RiverBank, which opened for business here six months ago, is exceeding financial projections and plans to double its space just east of downtown Spokane, where its headquarters is located, says Duane Brandenburg, its president and CEO.


The boutique financial institution has current deposits, loans, and assets of about $22 million, $27.5 million, and $36.5 million, respectively, all of which are ahead of where it expected to be at this point, Brandenburg says.


So far its been a lot of fun, he says.


In the banks business plan, Brandenburg says, We projected to finish the year out at about $40 million in total assets. We should surpass that relatively easily. Were hoping to hit about $60 million in assets in our first full year.


Due to the regulatory and other obstacles associated with starting a new bank, RiverBank just now is getting all of its products and services established fully, Brandenburg says. Nevertheless, he says, Were very pleased with the amount of interest in what were offering, and the number of people who want to move (their accounts) to us.


He adds, Were looking for quite an increase in activity after the first of the year, when people are starting a fresh year.


RiverBank is a niche bank that offers highly personalized services, mostly to small-business and commercial clients in the Spokane area, and that has no interest in serving a broad clientele or growing to a large size. Its services include concierge courier vehicles, treated and insured as mobile branches and driven by skilled bank employees, that go to customers locations to collect deposits or to respond to customers other banking needs.


It currently has its headquarters in about 4,000 square feet of space on the fifth floor of a five-story building at 202 E. Spokane Falls Boulevard. Additionally, it operates a branch in a 3,800-square-foot converted shop building just west of there, at 34 E. Spokane Falls Boulevard. It expects that to be its only branch. It started with a single courier car stationed there, but just recently added a second car and expects to be operating four cars within the next year, Brandenburg says.


Separately, he says the bank has agreed to lease another nearly 4,000 square feet of space, on the fourth floor of the building at 202 E. Spokane Falls Boulevard, and expects to expand into that space in phases starting in about a month.


RiverBanks chief financial officer, accounting staff, bank operations, and compliance staff will move to that space from temporary quarters in the branch building, and its loan-processing activities will move there from the fifth floor, Brandenburg says.


The banks executive officers and loan officers will take over the entire fifth floor space, he says, and just its core transaction processing then will be done in the branch building, which has an enclosed bay for courier-car use and probably will end up housing three or four employees.


RiverBank now employs about 25 people, which is eight or so more than it expected to employ at its peak, but Brandenburg says that earlier number was unrealistic and that the banks staff probably will peak at about 27 employees.


Brandenburg says he envisions the bank capping its growth once it reaches around $375 million in assets, hopefully within five to seven years.


Our premise is we never want to get so big that we dont know our customer and that we dont give exceptional service. Thats our niche in the market, he says, adding, We dont want to be everybodys bank.


Contact Kim Crompton at (509) 344-1263 or via e-mail at [email protected].