CHESAPEAKE, Va., Aug. 25, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Monarch Bank, a subsidiary of Monarch Financial Holdings, Inc. (Nasdaq:MNRK), formally announced several changes to its banking footprint. "We continue to enhance our delivery of services, and are proud to announce the future opening of a full-service office in Newport News, the relocation of a banking office in Virginia Beach, and the closing of an office in Suffolk," stated Brad E. Schwartz, Chief Executive Officer. "Every one of these changes is designed to improve the delivery of service to our clients and drive future growth and profitability."
In Newport News, Monarch Bank and Monarch Mortgage will be the exclusive bank and mortgage provider in the Tech Center Office Building now under construction in the Tech Center at Oyster Point. Tech Center is a sprawling $250 million development comprising retail, residential and commercial space, and a technology and research center with growth potential of up to one million square feet of office and research space on 100 acres adjacent to Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility. It is conveniently located at the busiest intersection in Newport News, Virginia, with more than 100,000 vehicles passing the site each day just minutes from two Interstate 64 interchanges at Oyster Point and Jefferson Avenue. Mr. William "Bill" Carr, Monarch's Peninsula Market President, and the Monarch banking and mortgage team will relocate from the loan production office in the Oyster Point district to the new full-service banking and mortgage location in the summer of 2015. "We are excited to be part of this major development, and believe the Tech Center will be the place to live, shop, work and bank in Newport News when it is completed."
In Virginia Beach, Monarch Bank has signed a lease for the relocation of their current Willis Wayside office to Virginia Beach Town Center. This full service banking office will open late in 2014 and will provide drive-in banking and ample ground parking for clients, two things many of the other banks in the development do not offer. Monarch has hired Ms. Vita Harper to lead the office where she previously served as the manager of the nearby BB&T Bank office at Pembroke. The Pembroke office is the largest BB&T office in Virginia Beach and recently reported $383 million in deposits. The 17-blocks of the Town Center of Virginia Beach offer high-end retail and office space, centrally located between downtown Norfolk and the Virginia Beach oceanfront, the Town Center of Virginia Beach has over 700,000 square feet of high-end retail space, restaurants, cafes, a comedy club, cinemas and The Sandler Center for the Performing Arts, as well as approximately 800,000 square feet of commercial office space. The area houses the region's most prestigious law firms, engineering, architectural, financial, software and businesses in one of seven office buildings.
Monarch Bank closed their Suffolk banking office at the end of July. "We previously served the citizens of Suffolk and will continue to service them and our Suffolk-based clients who have selected Monarch as their Bank," noted E. Neal Crawford, Jr. President. "We will look for a location in the future that is more convenient and is a better fit for our company." Debbie Cagle, the Private Banker who managed the Suffolk office, is now managing our Chesapeake location in Greenbrier, and the Suffolk staff has filled open positions elsewhere in the company.
Monarch Financial Holdings, Inc. is the one-bank holding company for Monarch Bank. Monarch Bank is a community bank with ten banking offices in Chesapeake, Virginia Beach, Norfolk, and Williamsburg Virginia. Monarch Bank has loan production offices in Newport News and Richmond/ Glen Allen, Virginia. OBX Bank, a division of Monarch Bank, operates offices in Kitty Hawk and Nags Head, North Carolina. Monarch Mortgage and our affiliated mortgage companies have over thirty-five offices with locations in Virginia, North Carolina, Maryland, and South Carolina. Our subsidiaries/ divisions include Monarch Bank, OBX Bank, Monarch Mortgage (secondary mortgage origination), OBX Bank Mortgage (secondary mortgage origination), Coastal Home Mortgage, LLC (secondary mortgage origination), Regional Home Mortgage, LLC (secondary mortgage origination), Advance Financial Group (secondary mortgage origination), Monarch Bank Private Wealth (investment, trust, planning and private banking), Monarch Investments (investment and insurance solutions), Real Estate Security Agency, LLC (title agency) and Monarch Capital, LLC (commercial mortgage brokerage). The shares of common stock of Monarch Financial Holdings, Inc. are publicly traded on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the symbol "MNRK".
This press release may contain "forward-looking statements," within the meaning of federal securities laws that involve significant risks and uncertainties. Statements herein are based on certain assumptions and analyses by the Company and are factors it believes are appropriate in the circumstances. Actual results could differ materially from those contained in or implied by such statements for a variety of reasons including, but not limited to: changes in interest rates; changes in accounting principles, policies, or guidelines; significant changes in the economic scenario: significant changes in regulatory requirements; and significant changes in securities markets. Consequently, all forward-looking statements made herein are qualified by these cautionary statements and the cautionary language in the Company's most recent Form 10-K and 10-Q reports and other documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company does not undertake to update forward-looking statements to reflect circumstances or events that occur after the date the forward-looking statements are made.