6 NOVEMBER / DECEMBER 2023 Don’t Miss Out! Midwest Agricultural Banking School Nov. 27-30 Learn the latest about ag credit and finance at Purdue University. Indiana Economic Outlook Luncheon Dec. 1 Listen and learn about what to expect in the economic landscape for 2024. Internal Bank Audit School Dec. 12-13 Receive detailed guidance over current regulatory hot topics such as how to audit the lending function, mortgage banking functions, CECL and more. For event updates, visit: indiana.bank/calendar Amber R. Van Til President and CEO Indiana Bankers Association AVanTil@indiana.bank VANTAGE VIEWPOINT More than 70 Indiana bankers participated in the annual IBA Washington Trip Sept. 25-27, 2023. I’ve said before that there hasn’t been any point in my 20 years of working with bankers when it did not feel like there was a lot going on in the industry, but 2023 has certainly been one for the books even by our standards. Our outstanding Government Relations team successfully protected banks in our state from potentially harmful anti-ESG legislation and other bills that could have negatively impacted our industry, while supporting bills that will benefit all Hoosiers like requiring financial literacy education for high school students to graduate beginning with next fall’s freshman class. I cannot wait to see how our members leverage their expertise and existing programs to help their local school districts meet this new requirement and how the entire state will benefit from more financially literate graduates. The chaos surrounding the bank closures from this spring demonstrated the strength and resilience of Indiana banks. Our members are highly capitalized and diversely invested, and your customers know it. Every bank I spoke with said they received few if any calls from customers concerned about the safety of their money during that period. I am encouraged to see initial calls for changes to the U.S. deposit insurance system wane in recognition of our industry’s strength and stability. We had another marked increase in attendance at Mega Conference this year, with 1,270 bankers taking part in our premier event, up from 1,100 last year and 1,000 the year before. Be sure to mark your calendar and save the date for Mega 2024 from May 6-8 at the Indiana Convention Center in Indianapolis. As our largest educational event of the year, we have 12 tracks of programming so any banker can find the content most directly applicable to what you do – and where you want to grow. The Annual IBA Washington Trip also saw a 7% increase in bank participation this year. Offering direct contact with Indiana’s DC delegation and Biden administration regulators, this was an invaluable example of grassroots advocacy. You can read more about this year’s trip from Dax Denton and Ross Teare on page 32 of this issue. As I write this, we've just wrapped up the Banking on Women Conference. It was another record-breaking year, selling out a month in advance. We'll have a full recap, including profiles on our extraordinary Woman of the Year and Woman on the Rise, in the January/ February issue of Hoosier Banker. One of our values statements at the Association is that we “remain mindful that the success of the IBA is judged by the success of its members.” More than revenue generated, we measure that success by the number of banks that participate and bankers who derive value from the programming and resources we provide. You are the reason why we do what we do – and it’s an honor to continue growing this generation of bankers and preparing the next. HB
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