on bank accounts, currently on Gov. Mike Kehoe’s desk awaiting his signature. If this bill were enacted, Mark would have been notified by his mother’s banker about the suspected fraud. “Legislation has not caught up to today’s problems. We are leaving huge segments of our community vulnerable,” Mark said. “In addition to stronger laws, our industry needs to do a better job at outreach and education when it comes to the communities we serve.” Mark and his lovely wife, Jennifer, have been married for 26 years this September. They have two children: Madeline and Luke. Madeline is 23 and currently teaches 7th-grade history at Ozark Junior High School. Luke is 19 and is getting ready to attend Missouri State University in Springfield this fall. Luke plans on getting his accounting degree and a CPA license. Both children have spent time working in the bank with their father, learning about the industry and what it takes to be a community banker. The Jenkins family legacy is being carried forward with a sixth generation of bankers. The Show-Me Banker Magazine | 11
Financial Fraud Advisory Committee Invitation NEW for 2025! MIBA is excited to invite you to join our Financial Fraud Advisory Committee. This advisory committee will play a crucial role in advising your bank and the association on emerging trends, challenges, and best practices in combating financial fraud. Purpose of the Advisory Committee The primary purpose of the Financial Fraud Advisory Committee is to provide expert guidance and insights to enhance our fraud prevention and detection capabilities. Specifically, the advisory committee will: Identify emerging fraud schemes and vulnerabilities within the financial sector. Advise on effective strategies and technologies for preventing and detecting fraud. Share best practices and insights on fraud investigation and recovery. Review and provide feedback on our fraud-related policies and procedures. Promote collaboration and information sharing among community bankers. Benefits of Joining As a member of the Financial Fraud Advisory Committee, you will have the opportunity to: Network with leading experts and peers in the financial sector. Gain early access to information on emerging fraud threats and vulnerabilities. Enhance your professional reputation as a thought leader. Contribute to a more secure and trustworthy financial system. Commitment Required Membership on the Financial Fraud Advisory Committee requires a commitment to: Participate in quarterly conference calls and/or one in-person meeting. Review and provide feedback on relevant topics prior to meetings. Share your expertise and insights on fraud-related topics. **Please note that you do not need to be a current MIBA board member to participate, any officer of a MIBA Member Bank is eligable to be on this Advisory Committee . If you are interested in joining the Financial Fraud Advisory Committee, please contact Matthew Ruge at mruge@miba.net or Michelle Lawson at mlawson@miba.net. MIBA looks forward to hearing from you and working together to combat financial fraud. 12 | The Show-Me Banker Magazine
2025 To the following Member advertisers Bankers Security, Inc. Midwest Independent BankersBank First Bankers’ Banc Securities, Inc. Community Banker Visa SHAZAM Flat Branch Mortgage Services forbinfi JMARK ICBA Securities TIG Advisors ICBA Education BCC Forvis Mazars To order extra directories call the MIBA Office at (573) 636-2751 $45.50 each + shipping while supplies last THANK YOU Each MIBA Member receives a complimentary copy, but you NEED these resource directories throughout your bank. Order now and get your extra copies ASAP!
MEET YOUR MISSOURI BANKER Derek Hoehns Loan, Compliance and BSA Officer, The Citizens-Farmers Bank 14 | The Show-Me Banker Magazine
Where is your main bank and branches located? What is the market like? Our main bank and drive-up facility are in Cole Camp, Missouri. We also have a branch in Stover. We have a varied market including but not limited to agriculture, commercial, residential, vehicle and personal unsecured loans. We are located in a rural area and as such, much of our business is in the agricultural field. What is something unique about your bank? Our bank is unique in that we still have the small-town bank attitude. We know our customers and they know us. It is an honor to serve our customers, whether on the deposit or loan side of banking. It is a blessing to see them succeed in life, and being able to help them achieve their goals is our duty. How did you get started in the banking business? My start in the banking industry began 19 years ago with a job as a teller for Central Bank of Sedalia (then Third National Bank). I slowly worked my way through the different departments in order to learn all aspects of banking. At the time, I was working to get my degree in business management, accounting and economics, and it seemed like a good fit for me. Nine years ago, I was offered the wonderful opportunity to come home to the town that I grew up in and become a loan officer for The Citizens-Farmers Bank. Whether you would consider it a gift or a curse, my experience in compliance and BSA was instrumental to helping me become the banker I am now. Although I wear many hats, I would not change a thing. What is the most important thing you’ve learned from this career so far? The most important thing that I have learned in my banking career is that each and every day, no matter the workload, I get the opportunity to help people in my community achieve their goals in life. Tell us about the bank’s community investment efforts. Citizens-Farmers Bank prioritizes investment in the community. Whether volunteering at community events or making monetary donations to local schools or organizations, contributing to the communities is very important to us. What is the bank’s biggest challenge in the area of internet banking/mobile banking? Fraud is the bank’s biggest challenge. It has been a learning process, but we are blessed with a wonderful team of employees who know the red flags. The bank will always have bad actors, but we strive to educate our customers so they know how to keep their banking information safe. What’s your favorite thing about your bank/banking in general? Being able to build relationships is my favorite thing in banking. We are gifted with the ability to help customers achieve their dreams in life. Not only this, but the family atmosphere I have created with the employees of the bank is such a blessing. We definitely travel life together. If you didn’t have a career in banking, what other career would you choose? If I could choose a different career, I believe it would be construction. I have always enjoyed the building trades. My knowledge was greatly increased when we remodeled our home five years ago. The ability to build something of beauty is such a gift. The Show-Me Banker Magazine | 15
2025 Leadership Division Day at the Capitol Jefferson City, Missouri 16 | The Show-Me Banker Magazine
The Show-Me Banker Magazine | 17
LEGAL EAGLE SPOTLIGHT Lenders’ Rights in Single Asset Real Estate Cases By Lindsay Doman and McKay Holley, Spencer Fane LLP Lenders frequently provide financing for borrowers who are single asset entities. Often, those entities exist to (1) hold title to real estate that is the collateral for the underlying loan, and (2) collect income generated from that collateral. In bankruptcy, these entities are designated as single asset real estate (SARE) debtors. Congress created special rules to address SARE cases, which offer lenders certain protections that otherwise would not exist in a normal bankruptcy case, including an expedited timeframe that requires a SARE debtor within 90 days of the bankruptcy petition to propose a Chapter 11 plan of reorganization or make interest only payments. 18 | The Show-Me Banker Magazine
But what if a debtor makes the interest-only payments for a few months until it can file a confirmable plan and then cease to make the interest payments? This article posits that a debtor must continue to make interest payments once it elects to extend the automatic stay by making the required interest payments if the debtor wants to keep the automatic stay in place. The filing of a bankruptcy petition automatically acts as an injunction against certain actions against the debtor or the estate’s legal or equitable interests in the debtor’s assets. For example, if a debtor files for bankruptcy to stop the foreclosure of real property, this injunction — known as the automatic stay — precludes the lender’s commencement or continuation of the foreclosure proceeding.1 Normally, the lender must obtain court approval to commence or continue the foreclosure proceeding by filing a motion for relief from the automatic stay.2 The court must grant relief from the automatic stay if the lender can establish two alternative circumstances. First, if the lender can establish that “cause, including the lack of adequate protection” in the collateral exists.3 Second, the lender can establish that the debtor (a) lacks equity in the collateral and (b) the collateral is not necessary for an effective reorganization.4 This article, however, deals solely with the provision that governs relief from the automatic stay in SARE cases, which is set forth in Section 362(d)(3). A SARE case is defined under the Bankruptcy Code to mean: “Real property constituting a single property or project, other than residential real property with fewer than four residential units, which generates substantially all of the gross income of a debtor who is not a family farmer and on which no substantial business is being conducted by a debtor other than the business of operating the real property and activities incidental thereto.”5 A debtor can designate a case as a SARE case on its bankruptcy petition, or a creditor can move the court to designate the case as a SARE case. The distinction is important, as SARE cases are on an expedited timeframe. Secured creditors in cases designated as SAREs are afforded special protections under the Bankruptcy Code. Under Section 362(d)(3)(B), secured creditors are afforded “an express entitlement to receive payments of contractual interest from the debtor” after the first 90 days.6 Section 362(d)(3) further requires the court to grant a secured creditor relief from the automatic stay if the debtor fails to, within 90 days of filing its petition, (1) file a plan of reorganization with a reasonable likelihood of being confirmed within a reasonable time, or (2) commence making monthly interest payments at the applicable contractual, non-default rate.7 Section 362(d)(3) ensures that debtors cannot abuse the automatic stay while also “giving the debtor the opportunity to create a workable plan of reorganization within 90 days.”8 Congress’ adoption of Section 362(d)(3) limits “bankruptcy judges’ discretion to prolong a SARE case unless monthly payments have commenced” or the debtor has filed a plan.9 Ultimately, Section 362(d)(3) provides relief in those cases where a SARE debtor, with little hope of successfully reorganizing, delays the bankruptcy process “while secured creditors are left helplessly on the sidelines.”10 A debtor does not satisfy the requirements of Section 362(d)(3) by commencing monthly payments, halting such payments, and then filing a bankruptcy plan more than 90 days after the petition date. A bankruptcy court faced this same issue in In re 652 West 160th LLC.11 In that case, the debtor failed to file a bankruptcy plan within 90 days of the petition date. The debtor made one monthly payment that it alleged complied with the requirements in Section 362(d)(3)(B), but the bankruptcy court noted that “assuming arguendo that a timely payment was proffered, one interest payment made two months into the bankruptcy does not meet the statutory requirement of ‘monthly payments.’”12 The court concluded that the debtor in that case had already failed to file a reasonably confirmable plan within 90 days of the petition date, and its only option to satisfy Section 362(d)(3) was to make the interest-only payments. After failing to do so, the court determined the stay must be lifted. This is the correct result. It provides the debtor 90 days to file a confirmable plan or commence and continue to make interest-only payments while ensuring lenders are not “left helplessly on the sidelines.” Lindsay Doman and McKay Holley are attorneys at Spencer Fane and work within the firm’s Banking & Financial Services and Bankruptcy, Restructuring, & Creditors’ Rights practice groups. They can be reached at ldoman@spencerfane.com and mholley@spencerfane.com, respectively. 1. See generally, 11 U.S.C. § 362(a). 2. 11 U.S.C. § 362(d). 3. 11 U.S.C. § 362(d)(1). 4. 11 U.S.C. § 362(d)(2). 5. 11 U.S.C. § 101(51B). 6. In re Heather Apartments Ltd. P’ship, 366 B.R. 45, 49 (Bankr. D. Minn. 2007). 7. See e.g., Meruelo Maddux Properties-760 S. Hill Street, LLC v. Bank of America (In re Meruelo Maddox Properties, Inc.), 667 F.3d 1072, 1076 (9th Cir. 2012); In re BGM Pasadena, LLC, No. 16-03178-cas, 2016 WL 3212243 *6 (C.D. Cal. 2016) (discussing the standard for relief under § 362(d)(3)). 8. Id. (quotations omitted). 9. GPIF Aspen Club LLC v. The Aspen Club & Spa LLC (In re Aspen Club & Spa LLC), No. co-19-043, 2020 WL 4251761 at *5 (B.A.P. 10th Cir. July 24, 2020). 10. Leeward Subdivision Partners, LLC v. GDR Lending, LLC (In re Leeward Subdivision Partners, LLC), BAP No. ww-10-1060, 2010 WL 6259983 *4 (B.A.P. 9th Cir. June 11, 2010). 11. 330 B.R. 455 (Bankr. S.D.N.Y. 2005). 12. Id. at 462. The Show-Me Banker Magazine | 19
Wow! What an end to the 2025 Missouri Legislative Session. The Senate imploded on Wednesday and adjourned two days early. The House adjourned Thursday, one day early after spending the day rolling back House Committee Substitutes to pass Senate bills. While the session ended abruptly, there were several successes for the banking industry. SB 98, sponsored by Senator Sandy Crawford, passed and included several provisions to update Missouri’s banking laws, including the trusted contact law that allows a banking or credit union customer to name a trusted contact to be notified when a financial institution identifies suspicious activity on the customer’s account. The provision absolves the financial institution of liability relating to the trusted contact’s actions. HB 754, sponsored by Rep. Philip Oehlerking, passed and included several of the SB 98 provisions, including the trusted contact. HB 567, sponsored by Rep. Sherri Gallick, modifies the provisions of the minimum wage and sick leave law passed in Proposition A by voters last November by 58%. The revision repeals the new minimum wage schedule and applies the current minimum wage law to public employees. The bill also repeals the new sick leave provisions approved in Proposition A. The collective group that put this issue on the ballot has already filed and formed a committee to put the issue back on the ballot in 2026. However, this time they will put the provisions in the constitution so the legislature cannot change the provisions. These bills are on the way to Gov. Kehoe for approval. As always, it is our privilege to work with the MIBA staff and represent your interests with the members of the Missouri General Assembly. MIBA Lobbying Report Andy Arnold Arnold & Associates 20 | The Show-Me Banker Magazine
2025 Scholarship Winners The MIBA scholarship program continues to generate enthusiasm among MIBA member banks. It is designed to meet the financial needs of community bank employees/dependents, rather than to recognize scholastic achievement. We feel this award opportunity is a valuable addition to our member banks’ employees in furthering their education, either in the field of banking or helping to make possible continuing education for their dependents. REGION 1 Abigail Fuchs Community Bank of Marshall (Not Pictured) Sophia N. Bartlett Carroll County Trust Company Gabriella Segar The Hamilton Bank Quincy Crone BTC Bank REGION 2 Tallulah Holiway FMB Bank Bailey Simpson Exchange Bank of Missouri Brylee Doran farmbank Molly Grace Cleavinger County Bank REGION 3 Caitlyn Cribbs LimeBank Alyssa Speer Adrian Bank (Not Pictured) Issy Lynn Swope Metz Banking Company Isabella Bartz Montrose Savings Bank REGION 4 Hayleigh Woods Bank of New Madrid (Not Pictured) Shelton Hester Peoples Bank of Altenburg Cooper Pettigrew The Tipton Latham Bank, N.A. Elizabeth Juarez (Meador) St. Louis Bank (Not Pictured) The Show-Me Banker Magazine | 21
Financial Markets React Quickly to Policy Changes By Jim Reber, President and CEO, ICBA Securities, MIBA Endorsed Vendor Couldn’t Help Noticing The term “bond vigilante” was coined by legendary economist Ed Yardeni in the 1980s, when long-term yields were soaring far into double-digit territory. It connoted investors who were uber-hawkish on inflation and were ready and willing to sell their holdings and drive prices down/yields up until they were satisfied that they were being adequately compensated for their price risk. There have been several periods in the 21st century when the vigilantes were barely visible, especially following the Great Recession and during the COVID-19 pandemic. The term came back into voguish use in 2022 as prices of goods began spiking year-over-year in the 8% range, and the Federal Reserve was hiking short-term rates every chance it got. We still haven’t seen inflation back in the 2% box the Fed has set as its objective. By some measures, inflation is picking up steam, so the vigilantes have remained on notice. The very real consequences of protracted trade wars, the worst of which could include price hikes accompanied by weakening labor markets, have gotten the attention of the inflation hawks, to say the least. Duration Divergence Another interesting development following April 2 is the steepening of the yield curve to levels not seen since 2022. To be sure, a 50-basis point slope between “2s and 10s” does not qualify as steep. However, while the Fed has very carefully chosen its comments and is making no promises about further rate cuts (or rate hikes, for that matter), investors have begun to factor in an additional cut or two in the 2025 numbers. So why the steepening? Our “friends,” the vigilantes, are protecting themselves against more inflation deterioration. They are investors, by and large, at the long end of the curve, which is only marginally influenced by the Fed’s monetary policy, as long as that does not include open market operations. The Fed has recently confirmed it will continue to wind down its balance sheet, albeit at a slower pace than in 2024. At the short end of the curve, yields didn’t run up as much in the April 2 aftermath since the Fed has reiterated its “data-dependent” posture. This steepening, in essence, was building in the increased possibility of both a slowing economy and doubt about maintaining stable prices. Vigilante Justice? While it will possibly take months and even the rest of the year to see the full shakeout, April 2025 was a laboratory for market efficiency. Some might contend there was an element of ruthlessness in the activity. Starting even before the Trump administration’s trade policy tariffs went into effect on April 2, the “Bond Vigilantes,” a nebulous gang of institutional debt investors, started shooting up the place. Barely a week after so-called “Liberation Day,” the U.S. bond market — particularly the longer tenors — had administered its brand of frontier justice. The 10-year note, which has an outsized effect on the economy due to its correlation to mortgage rates, rose nearly 50 basis points (0.5%). At the same time, and tellingly for the mood of consumers and the broader global economy, all the major stock indices retreated. It’s not often that debt and equity markets move in tandem; more often than not, they travel in opposite directions. 22 | The Show-Me Banker Magazine
Law … and Order? The fiscal “discipline” by both bond and stock investors caused the administration to walk back some of the harshest rhetoric regarding tariffs. After yields rose every day between April 4 and 12, they actually retreated the remainder of the month. The two-year note’s yield fell about 26 basis points for April, while the 10-year note fell about three basis points. It’s fair to say part of the return to relative calm was the administration softening its commentary on the removal or firing of Fed Chairman Jay Powell. The major stock market indices, all of which were down by double-digit percentages mid-month, ended up basically unchanged between +1% and -3%. The takeaway? Whether you consider yourself a bond vigilante or merely an observer, it’s clear that they’re back — and watching. The gang also has shown it still has enough collective clout to move bond market yields, and influence monetary, fiscal and trade policies. Those who choose to tangle with this notorious bunch had better pack a lunch — it could be a long slog. Virtual Bond School ICBA Securities and its exclusive broker, Stifel, will present a three-part bond academy June 12-14 from approximately 1:00 p.m.-4:00 p.m. Eastern. This bond basics curriculum will offer up to nine hours of CPE. The program is complimentary. To register, contact your Stifel rep. Jim Reber (jreber@icbasecurities.com) is president and CEO of ICBA Securities, ICBA’s institutional, fixed-income broker-dealer for community banks. Our owners sit across from clients, not across the country. COMPREHENSIVE IT SOLUTIONS See the difference at JMARK.COM/LOCAL Our CEO? He’s a midwest business owner. He’s in the room. He knows our clients by name. Knows your business, your IT challenges, and your team. We don’t answer to shareholders. We answer to you. Our neighbors. Our community. That’s the JMARK difference. Not because it’s trendy. Because it’s right. Let’s Talk. 844-44-JMARK The Show-Me Banker Magazine | 23
Free Tools to Maximize Your Bank’s Marketing Effective marketing is crucial for banks to attract and retain customers. However, marketing budgets can be tight, especially for smaller institutions. Fortunately, there are numerous free tools available that can help bank marketers maximize their efforts without breaking the bank. The following are some of the best free tools that can enhance your marketing strategies, streamline your processes and boost your overall efficiency. Whether you’re managing social media, creating eye-catching graphics or analyzing customer data, these tools are designed to support your marketing goals and drive success for your bank. By Bailey Ronnebaum, Business Development Manager, forbinfi, MIBA Endorsed Vendor 24 | The Show-Me Banker Magazine
Bailey Ronnebaum is the business development manager at forbinfi and works with over 200 financial institutions across the country to provide website development, marketing and branding solutions. For more information on forbinfi’s web and marketing solutions, please email or call Bailey at baileyr@forbinfi.com or (319) 274-8492. Visit www.forbinfi.com to see recent work examples and bank testimonials! Effective marketing is crucial for banks to attract and retain customers. BANCMAC COMMUNITY BANC MORTGAGE CORP. YOUR COMMUNITY BANK MORTGAGE PARTNER bancmac.com mortgages@bancmac.com 888.821.7729 | NMLS# 571147 BancMac provides correspondent and wholesale lending and is your Community Bank Mortgage Partner to help your financial institution originate fixed-rate secondary market loans including: PROGRAMS • Conventional Loans • USDA Rural Development Loans • Rural Living (Hobby Farm) Loans • VA Loans • Jumbo Loans • FHA Loans OUR PARTNERS RECEIVE: • Superior Service & Competitive Pricing • No Minimum Volumes • Significant, Non-Interest Fee Income • Non-Solicit Protections & More Strategic Marketing Tools • Google Analytics: Having Google Analytics 4 properly set up on your site will help guide decisions on what to change and how to better understand user behavior. • AI: Using AI, such as ChatGPT or Microsoft CoPilot, can help you create a strategic marketing plan for the month, quarter or year. You can also have it help you come up with social media post content! Social Media and Graphic Design Tools • Canva: Create professional-quality graphics with ease using thousands of templates for social media posts, flyers, presentations and more on Canva. • Buffer: Connect up to three channels and have 10 scheduled posts per channel using the platform Buffer. • forbinfi Blog: The forbinfi blog shares free social media ideas and a digital marketing playbook. Follow for updated free resources on a monthly basis! SEO and Content Marketing Tools • Google PageSpeed Insights: Use this tool to improve performance. You won’t get 100 on everything, but it helps you see areas where you can slightly improve! • Google Search Console: This is what you use to help measure your site’s search traffic and performance, fix issues and make your site shine in Google Search results. • Microsoft Clarity: Check out Clarity to see how users navigate the site, access heatmaps and more! Training and Additional Resources • American Bankers Association (ABA): The ABA offers free programs, training and consumer resources to help banks build long-term financial security. • ICBA: ICBA provides curated marketing assets specifically for community banks, including statement inserts and marketing manuals. • forbinfi Blog: forbinfi’s blog updates monthly with free advice, trends and resources dedicated to the financial industry’s website and marketing realm. By strategically cutting costs on your marketing budget, you can redirect those savings to critical areas like ad spending or hiring a marketing agency to supplement any gaps. These free tools empower you to make informed decisions and optimize your budget effectively! The Show-Me Banker Magazine | 25
2025 ICBA Capital Summit Washington, D.C. May 12-15, 2025 26 | The Show-Me Banker Magazine
Fenimore Kay Harrison LLP Elects Mathew A. Petersen to Partner Fenimore Kay Harrison LLP is proud to announce that Mathew A. Petersen has been elected to Partner. Mat has been an integral part of our team and its Kansas City office, providing exceptional legal counsel to our banking and financial services clients. Mat is a graduate of the University of Kansas School of Law and University of Kansas School of Business, where he obtained a J.D./M.B.A. While in law school, he served as editor-in-chief of the Kansas Law Review and on the Moot Court Council. Mat and his wife, Amanda, live in Lawrence, Kansas, with their 11-month-old son, Owen. When he is not serving the legal needs of our clients, Mat enjoys cooking, spending time with his family and attending KU sporting events. Fenimore Kay Harrison focuses on representing banks and other financial institutions in a wide range of corporate, securities, governance, and regulatory matters. With Mat’s continued contributions, we look forward to further strengthening our ability to serve our clients with the highest level of specialized legal counsel. Please join us in congratulating Mat on this well-deserved achievement! Fenimore Kay Harrison LLP Elects Mathew A. Petersen To Partner Fenimore Kay Harrison is proud to announce that Mathew A. Petersen has been elected to partner. Mat has been an integral part of our team and the Kansas City office, providing exceptional legal counsel to our banking and financial services clients. Mat is a graduate of the University of Kansas School of Law and the University of Kansas School of Business, where he obtained a J.D./M.B.A. While in law school, he served as editor-in-chief of the Kansas Law Review and was on the Moot Court Council. Mat and his wife, Amanda, live in Lawrence, Kansas, with their 11-month-old son, Owen. When he is not serving the legal needs of our clients, Mat enjoys cooking, spending time with his family and attending KU sporting events. Fenimore Kay Harrison focuses on representing banks and other financial institutions in a wide range of corporate, securities, governance and regulatory matters. With Mat’s continued contributions, we look forward to further strengthening our ability to serve our clients with the highest level of specialized legal counsel. Please join us in congratulating Mat on this well-deserved achievement! BUILT FOR BANKS The Show-Me Banker Magazine | 27
As technology advances, what are you doing to protect yourself from online threat actors and malicious ransomware attacks? We are more and more connected every day — from messaging family and friends, shopping online or ordering supplies for our small businesses! It’s important that we all take steps to stay safe when using our phones, laptops and smart devices. The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) is dedicated to ensuring secure and resilient critical infrastructure across the “Show-Me State.” We provide practical and impactful cybersecurity awareness actions that individuals can implement to strengthen their cyber defenses and protect themselves online. CISA is committed to improving cybersecurity behaviors and enhancing protection across Missouri. By fostering partnerships among government agencies, businesses, industry leaders and cybersecurity experts, CISA ensures everyone has access to up-to-date resources to mitigate risks and strengthen defenses against cyber threats. For our agency, cybersecurity awareness is an ongoing, year-round discussion. We highlight four simple actions that would make yourself, your family and your business exponentially more secure: • Use strong passwords, meaning long, random and unique to each account. Use a password manager to generate them and save them if possible. • Enable multifactor authentication on all accounts. We need more than a password on our most important accounts, like email, social media and financial accounts. • Recognize and report phishing, or as we like to say, think before you click. Be cautious of unsolicited emails, texts or calls asking you for personal information. Resist the urge to click on unknown links or open attachments from unknown sources. • Update software regularly. In fact, enable automatic software updates on all devices so the latest security patches are continuously up to date. Online criminals look for easy targets, like people who don’t take base precautions. CISA offers a diverse range of helpful products tailored to address your cybersecurity needs that includes select cybersecurity resources in multiple languages. Explore our free resources at www.cisa.gov/secure-our-world. Staying safe online is easier than you think. YOU WANT IT! (801) 676-9722 SALES@THENEWSLINKGROUP.COM ADVERTISE HERE! DON’T ROLL THE DICE CONTACT US TODAY Cybersecurity is EVERYONE’s Responsibility By Robert Graham, Cybersecurity Advisor, Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency 28 | The Show-Me Banker Magazine
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