Salisbury Bancorp, Inc., a Connecticut corporation, formed in 1998, is the bank
holding company for Salisbury Bank and Trust Company (the "Bank"), a
Connecticut-chartered and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (the "FDIC")
insured commercial bank headquartered in Lakeville, Connecticut. Salisbury’s
common stock is traded on the NASDAQ Capital Market under the symbol “SAL.”
Salisburys principal business consists of its operation and control of the business
of the Bank.
The Bank, formed in 1848, currently provides commercial banking, consumer financing,
retail banking and trust and wealth advisory services through a network of thirteen
banking offices and nine ATMs located in: Litchfield County, Connecticut; Dutchess
and Orange Counties, New York; and Berkshire County, Massachusetts and through
its internet website (salisburybank.com).
The Bank originates commercial loans, commercial real estate loans, residential
and commercial construction loans, residential real estate loans collateralized
by one-to-four family residences, home equity lines of credit and fixed rate
loans and other consumer loans predominately in Connecticut’s Litchfield
County, New York’s Dutchess, Orange and Ulster Counties and Massachusetts’
Berkshire County in towns proximate to the Bank’s thirteen full service
offices.
Interest rates charged on loans are affected principally by the Bank’s
current asset/liability strategy, the demand for such loans, the cost and supply
of money available for lending purposes and the rates offered by competitors.
These factors are, in turn, affected by general economic and credit conditions,
monetary policies of the federal government, including the FRB, federal and
state tax policies and budgetary matters. Loan portfolios acquired in business
combinations include commercial loans acquired with Riverside Bank.
The Bank offers a variety of deposit accounts with a range of interest rates
and other terms, which are designed to meet customer financial needs. Retail
and commercial deposits are primarily received through the Bank’s banking
offices. Additional depositor related services provided to customers include
Landlord/Tenant Lease Security Accounts and Services, Merchant Services, Payroll
Services, Cash Management (Remote Deposit Capture, ACH Origination, Wire Transfers
and Positive Pay), ATM, Bank-by-Phone, Internet Banking, Internet Bill Pay,
Person to Person Payments, Bank to Bank Transfers, Mobile Banking with remote
deposit, and Online Financial Management with Account Aggregation Services.
The FDIC provides separate insurance coverage of $250,000 per depositor for
each account ownership category. Deposit flows are significantly influenced
by economic conditions, the general level of interest rates and the relative
attractiveness of competing deposit and investment alternatives. When determining
deposit pricing, the Bank considers strategic objectives, competitive market
rates, deposit flows, funding commitments and investment alternatives, FHLBB
advance rates and rates on other sources of funds.
National, regional and local economic and credit conditions, changes in competitor
money market, savings and time deposit rates, prevailing market interest rates
and competing investment alternatives all have a significant impact on the level
of the Bank’s deposits. Deposit generation is a key focus for the Bank
as a source of liquidity and to fund continuing asset growth. Competition for
deposits has been, and is expected to, remain strong.
The Bank is a member of the FHLBB, which provides credit facilities for regulated,
federally insured depository institutions and certain other home financing institutions.
Members of the FHLBB are required to own capital stock in the FHLBB and are
authorized to apply for advances on the security of their FHLBB stock and certain
home mortgages and other assets (principally securities, which are obligations
of, or guaranteed by, the United States Government or its agencies) provided
certain creditworthiness standards have been met. Under its current credit policies,
the FHLBB limits advances based on a member’s assets, total borrowings
and net worth. Long-term and short-term FHLBB advances may be utilized as a
source of funding to meet liquidity and planning needs when the cost of these
funds is favorable as compared to deposits or alternate funding sources.