The Commerce Bank of Oregon
MISSION
The Commerce Bank of Oregon was established in 2005 to cater to the Oregon and SW Washington business community by providing a highly customized approach to lending and banking.
COMPANY OVERVIEW
We are fortunate to have steadily grown our client base over the last 14 years. Many of our larger relationships started as smaller companies fueled with desire for growth and success. We recognize that growing companies, whether they are smaller expanding companies or established middle-market companies, are critical to the growth of our own business and our local economy.
Our goal is to provide an alternative to the status quo of banking. We enjoy the lending capacity and sophistication of a large regional bank through our ownership by Zions Bancorporation, N.A, while maintaining a community bank model and culture. Our relationship managers are credit underwriters and portfolio managers; we do not ship the decision making out-of-state. In addition, our clients have direct access to our senior management team, which we believe is critical to building strong relationships.
It is an honor to be associated with EO’s Portland Chapter to help foster the long-term sustainable growth of local businesses. We look forward to opportunities to be an engaged resource.
EO MEMBER TESTIMONIAL
““How often does a business follow through with exactly what they say they will, much less a bank? I was trying to arrange a line of credit with my old bank and after 6 months of back and forth was introduced to Commerce Bank. Commerce told me they could do the LOC and all of the other things I needed in a shorter amount of time, and with less covenants. Literally 3 weeks later, it was all done and in place. I couldn’t wait to close my account with the other bank. 2 lines of equity and a building purchase later, Commerce is still making it easy to do business with them. It’s not often I look forward to calling my banker, but I do with Commerce.”
— Joe Squires, Squires Electric““When another local business bank called our credit line because of their regulators threatening to shut them down in 2009, we turned to The Commerce Bank of Oregon to replace them and they did an even better line facility for us. Over time we made them our primary banking relationship and have three real estate loans with them as well. They have always done what they said they could do and been very predictable and stable for us and therefore a huge asset to helping Bargain Storage achieve its potential.”
— Barry Raber, Bargain Storage
EO MEMBER BENEFIT
As an exclusive perk for EO Portland members, we'd like to offer a complimentary two-hour "get to know you and your business" meeting to explore your overall strategic plan and to gain a better understanding of your business and financial/tax pain points.
FORUM TOPICS
Invite us to speak at your Forum (contact info below)! Here are some potential topics:
Banking tools for exporting/importing
Best practices in real estate financing
Fraud protection tools in banking
Think like a banker (underwriting)
How to apply/optimize bank financing
Equipment leasing/financing
CONFERENCE ROOM AVAILABILITY
MEET SUSAN KANE FROM THE COMMERCE BANK
Susan Kane has a passion for getting to know the people behind the businesses she works with. As a Relationship Manager, Susan works with businesses to effectively manage their banking portfolios. She has experience with a broad range of industries and prides herself on providing an exceptional level of service to her clients.
Susan was one of the original team members when The Commerce Bank of Oregon was formed in 2005, intrigued by the idea of working for a start-up company and in helping to lay the foundation for the bank’s future.
Susan manages a portfolio of small/mid-sided business clients, ranging a variety of industries, and covering a full suite of services including commercial lending, deposit and treasury management.
Susan is a member of The Association for Financial Professionals (AFP) and Women in Insurance & Financial Services (WIFS). She is from the Portland area and loves living in the Northwest. Her degrees are in Spanish and Philosophy from Loyola Marymount University.
In her spare time, Susan is a local expert at partner dancing and can often be seen "cutting a rug" to live music.
MEET BRIAN YARBROUGH FROM THE COMMERCE BANK
With 16 years of international and commercial banking experience, Brian Yarbrough brings to his role as Relationship Manager a diverse banking background and expertise well suited for companies looking to grow their business sustainably and responsibly. Brian takes great pride in working closely with business owners to fully understand the intricacies and challenges of their business and industry in order to provide timely, flexible and customized banking solutions.
Brian began his banking career in 1997 with the Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi in Seattle, spending 8 years in the international banking arena before shifting over to a lending and commercial relationship management role. Over the course of his career, Brian has had the privilege of working with companies of all shapes and sizes in a wide array of industries, from professional and medical services firms to small family-owned manufacturing businesses to larger distribution companies doing business globally.
A native Oregonian and graduate of the University of Oregon, Brian is particularly drawn to the vibrancy and creativity of Portland, where there is a sense of shared community and spirit that is difficult to find in other cities.
In his spare time, Brian enjoys outdoor activities, camping, sports of all kinds and spending time with his wife and three boys.
