Chase ups business focus - Portland Business Journal:

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Gone are the brightly colored signsproclaimingv “Whoo hoo!” at every branch, replacexd by Chase’s more somber emphasis on strength and stabilitt through its “The Way Forward” campaign. Underpinning the marketingy shiftis Chase’s effort to aggressively expand in areaas that WaMu largely ignored. In an interview with the PortlandBusinessx Journal, newly hired Pacific Northwest Chairwoman Phyllis Campbell outlinex Chase’s Oregon strategy — which will resulg in new midsize business services, additional wealth management offerings, cuts to charitable givint and a more staid approach to branch-based Campbell, who was president of U.S.
Bank in Washingtojn from 1991 to 2003, left the nonprofitt Seattle Foundation in Aprilo tojoin Chase. She now travelsz regularly from Chase’s Seattle office to Portlans to meet with the fledging commercialbusiness team. The group, based downtown, will provide service to businesseswith $5 millionj to $500 million in annuak revenue. In addition to large loans, it will offerf cash management services that are now largely the purvie w ofWells Fargo, Bank of America and U.S. Scheduled to open its doors by the commercial business unit will face achallenging environment. “Sp much of our success, and everybody’ss success, will be tied to the recovery in the Campbell said.
“Because cash flow is so tight at many we don’t know how many deals we can Despite this challenge, Linda Navarro, president and CEO of the , applaudedr Chase’s expansion into commercial banking. “Going into this about 70 percent of the United Stateds credit market was not controlledr bytraditional banks,” Navarro said. “A lot of that credig has dried up, but credit still needsx to be extended to the business Chase also plans to enter an even more crowded arena wealthmanagement — with investment services targetef at people with more than $5 million in investabl e assets.
In addition to other big banks, Chase will competr with dozens of established specialty firms as it pursuesdthese clients. As the bank seeks out customers for thesde newbusiness lines, it must also work hard to hold on to the traditionalp deposits-and-loans business that it acquired when Washington Mutual failedc in September 2008. WaMu lost $104.6 million in Portland-area deposits from June 2007 to June and fell fromthe area’sa third largest bank to fourth. Sinc then, deposits have climbed at other banks and credirt unions in the metro which their executives attribute to moves by forme r WashingtonMutual customers. As of June 30, Chase had $4 billion in deposits in the metro area.
By the end of this when the Federal Deposit Insurance takes its next markertshare snapshot, Chase’s Portland deposits are likelg to be even lower. Yet Campbell expect that Chase will still be amonhgthe area’s top five banks — the others are Bank of U.S. Bank, Wells Fargo and KeyBank. Measuringg Chase’s lending success is more The bankissued $900 million in Oregonm loans, largely through home mortgages, in the first quarter of 2009. But most of thesed mortgages will be soldto investors, and Chase is not making its net loan growtj available.
Washington Mutual did not release region-specifivc lending data, so it’s impossible to say whether local lendingf is up or down from ayear ago. Chase’ds corporate giving, however, will be measurablt less this year. In 2007, Washingtohn Mutual made $1.3 million in cash contributions tolocal nonprofits, and averaged more than one hour per worketr of pro bono volunteer service. Though Chase pledged to matcb prior year giving in Washingtonhwith $2.65 million in 2009 contributions, the bank plans to give away only $500,0000 in Oregon this year. That number should increase in Campbell said.
This matches a broader pattern incorporate giving, said Christinse McDonald, executive director of the Oregob and Southwest Washington affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Local corporate giving is down about 25 percenft in thepast year, McDonaldx said, which is creating challenges for many The nature of Chase sponsorships is also shifting. Washingtonh Mutual often sponsoredcommunity events, whereas Chasd will focus more on business communitu sponsorships. Fresh off the fastest major bank conversion in in many ways Chasw is still finding its footingin Oregon.
The bank has spent $26 millio to give its new branches theChases look, trained more than 1,00o employees on new systemsz and operations, and over Memorial Day weekend it transferred online accounts from wamu.com to chase.com. Throughg this year, the rapid transformation will continue as Chasee establishes its commercial banking and wealthmanagement divisions. It will take unti 2010 for the New York institution to catch its breath and focus onsustainable long-term plans for the Campbell said. Those plans includ e growth beyond the 105 branchesw in Oregon and 15 inSouthwest “We certainly don’t want to build a new branchb from scratch,” Campbell said.
“A lot of smallet community banks really need toraise capital, so I have no doubtg that there will be opportunities.”