Independent Banker, the trade magazine of Independent Community Bankers of America, recently featured CCB Community Bank, which ranked in the top 25 independent banks in the nation with $300 to $500 million in assets.

Independent Banker identified the top-performing community banks using year-end FDIC call report earnings data for 2015. In those rankings, the top 25 community banks with the best return on average assets (ROAA) and return on average equity (ROAE) ratios are identified.

CCB ranked in the Top 25 in each category for Subchapter S corporations with an ROAA of 1.97 and an ROAE of 18.84.

“CCB Community Bank has always strived to be progressive and prosperous in order to be able to reinvest in our communities,” said CEO Tom Lane. “One of the ways we do that is to make sure we have a great management team of bankers who are fully trained and full of common sense.”

In the past 10 years, CCB has expanded into two new markets in Florida – Crestview and Niceville – for a total of four retail offices.

“One of the standards we have in place is that we don’t go into a new market unless we are certain we have a banker ready to lead our local efforts,” Lane said.

Lane said CCB employees are encouraged to be a part of community activities. At present, there is a CCB employee serving as Chamber president in two of its markets, including Andalusia, where Jennifer Curry is the current Chamber president.

“Civic groups do a lot for the local quality of life, and we feel we have an obligation to be a part of that,” Lane said. “It’s another way we invest in our communities. Most banks are about the same. What success really boils down to is the way we treat our customers and the level of service we provide. Our bankers are both customer-oriented and goal-oriented, and it has worked out well for us.”

The Independent Community Bankers of America is the only national trade association dedicated exclusively to serving the interests of community banks.