First Bancorp Profile
First Bancorp operates as the bank holding company for First Bank that engages in a full range of banking activities.
As of December 31, 2022, the bank had three wholly-owned subsidiaries, SBA Complete, Magnolia Financial, and First Troy SPE, LLC. SBA Complete specializes in providing consulting services for financial institutions across the country related to SBA loan origination and servicing. Magnolia Financial is a business financing company that offers accounts receivable financing and factoring, inventory financing, and purchase order financing throughout the southeastern United States. First Troy SPE, LLC is a holding entity for certain foreclosed properties. During 2021, the bank sold substantially all of the assets of its insurance agency subsidiary, First Bank Insurance.
On January 1, 2023, the company acquired GrandSouth Bancorporation (GrandSouth), headquartered in Greenville, South Carolina. The company operates primarily within North Carolina and South Carolina.
Principal Business and Services
Lending Activities
The company maintains a diversified loan portfolio by providing a broad range of commercial and retail lending services to business entities and individuals. The company provides commercial business loans, commercial and residential real estate construction and mortgage loans, revolving lines of credit, letters of credit, and loans for personal uses, home improvement, and automobiles. Commercial real estate loans include loans secured by owner-occupied commercial buildings for office, storage, retail, and warehouse space. They also include non-owner occupied commercial buildings, such as leased retail and office space. The company originates residential mortgages through its Mortgage Banking Division, some of which the company sells in the secondary market. Through Magnolia Financial, the company provides accounts receivable financing and factoring, inventory financing, and purchase order financing. Through a network of specialized Bank loan officers, the company’s SBA Lending Division, and as supported by SBA Complete, it offers SBA loans to small business owners across the nation. The company typically sells the portion of each loan that is guaranteed by the SBA at a premium.
Loan Concentrations
The company’s commercial loan portfolio consists predominately of owner-occupied real estate and non-owner occupied income-producing real estate and land development loans, which are primarily secured by real estate located in North Carolina and South Carolina. The company categorizes these commercial loans by industry according to the North American Industry Classification System (‘NAICS’) to monitor the portfolio for possible concentrations in one or more industries.
Most of the company’s business activity is with customers located within the markets where the company has banking operations.
Deposits
The company offers a full range of deposit accounts and services to both retail and commercial customers. These deposit accounts have a variety of interest rates and terms and consist of interest-bearing and noninterest-bearing accounts, including commercial and retail checking accounts, savings accounts, money market accounts, and time deposits, including various types of certificates of deposits and individual retirement accounts. The bank is a member of the CDARS, which gives the company’s customers the ability to obtain FDIC insurance on deposits of up to $50 million, while continuing to work directly with their local First Bank deposit team.
Other Services
The company also offers credit cards, debit cards, letters of credit, safe deposit box rentals, and electronic funds transfer services, including wire transfers. In addition, to enhance the convenience of the company’s customers, the company provides internet banking, mobile banking and mobile check deposit, cash management, remote deposit capture, bank-by-phone capabilities, and ATMs across the company’s branch network.
The company offers various ancillary services as part of its commitment to customer service. Through a contractual relationship, the company offers the placement of property and casualty insurance. The company also provides non-FDIC insured investment and insurance products, including mutual funds, annuities, long-term care insurance, life insurance, and company retirement plans, as well as financial planning services through FB Wealth Management Services, the company’s Investments Division.
Market Area
The company is a community-oriented commercial bank offering a wide variety of financial services to meet the needs of the communities the company serves.
Securities Portfolio
As of December 31, 2022, the company’s securities included U.S. treasury securities, government-sponsored enterprise securities, mortgage-backed securities, and corporate bonds.
Supervision and Regulation
As a bank holding company, the company are subject to supervision, examination, and regulation by the Federal Reserve and the Commissioner. The bank is also subject to supervision and examination by the Federal Reserve and the Commissioner.
In addition, the company must file reports with, and provide additional information, to the Federal Reserve.
Under Federal Reserve policy and the Dodd-Frank Act, the company is required to act as a source of financial and managerial strength to the bank.
The bank is a North Carolina state-chartered bank and is a member of the Federal Reserve. As a state-chartered bank, the bank is subject to regulation by the Commissioner. The Commissioner has a wide range of regulatory authority over the activities and operations of the bank, and the Commissioner’s staff conducts periodic examinations of the bank and its affiliates to ensure compliance with state banking laws and regulations and to assess the safety and soundness of the bank.
The bank is a member of the Federal Reserve. The Dodd-Frank Act and its related regulations significantly changed the bank regulatory structure and affects the lending, deposit, investment, trading, and operating activities of banks and bank holding companies, including the bank and the company.
The bank is subject to the direct supervision of the CFPB as its total assets exceed $10 billion. As an FDIC insured depository institution, the bank's deposits are insured up to applicable limits by the DIF which is generally $250,000.
The bank received a rating of ‘satisfactory’ in its most recent CRA examination.
The common stock of the company is registered with the SEC under the Exchange Act and the company is subject to the reporting, information disclosure, proxy solicitation, insider trading limits and other requirements imposed on public companies by the SEC under the Exchange Act.
The SEC and NASDAQ have adopted regulations under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 and the Dodd-Frank Act that apply to the company as a NASDAQ-traded, public company, which seek to improve corporate governance, provide enhanced penalties for financial reporting improprieties and improve the reliability of disclosures in SEC filings.
History
The company was founded in 1934. It was incorporated in North Carolina in 1983. The company was formerly known as Montgomery Bancorp and changed its name to First Bancorp in 1986.
