Craig Evans, Chief Operating Officer Confirmed as Executive Officer of First Reliance Bank
January 21, 2009
Florence, SC – January 21, 2009 – Craig Evans, Chief Operating Officer of First Reliance Bank was recently confirmed as an Executive Officer of the bank by the First Reliance Board of Directors. In his role as COO, Craig Evans will lead a major re-alignment of First Reliance Bank’s operational teams to improve efficiency and build a scalable operating platform for growth.
Rick Saunders said, Craig Evans joined us in June of 2008 as Chief Operating Officer. His confirmation as an Executive Officer of the bank in such a short time is a recognition of his exceptional abilities. In this short time under his leadership, we have outlined a series of organizational changes to be implemented, which will provide us with a disciplined and scalable approach to growing our business. This focus on disciplined growth will compliment our strong community banking roots. In a recent customer satisfaction survey, 89% of customers surveyed said First Reliance Bank has outstanding customer service but, they want us to be in more places for them to do their banking. Growing our business continues to be one of our primary strategies. With Craig Evans’s leadership we will build an environment where we can continue to provide outstanding convenience and service to more and more new customers.”
Mr. Evans has more than 23 years experience in financial services. He is also an active member of the Florence, South Carolina community and serves on the board of the Santee Lynches Community Development Corporation.
ABOUT FIRST RELIANCE BANK
First Reliance Bank, founded in 1999, has assets of approximately $605 million, and employs over 140 highly talented associates. The bank serves Columbia, Charleston, Greenville and Florence markets in South Carolina. The bank has been recognized for its success including being the only company ever to be named to The Top 25 Fastest Growing Companies™ in South Carolina four times including 2002, 2004, 2005, and 2006 (SC Chamber/Elliott Davis). In June 2007, the bank was added to the Palmetto 25, a list of S.C.’s largest publicly held companies. In 2006, 2007, and 2008 the bank was also recognized as One of the Best Places to Work in South Carolina by the SC Chamber of Commerce. First Reliance Bank offers a unique Hometown Heroes package of benefits to serve those who are serving our communities, a Customer Service Guaranty, Totally FREE Checking, Totally FREE Business Checking, FREE Coin Machines, a Worldwide NO FEE ATM Network, and a 5 Way Mortgage.
