Bank of Santa Clarita announced Monday that for the first quarter of 2018 it again achieved record levels of earnings, as net earnings totaled $609,000, a 34 percent improvement over the first quarter of 2017.

In reviewing 2018 results, the bank reported a year-over-year growth in net interest income of 9 percent. While a significant contributor to the bank’s growth in net earnings was the reduction in the Federal statutory income tax rate, the bank noted that pre-tax earnings for the first quarter of 2018 exceeded pre-tax earnings during 2017’s first quarter by 16 percent.

The bank reported total net loans of $222.8 million at March 31, 2018, an increase of 8 percent over the year-earlier date. The bank also continues to have excellent credit quality in its loan portfolio, as it had no nonaccrual loans at March 31, 2018.

“We are pleased with our first quarter record-breaking operating results,” said Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer Frank Di Tomaso. “This was accomplished through the hard work and effort of our entire team and the support of our community.

“Moving forward, we continue to focus our efforts on improving the bank’s profit potential while maintaining its high level of service,” Di Tomaso said. “These strategies further enhance our ability to better serve our clients and increase our potential to generate even stronger financial results on behalf of our shareholders. Additionally, we are also pleased with our sustained asset quality, which is a reflection of the bank’s historically strong underwriting standards.”

At March 31, 2018, shareholders’ equity totaled $29.9 million and the bank’s total capital ratio was 13.20 percent, significantly exceeding the “well capitalized” level prescribed in the applicable capital regulations.

The bank also continues to maintain substantial liquidity positions, retaining significant balances of liquidity on its balance sheet as well as readily available collateralized borrowings and other potential sources of liquidity.

Founded in October 2004, Bank of Santa Clarita is the only full-service commercial bank headquartered in the Santa Clarita Valley, and is focused on the needs of the community and its businesses. We promote face-to-face interaction with our clients, which in turn leads to deeper relationships overall. The bank provides local, experienced decision-making and the personalized service that growing businesses need on a daily basis.

Bank clients have direct access to executive management and experienced professional staff members to address their credit requirements, from commercial lines of credit to SBA loans to commercial real estate and other commercial loans, and also technology-based services that include online bill-paying, remote capture depositing, check imaging and initiating online wire transfers, among other cash management facilities.

We are proud of the fact that Bank of Santa Clarita has served the Santa Clarita Valley’s residents, including individuals, small businesses and non-profit organizations, since 2004, and we cherish the relationships we’ve made with many of our neighbors, and invite any of those in the community who do not yet know us well to visit us, and together we can continue to build an even more vibrant and healthy community.