Independent Banker - December 2023 - 61

A rare partnership
When Oconee State Bank acquired Elberton Federal Savings & Loan in a rare merger conversion earlier this year,
it saved the mutual savings institution from closing and, in turn, deepened its commitment to the community.
By Taylor Hugo
hen Neil Stevens first heard
of Elberton Federal Savings &
Loan Association in 2018, the mutual
savings bank in the small community
of Elberton, Ga., was struggling to
grow and remain viable.
Stevens, president and CEO
of Oconee State Bank, which is
based in Watkinsville, Ga., and had
$545 million in assets at the time,
had taken part in a roundtable with
other bank CEOs, including Elberton
Federal's Daniel Graves.
" [Graves] was talking about how
they were struggling to make money
because of their size and how he was
having to do everything from cutting
the grass to cutting payroll checks, "
says Stevens. " He only had four people
on his team, including himself. "
New option needed
Elberton Federal-which solely
offered passbook savings accounts,
residential mortgages and small
consumer loans-had already
exhausted other options, like
merging with nearby mutual savings
W
institutions, all of which turned down
the offer to purchase the $25 millionasset
bank.
Following that initial meeting,
Stevens approached his investment
banker with a question: Was there any
way that Oconee State Bank, a stock
savings association, could acquire
Elberton Federal, a mutual savings
association? As it turns out, it was
possible. It would just take a lot of
patience and paperwork.
Stevens, a lifelong community
banker, has consistently
demonstrated a passion for
giving back to the communities his
bank serves.
" It's such a warm feeling to be able
to invest in the community, to see
them flourish and grow. There's a lot
of reward in that, " he says. " What I
love about community banking is that
I get to participate in giving back to
our customers and our community. "
Name:
Oconee State Bank
Assets:
$575 million
Location:
Watkinsville, Ga.
Oconee State
Bank's new
Elberton branch
team
independentbanker.org // 61

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Independent Banker - December 2023

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Independent Banker - December 2023

Contents
Independent Banker - December 2023 - Intro
Independent Banker - December 2023 - Cover1
Independent Banker - December 2023 - Cover2
Independent Banker - December 2023 - Contents
Independent Banker - December 2023 - 2
Independent Banker - December 2023 - 3
Independent Banker - December 2023 - 4
Independent Banker - December 2023 - 5
Independent Banker - December 2023 - 6
Independent Banker - December 2023 - 7
Independent Banker - December 2023 - 8
Independent Banker - December 2023 - 9
Independent Banker - December 2023 - 10
Independent Banker - December 2023 - 11
Independent Banker - December 2023 - 12
Independent Banker - December 2023 - 13
Independent Banker - December 2023 - 14
Independent Banker - December 2023 - 15
Independent Banker - December 2023 - 16
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Independent Banker - December 2023 - 18
Independent Banker - December 2023 - 19
Independent Banker - December 2023 - 20
Independent Banker - December 2023 - 21
Independent Banker - December 2023 - 22
Independent Banker - December 2023 - 23
Independent Banker - December 2023 - 24
Independent Banker - December 2023 - FIS1
Independent Banker - December 2023 - FIS2
Independent Banker - December 2023 - FIS3
Independent Banker - December 2023 - FIS4
Independent Banker - December 2023 - 25
Independent Banker - December 2023 - 26
Independent Banker - December 2023 - 27
Independent Banker - December 2023 - 28
Independent Banker - December 2023 - 29
Independent Banker - December 2023 - 30
Independent Banker - December 2023 - 31
Independent Banker - December 2023 - 32
Independent Banker - December 2023 - 33
Independent Banker - December 2023 - 34
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Independent Banker - December 2023 - Cover3
Independent Banker - December 2023 - Cover4
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