The Future is NOW!

We’re well into the fourth quarter of 2012 and what a year it’s been.  The entire Quantum team has been working hard to serve our customers and communities.  While everyone thinks about making New Year’s resolutions once the holidays are here, it’s not too early to make your financial resolutions now!

With just a few weeks left before we kickoff 2013, now is a good time to check with your financial planner and/or tax professional to discuss any end-of-year actions you should take.  It’s also a good time to look ahead to the things you want to accomplish financially in the coming year. Will you be buying a new home, taking a big vacation or sending a child off to college?  Life-changing events such as these require planning and saving.  Or, maybe you’ve decided that 2013 will be the year that you build up that emergency fund.  We can help there, too.

At Quantum National Bank, we offer several accounts that are perfect if you’re looking for a safe, secure and federally-insured place for your money.  Whether you’re looking for a Money Market account that pays a higher interest rate, a personal savings account or just the flexibility of an interest-bearing checking account, one of our friendly customer service representatives can help.

I invite you to stop in, check out our newly-updated Suwanee branch and see what we can do for you as “Your Banking Partner for Success.”

Wishing you success,

Bryan J. Cohen

President & CEO

New Beginnings

Another school year has begun.  Do you remember how exciting it was to go back to school?  Even if you were returning to the same school, the excitement was still there.  New teachers, new subjects, meeting new friends and catching up with old ones...every year was a brand new start.

There’s excitement in the air these days at Quantum, too.  We’re making our own brand new start as we begin the renovation of our Suwanee lobby.  When it’s finished, we’ll have new and improved customer service areas, new meeting space and new ways to better serve you.

We’ve also added some new team members to serve you.  Su Hagan and Steve Keck are our new SBA lenders, Scott Hall is a new commercial lender, Melissa Ethridge has joined us as a CSR/teller and Suzanne Dineen is our new Suwanee branch manager.  Each of these new folks brings a wealth of banking experience in their areas and we are excited to welcome them to the team.

In the midst of all that’s new and different, one thing remains the same and that is our commitment to serving our customers and the communities we call home.  Everyone on the Quantum team, whether they’re new or have been on board since the beginning, shares the drive to help our customers achieve success.  We do this by listening to the questions and concerns of our customers and searching for answers, even when those answers aren’t so easy to find.  For over 16 years, we’ve been privileged to serve you and the one thing that will never change is our promise to do all we can to be “Your Banking Partner for Success.”

Wishing you success,

Bryan J. Cohen

President & CEO

Your Banking Partner for Success

Have you ever stopped to think about all the product slogans that stay with you for years, long after the company stops using them?  Do you remember “Fly the Friendly Skies”?  How about “You Deserve a Break Today”?  Or “It’s the Real Thing”?

Finding a slogan or tagline that resonates with your customers, potential customers and employees is a challenge.  You’re trying to sum up your entire business philosophy and practices in a handful of words.  A few years ago, the Quantum team went through this exercise to find a slogan that captured us in just a few words.  We had many meetings, discussions and focus groups before we all agreed that “Your Banking Partner for Success” describes our business philosophy and goal.  But what exactly does that mean to our customers?

The promise behind “Your Banking Partner for Success” is our commitment to you to do everything we can to meet your banking needs.  For example, we were recently approached by a customer who was in a big bind.  His previous bank had asked him to move two existing loans and was offering a financial incentive to do so.  He came to Quantum with one of those loans and told us he had the paperwork for the second loan in process at another bank.  He needed to close both loans simultaneously in order to receive the financial incentive he was being offered.  We said we’d be glad to help and started the application process.  The very next day, he called back and said there was a problem with the other bank and they were going to decline the loan that had been in process.  His Quantum lender went to work, bringing together our commercial lending, SBA lending and senior management teams.  Together, we were able to close both loans in less than 30 days, thereby helping our customer successfully re-finance his two businesses and save a lot of money.  That’s how we helped this particular customer succeed.  Why not give us an opportunity to be your “Partner for Success”?

And if you haven’t successfully figured out the answers to my trivia quiz, I can help you with that, too. 

                        “Fly the Friendly Skies” – United Airlines

                        “You Deserve a Break Today” – McDonald’s

                        “It’s the Real Thing” – Coca Cola

Wishing you success,

Bryan J. Cohen

President & CEO

Georgia Banking - The Big Picture

The Cohen family celebrated another graduation recently when one of our sons completed a master’s degree in counseling.  Of course, there were many photos taken and I was again struck by how fast things change.  Not that many years ago, photos from a family celebration had to be developed and then shared via “snail mail” to faraway friends and relatives.  These days, it’s point, shoot and share and the grandparents and friends can see the happy graduate before the ink on the diploma is dry.

The banking world is constantly changing as well and everyone on the Quantum team is encouraged and expected to do their part to stay up to date on the latest industry news and information.  With that goal in mind, I have agreed to serve on the board of directors of the Georgia Bankers’ Association (GBA).

The GBA is the state’s leading source of banking and financial education.  Through the GBA, bankers from across the state have access to a vast resource of contemporary thought as well as classic wisdom.  Bankers get together to network and learn from each other with the shared goal of better serving Georgia’s banking customers. 

The GBA is an organization committed not just to our industry but also to our customers.  The GBA website (www.gabankers.com) features home page links to both a “Consumer Toolbox” and a “Small Business Toolbox.”  When you click on these options, you’ll find a wealth of helpful information, from effective budgeting techniques to resources designed to help you start a new business.  The links and articles provide answers to common consumer questions and challenges.  I encourage you to take a look.

It’s an exciting time to be in banking and, as a GBA board member, I look forward to doing my part to find new and better ways to serve you, our customers.  Should you have questions, please don’t hesitate to drop me a note at askus@quantumbank.com.

The Future is NOW!

As I write this on April 30^th, it’s 73 years ago today that the 1939 New York World’s Fair opened.  The fair featured several futuristic technology advances such as FM radio, robotics, fluorescent lighting and even a crude fax machine.  Just a couple of generations later, these things are almost passé.  Think about it…when was the last time you sent a fax?

This past week, I had the opportunity to attend a conference that showcased the latest advances in banking technology, much of which is available now or will be later this year.  From advances in behind-the-scenes processing to new customer services like electronic invoicing for small business or instant person-person payments, it’s an exciting time to be in banking.  Here at Quantum, we’re working hard to offer our customers these latest opportunities to make your financial life easier and more efficient.  Our entire team is focused on learning how these options will help you and the best implementation when they become available.

Follow us on Facebook, Twitter or Google+, read my monthly blog and our quarterly newsletter or check our website often and you’ll know right away when these new services become available.  Our first and foremost concern is serving our customers, whether through brand new technology or an always welcome visit to our branches.  We appreciate you and your business!

Springtime Thoughts Turn to RETIREMENT???

Every spring I take a trip to Florida to see our Braves in spring training.  Spring baseball offers a glimpse of baseball how it used to be when we were kids.  The chance to see up and coming players along with the Braves' faces we've come to know over many years is always special and this year is even more so, given the recent announcement that long-time Braves' great Chipper Jones will retire at the end of this season.

Planning for retirement can be a scary prospect, especially when you don't have the nest egg a major league athlete might have.  But with careful planning, you can still retire in style, whatever that might look like for you.  The key is careful planning with experts who understand your goals and responsibilities. 

If an Individual Retirement Account (IRA) is part of your plan, we have experts at Quantum National Bank who can help you with those arrangements.  An IRA is a safe, FDIC-insured (up to at least $250,000 per depositor)  place to deposit some of your retirement funds.  You'll enjoy a fixed interest rate and be insulated against the ups and downs of the stock market. 

Just like Chipper's successful career, a successful retirement needs a team of people to make the right decisions.  An accountant, financial planner and your Quantum banker can be instrumental in helping you plan for a winning retirement, even if you won't be spending it in the Hall of Fame!