- Business
- Citizens Bancshares Corporation Citizens Bancshares Corporation (OTC Pink: CZBS) serves as the holding company for Citizens Trust Bank, a community-focused financial institution providing a comprehensive range of commercial and retail banking services to individual, small business, and corporate customers primarily in metropolitan Atlanta, Georgia; Birmingham, Alabama; and Eutaw, Alabama. The company offers deposit products including checking and savings accounts, demand and money market deposits, noninterest-bearing deposits, interest-bearing deposits, investment accounts, and certificate of deposit account registry services; loan products encompassing commercial, financial, and agricultural loans, personal property-secured loans such as automobiles, marketable securities, recreational vehicles, and motorcycles, unsecured consumer debt, commercial real estate loans, single-family residential mortgages, and construction and development loans; and additional services such as merchant services including point-of-sale terminals, credit and debit card processing, electronic benefits transfer, gift cards, and internet shopping cart solutions, cash management services, credit cards, online and mobile banking, check reorder services, automated teller machine services, mortgage origination, and debit/credit card income generation. Founded in 1921 and headquartered at 230 Peachtree Street NW, Suite 2700, Atlanta, Georgia, the bank operates through seven full-service branches and emphasizes lending to low-to-moderate income and minority households and businesses, with over 95% of 2023 loan originations directed accordingly; it maintains a strong focus on underserved communities through initiatives like a $100,000 Down Payment Assistance Grant Program for first-time homebuyers, financial education programs reaching over 2,800 community members, and community development loans exceeding $82 million in 2023. Recent developments include robust financial performance with 35% revenue growth, 30% net income increase, and 11% loan growth in 2023, achieving a record earnings per share of $6.27 and ranking #28 among S&P Global's 100 Best Performing U.S. Community Banks under $3 billion in assets; a 33% increase in the annual common stock dividend to $1.00 per share declared in early 2024; first-quarter 2024 results showing 9% total revenue expansion to $10.7 million, 13% year-over-year loan growth to a record $400 million, improved net interest margin of 5.01%, and net income available to common shareholders of $3.6 million; digital enhancements such as contactless debit cards compatible with Apple and Google wallets, a new digital mortgage loan portal available in all 50 states, increased online banking adoption (16% business, 7% consumer), and a 13% rise in Zelle utilization; plans for a fintech partnership launching in third-quarter 2024 to automate loan decisioning with fraud prevention; formation of subsidiary CTB Financial Services, LLC in May 2023 to manage problem assets including a $5.9 million non-performing loan transfer; and forthcoming implementations of a new digital banking platform, instant-issue debit cards, and a digital marketing campaign to drive customer acquisition and wallet share expansion.