Abbreviated translation of article:

TRB Consistent Growth With Its Customers

There are so many banks to choose from, but when selecting a bank, one often looks for a stable bank and, usually, it’s going to be the big-sized banks.

Due to language barriers, many of us choose Korean banks. TRB satisfies the two: having stability and a Korean-speaking dedicated officer.

TRB is ready to take on and grow with the Korean community .

The article talks about Texas Republic’s 127 year old bank charter and its continuous growth in its asset and deposit size. The article confirms this by a third party financial company in S&P Global ranking TRB 4^th in the nation last year.

TRB’s advantage over the big banks – headquartered in Frisco, local management, and local decision – being the reason for a speedy and flexible process.

Daniel Nam knows the Korean immigrant’s life , culture, and the market very well.

Through TRB and officer Nam, three churches were able to get financing and their dreams of acquiring a church building became reality.

TRB is a bank that is able to grow with its customers and help them to live their dream.

There are times when you cannot find your bank to pull cash from and have to pay ATM fees, with TRB you do not have to worry.

TRB is able to compensate for its lack of branches through its service and dedication to the communities it serves through David Baty, CEO and officer Nam.

Texas Republic Bank Member FDIC/Equal Housing Lender

View full article, “Serving Communities Across the Metroplex”.

Jerrica was recently recognized by the Texas Bankers Association with the Life Award for her involvement with Habitat for Humanity. In addition to serving as a family mentor for Habitat, she is actively involved in Rotary Club and hosts several financial education classes in the community.

Congratulations Jerrica, you are a true role model with a heart for service!

Each year, DepositAccounts.com evaluates the financial health of every FDIC insured bank in the United States – more than 5,500 total.  Each institution is graded on a number of factors – including capitalization, deposit growth, and loan to reserve ratios – in order to determine a comprehensive health score.

Out of all 5,557 FDIC insured banks, DepositAccounts.com recognized Texas Republic Bank in the top 40!

Top 200 Healthiest Banks notice

Top 200 Healthiest Banks 2018 list

Visit DepositAccounts.com

Frisco-based Texas Republic Bank is planning to expand west to Fort Worth and has hired a banker with local ties to lead the effort.

Texas Republic Bank announced June 4 it has named Peter G. Bennis as president for the Fort Worth market. Bennis was previously president and CEO of Pinnacle Bank Texas.

Bennis, a 34-year banking veteran, is currently serving as a Board Member of Independent Bankers Association of Texas and the Brazos River Authority.

Texas Republic Bank, established in 1891, is a $234 million asset bank headquartered in Frisco with branches in Richardson and Quanah.

To help the government fight financial crime, federal regulation requires certain financial institutions obtain, verify, and record information about the beneficial owners of legal entity customers. Requiring the disclosure of key individuals who own or control a legal entity (i.e., the beneficial owners) helps law enforcement investigate and prosecute these crimes.

Click Here to read more.

Please click on the link below for information regarding Proposition 2 and why Texas homeowners should vote for it. Proposition 2 would help homeowners like you who work hard to build up equity. It makes home equity loans and lines of credit more accessible. It also creates options for homeowners who want to refinance an existing home equity loan. Please go out and vote!

Prop-2-Cards

FDIC Consumer News – Summer 2017

10 Scams Targeting Bank Customers: Plus the basics on how to protect your personal information and your money

The FDIC often hears from bank customers who believe they may be the victims of financial fraud or theft, and our staff members provide information on where and how to report suspicious activity. To help further, FDIC Consumer News includes crime prevention tips in practically every issue. As part of that coverage, we feature here a list of 10 scams that you should be aware of, plus key defenses to remember.

1. Government “imposter” frauds: These schemes often start with a phone call, a letter, an email, a text message or a fax supposedly from a government agency, requiring an upfront payment or personal financial information, such as Social Security or bank account numbers.

   “They might tell you that you owe taxes or fines or that you have an unpaid debt. They might even threaten you with a lawsuit or arrest if you don’t pay,” said Michael Benardo, manager of the FDIC’s Cyber Fraud and Financial Crimes Section. “Remember that if you provide personal information it can be used to commit fraud or be sold to identity thieves. Also, federal government agencies won’t ask you to send money for prizes or unpaid loans, and they won’t ask you to wire money to pay for anything.”

2. Debt collection scams: Be on the lookout for fraudsters posing as debt collectors or law enforcement officials attempting to collect a debt that you don’t really owe. Red flags include a caller who won’t provide written proof of the debt you supposedly owe or who threatens you with arrest or violence for not paying.
3. Fraudulent job offers: Criminals pose online or in classified advertisements as employers or recruiters offering enticing opportunities, such as working from home. But if you’re required to pay money in advance to “help secure the job” or you must provide a great deal of personal financial information for a “background check,” those are red flags of a potential fraud.

   Another variation on this scam involves fake offers of part-time jobs as “mystery shoppers,” who are people paid to visit retail locations and then submit confidential reports about the experience. In an example of the fraudulent version, your job might be to receive a $500 check, go “undercover” to your bank, deposit the check into your account there, and then report back about the service provided. But you also would be instructed to immediately wire your new “employer” $500 out of your bank account to cover the check you just deposited. Days later, the bank will inform you that the check you deposited is counterfeit and you just lost $500 to thieves. One warning sign of this type of scam is that the potential employer requires you to have a bank account.

4. “Phishing” emails: Scam artists send emails pretending to be from banks, popular merchants or other known entities, and they ask for personal information such as bank account numbers, Social Security numbers, dates of birth and other valuable details. The emails usually look legitimate because they include graphics copied from authentic websites and messages that appear valid.

   “We have also seen emails with links to fake websites that are exact copies of real websites for FDIC-insured banks, except the web addresses are slightly different than the real ones,” said Doreen Eberley, director of the FDIC’s Division of Risk Management Supervision, which is in charge of the agency’s policies and programs related to financial crimes. “These sites are used to trick people into giving up valuable personal information that can be used to commit identity theft.”

5. Mortgage foreclosure rescue scams: Today, many homeowners who are struggling financially and risk losing their homes may be vulnerable to false promises to refinance a mortgage under better terms or rates. But borrowers should always be on the lookout for scammers who falsely claim to be lenders, loan servicers, financial counselors, mortgage consultants, loan brokers or representatives of government agencies who can help avoid a mortgage foreclosure and offer a great deal at the same time. These criminals will present homeowners with what sounds like the life-saving offer they need. Instead, the homeowner is required to pay significant upfront fees or, even worse, tricked into signing documents that, in the fine print, transfer the ownership of the property to the criminal involved. Common warning signs of fraudulent mortgage assistance offers include a “guarantee” that foreclosure will be avoided and pressure to act fast.
6. Lottery scams: You might be told you won a lottery (typically one that you never entered) and asked to first send money to the “lottery company” to cover certain taxes and fees. Similar examples involve bogus prize winnings and sweepstakes. “In one example, a scammer sent a letter to people using falsified FBI and FDIC letterhead telling them they won a popular, well-known lottery but that they needed to send money by wire transfer to a lottery ‘official’ in order to secure the winnings,” Benardo said. “The ‘official’ was really a crook hoping to trick people into sending money.”
7. Elder frauds: Thieves sometimes target older adults to try to cheat them out of some of their life savings. For example, telemarketing scams may involve sales of bogus products and services that will never be delivered. Warning signs include unsolicited phone calls asking for a large amount of money before receiving the goods or services, and special offers for senior citizens that seem too good to be true, like an investment “guaranteeing” a very high return. To help seniors and their caregivers avoid financial exploitation, the FDIC and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau have developed Money Smart for Older Adults, a curriculum with information and resources (see our News Briefs).
8. Overpayment scams: This popular scam starts when a stranger sends a consumer or a business a check for something, such as an item being sold on the internet, but the check is for far more than the agreed-upon sales price. The scammer then tells the consumer to deposit the check and wire the difference to someone else who is supposedly owed money by the same check writer. In a few days, the check is discovered to be a counterfeit, and the depositor may be held responsible for any money wired out of the bank account. Victims may end up owing thousands of dollars to the financial institution that wired the money, and sometimes they’ve also sent the merchandise to the fraud artists, too.
9. “Ransomware”: This term refers to malicious software that holds a computer, smartphone or other device hostage by restricting access until a ransom is paid. The most common way ransomware and other malicious software spreads is when someone clicks on an infected email attachment or a link in an email that leads to a contaminated file or website. Malware also can spread across a network of linked computers or be passed around on a contaminated storage device, such as a thumb drive.
10. Jury duty scams: A thief makes phone calls pretending to be a law enforcement official warning innocent people that they failed to appear for jury duty and threating an arrest unless a “fine” is paid immediately. And to pay up, the caller asks for debit account and PIN numbers, allowing the perpetrator to create a fake debit card and drain the account.

What You Can Do: Plus the basics on how to protect your personal information and your money

While we have described many forms of financial scams, the red flags to look out for are often similar. And so are the things you can do to help protect yourself and your money. Here are some basic precautions to consider, especially when engaging in financial transactions with strangers through email, over the phone or on the internet.

• Avoid offers that seem “too good to be true.” As Eberley noted: “If someone promises ‘opportunities’ that are free or with surprisingly low costs or high returns, it is probably a scam. Be especially suspicious if someone pressures you into making a quick decision or to keep a transaction a secret.”
• No matter how legitimate an offer or request may look or sound, don’t give your personal information, such as bank account information, credit and debit card numbers, Social Security numbers and passwords, to anyone unless you initiate the contact and know the other party is reputable.
• Remember that financial institutions will not send you an email or call to ask you to put account numbers, passwords or other sensitive information in your response because they already have this information. To verify the authenticity of an email, independently contact the supposed source by using an email address or telephone number that you know is valid.
• Be cautious of unsolicited emails or text messages asking you to open an attachment or click on a link. This is a common way for cybercriminals to distribute malicious software, such as ransomware. Be especially cautious of emails that have typos or other obvious mistakes.
• Use reputable anti-virus software that periodically runs on your computer to search for and remove malicious software. Be careful if anyone (even a friend) gives you a thumb drive because it could have undetected malware, such as ransomware, on it. If you still want to use a thumb drive from someone else, use the anti-virus software on your computer to scan the files before opening them.
• Don’t cash or deposit any checks, cashier’s checks or money orders from strangers who ask you to wire any of that money back to them or an associate. If the check or money order proves to be a fake, the money you wired out of your account will be difficult to recover.
• Be wary of unsolicited offers “guaranteeing” to rescue your home from foreclosure. If you need assistance, contact your loan servicer (the company that collects the monthly payment for your mortgage) to find out if you may qualify for any programs to prevent foreclosure or to modify your loan without having to pay a fee. Also consider consulting with a trained professional at a reputable counseling agency that provides free or low-cost help. Go to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development website for a referral to a nearby housing counseling agency approved by HUD or call 1-800-569-4287.
• Monitor credit card bills and bank statements for unauthorized purchases, withdrawals or anything else suspicious, and report them to your bank right away.
• Periodically review your credit reports for signs of identity theft, such as someone obtaining a credit card or a loan in your name. By law, you are entitled to receive at least one free credit report every 12 months from each of the nation’s three main credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian and TransUnion). Start at AnnualCreditReport.com or call 1-877-322-8228. If you spot a potential problem, call the fraud department at the credit bureau that produced that credit report. If the account turns out to be fraudulent, ask for a “fraud alert” to be placed in your file at all three of the major credit bureaus. The alert tells lenders and other users of credit reports that you have been a victim of fraud and that they should verify any new accounts or changes to accounts in your name.
• Contact the FDIC’s Consumer Response Center (CRC) if you have questions about possible scams or you are the victim of a scam experiencing difficulty resolving the issue with a financial institution. The CRC answers inquiries about consumer protection laws and regulations and conducts thorough investigations of complaints about FDIC-supervised institutions. If the situation involves a financial institution for which the FDIC is not the primary federal regulator, CRC staff will refer the matter to the appropriate regulator. Visit our webpage on submitting complaints or call 1-877-ASK-FDIC (1-877-275-3342) Monday – Friday, 8am to 8pm (EST).

  To learn more about how to avoid financial scams, search by topic in back issues of FDIC Consumer News and the FDIC’s multimedia presentation Don’t Be an Online Victim. Also find tips from the interagency Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force.

We are proud to announce that Texas Republic Bank was recently included in SNL Financial’s Top 100 performing Community Banks of 2016 with assets under $1 Billion. This achievement is further validated by the fact that we have made this prestigious list 3 out of the last 4 years with our highest ranking of #14 coming in 2016. Furthermore, this ranking means that Texas Republic Bank is in the top 1% in terms of performance of all community banks in the country. Congratulations to our team of professionals and a big thank you to all of our great customers for being a part of this achievement!

Now that’s “Banking like it oughta be!”

Over the past year, Texas Republic Bank was proud to sponsor the Frisco Chamber of Commerce Young Entrepreneurs Academy. Texas Republic Bank assisted with interviewing local students as they prepared and practiced for real life interviews that they will have in their future. Through this great program, Texas Republic Bank was introduced to Jessy Huang (pictured below), who is a local high school student and fulfilled the requirements of the 2016 Frisco Chamber of Commerce Young Entrepreneurs Academy. Jessy intends to pursue entrepreneurial activities in her career and future and we are certain she will be successful with whatever endeavors she attempts.   Texas Republic Bank takes great pride in partnering with these young local entrepreneurs and we look forward to the contributions of future generations.

Detect and defend against debit card fraud with real time email transaction alerts.  If you discover fraud, you may quickly deactivate the debit card through our mobile banking app.  Contact us at 972-334-0700 to learn more!