Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, August 1, 1995 TAG: 9508010046
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-2 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: LISA APPLEGATE STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Short
"We have some expansion plans," said First National President Samuel Tollison. "We wanted to grow a little faster than [Bank of Floyd] did."
In December, the two bank boards voted to form a bank holding company. Tollison and Bank of Floyd President Leon Moore said then that they could compete more aggressively with other banks if they joined forces.
Monday, Tollison said the Bank of Floyd did not support the Christiansburg bank's expansion plans.
Tollison plans to add three sites to the existing eight-office company: banks in Dublin and Shawsville and a new home office in the Marketplace in Christiansburg.
Moore could not be reached for comment Monday.
In December, Tollison and Moore projected that the holding company would be established by the early part of this year.
Tollison said Monday his bank plans to use the information developed for the joint venture to develop its own holding company. He said the holding company would allow expansion opportunities and benefit shareholders by providing options like stock reinvestment plans.
The Christiansburg bank, which had assets of about $320 million at the end of last year, now has $353 million in assets.
Tollison said the economy in the New River Valley has been strong recently, and the failure of the banks to join would not adversely affect business.
"We'll just keep on going," he said.
by CNB