ACB: Press Releases

Contact:	Robert Schmermund (202) 857-3104 Jim Eberle (202) 857-3145	Jim Eberle (202) 857-3145 (work) (703) 893-2593 (home) [email protected]	For Immediate Release March 28, 2003 #03-14
E-mail: [email protected]

AMERICA’S COMMUNITY BANKERS PUBLISHES INVESTOR RELATIONS HANDBOOK FOR BANKS

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WASHINGTON, D.C. — America’s Community Bankers announced publication today of the Investor Relations Handbook, a guide tailored to helping community banks communicate effectively with the equity market and grab the attention of investors.

The book is designed to assist community banks in achieving the maximum advantages of being publicly traded companies. It is written for institutions that already are publicly traded, as well as for those considering going public.

The handbook includes information on the new requirements mandated by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, guidance on what investors want to know from a public company, the best ways to communicate with the investment community, and a discussion of key regulatory and legal issues.

It also describes “best practices” in the field, tailored to the special needs and concerns of community banks, and includes four case studies.

Appendixes cover a range of topics, including stock exchange listing requirements, a sample disclosure policy, community bank share price trends, sample press releases, a sample investor relations job description, and discussion of investor relations on the Web. The handbook also:

Outlines the advantages of public ownership and describes how an investor relations team functions.
Discusses the process of going public, including the key issue of deciding where a company’s shares should be listed.
Outlines the regulatory framework governing the operations of public companies and contrasts regulation by the Securities and Exchange Commission and the banking regulators.
Examines the information that disclosure policies should include.
Illustrates how to devise and implement an investor relations plan.
Describes the role of securities analysts and how they view the companies they cover.
Highlights how to get a company’s messages across to investors, distinguishing among different classes of investors, and deciding which types of investors a company wants to attract.
Explores crisis management, and underscores the importance of expecting the unexpected.
Explains Regulation FD, one of the most significant recent changes in investor communications.

ACB plans to offer periodic updates to the handbook. The loose-leaf format will accommodate pages and entire chapters to be reissued or added as events warrant.

The handbook was written by Steven C. Davidson, ACB’s senior financial economist and a Chartered Financial Analyst, with 20 years of experience in financial services; Robert A. Bennett, a veteran business journalist, with more than 40 years of experience covering banking; and Debra Cope, ACB’s managing director for publishing, with 20 years in the financial services media.

The handbook is priced at $295 for ACB members and $375 for nonmembers.

America’s Community Bankers is the national trade association committed to shaping the future of banking by being the innovative industry leader strengthening the competitive position of community banks. To learn more about ACB, visit www.AmericasCommunityBankers.com.

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