First Citizens Bancorporation, Inc. Completes Conversion of Community Resource Bank in Orangeburg

COLUMBIA, SC – December 5, 2008 – First Citizens Bank and Trust Company, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of First Citizens Bancorporation, Inc. headquartered in Columbia, South Carolina, completed the operational conversion of 10 branches formerly of Community Bankshares, Inc., (Amex: SCB) (“SCB”), parent of Community Resource Bank, N.A., headquartered in Orangeburg, S.C.  Community Bankshares, Inc. was acquired by First Citizens on November 1, 2008. 

First Citizens will now operate these 10 full-service offices in the communities of Orangeburg, Sumter, Blythewood, Ridgeway, and Winnsboro. Community Resource Bank customers will now receive expanded banking services, with access to more than 190 branches in South Carolina and Georgia.

According to Mike Wolfe, executive vice president and Orangeburg/Sumter division executive, the operational conversion has been very smooth for customers and the bank. Our customers will continue to receive the same personal service and attention that they have been accustomed to, and when it comes to their financial needs, we’re on it.

This conversion further strengthens First Citizens’ market position and will enable us to deliver even greater value to our new and existing customers, said Jim Apple, First Citizens chairman and CEO. We are pleased to welcome our new associates and customers to First Citizens.

About First Citizens
First Citizens Bancorporation, Inc., is the parent company of First Citizens Bank and Trust Company, Inc., The Exchange Bank of South Carolina, Inc., and Merchants & Farmers Bank of Comer, Ga. First Citizens Bank offers services in commercial and retail banking through its 190 offices in South Carolina and Georgia. As of September 30, 2008, First Citizens Bancorporation, Inc. had total consolidated assets of $6.42 billion.

For more information, visit the First Citizens web site at www.firstcitizensonline.com.