AmericanWest Bancorporation Announces Termination of Supervisory Directive.SPOKANE, Wash. -- AmericanWest Bancorporation (Nasdaq:AWBC AWBC Australian Wine Brandy Corporation ) today announced that the supervisory directive previously disclosed in the Company's March 31, 2005 quarterly report on Form 10-Q/A has been terminated, effective immediately. Official notification of the termination was received in a letter dated November 10, 2005 (received by the Bank on November 21, 2005), wherein the Washington Department of Financial Institutions (DFI See Direct foreign investment. ) and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), an independent U.S. federal executive agency designed to promote public confidence in banks and to provide insurance coverage for bank deposits up to $100,000. (FDIC FDIC See: Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation FDIC See Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). ) notified the Company's wholly-owned subsidiary, AmericanWest Bank (AWB See House Air Waybill. or Bank) of the directive's termination following the recently completed joint Safety and Soundness Examination of the Bank by the FDIC and DFI. The supervisory directive had been issued based upon AWB's operations under prior management. That directive had required AWB to (1) take various actions to improve the Bank's asset quality and loan administration, (2) maintain a minimum level of capital exceeding that required of well capitalized banks under the applicable regulations (which the Bank met as of the date of, and continuing throughout the term of, the directive), and (3) revise its policies and procedures Policies and Procedures are a set of documents that describe an organization's policies for operation and the procedures necessary to fulfill the policies. They are often initiated because of some external requirement, such as environmental compliance or other governmental with respect to liquidity and funds management. "I am very pleased that we were able to resolve so quickly the regulatory issues that the new management team was faced with upon arrival," said Robert M. Daugherty, President and Chief Executive Officer. "There are no regulatory restrictions on our growth, other than those generally applicable to the banking industry as a whole, now that the Bank is no longer restricted by this supervisory enforcement action. Coupling this with the recent lifting of the memorandum of understanding A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) is a legal document describing a bilateral or multilateral agreement between parties. It expresses a convergence of will between the parties, indicating an intended common line of action and may not imply a legal commitment. to which we also were subject over the past year, we are now poised to move forward, confident of our ability to grow during 2006 both organically and through expansion," he continued. Immediately following the October 24, 2005 lifting of the MOU, the Bank announced the filing of an application by its banking subsidiary, AmericanWest Bank (AWB), with the DFI and the FDIC for approval for AWB to open a de novo branch in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho Coeur d'Alene (IPA: [kɚ də liːn]) is the county seat and largest city of Kootenai County, Idaho, United States. . FDIC approval of that application was also received by the Bank on November 21, 2005; DFI approval is pending. "We look forward to an exciting year," said Daugherty, "now that our regulatory issues are behind us. We believe our planned growth will strengthen our community presence, contribute to profitability and enhance the communities where we operate." AmericanWest Bancorporation is a community bank holding company with 44 offices located in Eastern Washington and Northern Idaho. For further information on the Company or to access Internet banking, please visit our web site at www.awbank.net. |
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