Regions Bank 2014 Annual Report Download - page 2

1 REGIONS 2014 ANNUAL REVIEW
CHAIRMAN’S LETTER
To our shareholders, associates, customers and communities:
Today, Regions serves over four million consumer households in
16 states in the Southeast, Midwest and Texas – this area not only
represents a great place to do business, but also importantly provides
compelling growth opportunities. In addition to the population of
many of our markets increasing at rates well above the national
average, these markets are seeing expansion in industries like
healthcare, auto manufacturing and aerospace. There is also
access to overseas markets, as global trade is thriving from South
Florida to Texas as well as robust investment in manufacturing, with
an industrial renaissance underway across the southern Gulf Coast,
creating stronger local economies and prompting job creation.
We believe that these are great markets, many of which have
historically delivered much higher rates of economic growth than
other parts of the nation. And, we remain confident that over time this
creates tremendous opportunity for Regions to continue to grow.
As attractive as these market characteristics are, however, even
more important is that Regions’ associates serve the consumers
and businesses in these communities very well. Our cornerstone
belief is that banking is about relationships. This focus has helped
us build a leading franchise in the markets where we operate, and
today we are working to further strengthen our competitive posi-
tion by expanding existing customer relationships, establishing
new ones and continuing to put customer needs at the center of
our decision making. That effort, in turn, creates greater value for
the organization and for those we serve.
Creating Value for All Stakeholders
Shared value is at the core of our culture and the foundation for
how we conduct business every day. This concept is built on the
knowledge that Regions prospers when – and only when – we
create value for all our stakeholders: customers, associates, com-
munities and shareholders. It is a sustainable business model that
reinforces value for all of those stakeholders. It determines what
products we offer, how we sell into customer needs and how we
provide financial advice. Most importantly, it builds long-term
sustainable value and a stronger corporate culture.
Progress on Many Fronts
In 2014, our shared value model delivered a year of steady progress,
with a continued focus on the fundamentals of banking and meeting
customer needs through service and innovation. Growth in loans,
deposits and customers helped increase net income available to
common shareholders to $1.1 billion. Diluted earnings per common
share were $0.80, an increase of 4% from the previous year. Notably,
we achieved these results despite the headwinds of a challenging
operating environment. Regions’ needs-based relationship banking
approach, through our Regions360™ initiative, is resonating with our
team and our customers. We grew the number of quality house-
holds, as well as the number of checking, savings, credit card
and wealth management accounts during the year. This contrib-
uted to an increase in loan and deposit balances of 4% and 2%,
respectively, year over year. Importantly, loan growth in 2014 was
broad-based, with increases achieved in both the business and
consumer loan portfolios.
GRAYSON HALL
Chairman, President and
Chief Executive Officer