OLSEN PALMER TO SPONSOR THE TENNESSEE BANKERS ASSOCIATION ANNUAL MEETING

Washington, D.C. – Olsen Palmer LLC is pleased to announce that it will be a Platinum Sponsor of the 124th annual meeting of the Tennessee Bankers Association (“TBA”). This year’s TBA annual meeting will be held from June 8th through June 10th at The Breakers Hotel in Palm Beach, Florida.

Olsen Palmer is proud to support the TBA and this event, and is particularly honored to sponsor the Chairman’s Reception in celebration of outgoing TBA Chairman Jeff Agee, CEO of First Citizens Bancshares, Inc., a valued and long-standing Olsen Palmer client.

About Olsen Palmer

Washington, D.C.-based Olsen Palmer LLC (“Olsen Palmer”) is a specialized investment banking firm that provides merger & acquisition, valuation, and strategic advice exclusively to independent community banks. The principals of Olsen Palmer have collectively been advising financial institutions for three decades, having advised on over 50 M&A transactions with values as small as $4 million and as large as $4 billion. For more information, please visit www.olsenpalmer.com.

OLSEN PALMER ADVISES FIRST CITIZENS BANCSHARES, INC. ON ACQUISITION OF SOUTHERN HERITAGE BANCSHARES, INC.

Washington, D.C. – Olsen Palmer is pleased to announce that its client, First Citizens Bancshares, Inc. (Dyersburg, Tennessee; $1.2 billion in assets), has agreed to acquire Southern Heritage Bancshares, Inc. (Cleveland, Tennessee; $237 million in assets) in a cash-and-stock transaction valued at $32.2 million.

With the acquisition, First Citizens will extend its branch footprint statewide while solidifying its position as the 7th largest Tennessee-based community bank. In addition, First Citizens will increase its statewide market share, improving its Tennessee deposit market share ranking to 16th. The combined organization will have approximately $1.5 billion in total assets, $1.2 billion in deposits, 350 associates and 24 branches across 10 Tennessee counties.

Olsen Palmer LLC served as exclusive financial advisor and issued a fairness opinion to First Citizens Bancshares, Inc.

About Olsen Palmer LLC

Washington, D.C.-based Olsen Palmer LLC (“Olsen Palmer”) is a specialized investment banking firm that provides merger & acquisition, valuation, and strategic advice exclusively to independent community banks. The principals of Olsen Palmer have collectively been advising financial institutions for three decades, having advised on over 50 M&A transactions with values as small as $4 million and as large as $4 billion. For more information, please visit www.olsenpalmer.com.

OLSEN PALMER MANAGING PARTNER TO SPEAK AT 2013 EXECUTIVE MANAGEMENT CONFERENCE

Washington, D.C. – Christopher Olsen, Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Olsen Palmer LLC, will be a featured speaker at the 2013 Executive Management Conference (“EMC”), an event jointly organized by the Mississippi Bankers Association (“MBA”) and the Tennessee Bankers Association (“TBA”). Olsen Palmer is proud to be an associate member of both the MBA and the TBA.  The firm’s principals have attended and served as keynote speakers at numerous MBA and TBA events in recent years.

The Executive Management Conference, to take place in Jackson Hole, Wyoming from September 29 to October 2, will address a range of Management-level topics including the state of the community banking industry, trends in bank valuation and M&A, and the community bank regulatory environment.  This is the second year that the MBA and the TBA have collaborated on a joint management conference.

In his speech, Mr. Olsen will discuss the shifting community banking landscape and the economic, regulatory, and operational challenges community bank managers now face in the aftermath of the financial crisis.  He will also examine the entire range of strategic options community banks can leverage to spur earnings growth and enhance franchise value. For a copy of Mr. Olsen’s presentation materials or to discuss the Conference subjects in greater detail, please feel free to contact the firm at info@olsenpalmer.com or 202-627-2043.

About Christopher Olsen and Olsen Palmer LLC

Christopher Olsen has focused exclusively on advising financial services companies for the entirety of his career. Before co-founding Olsen Palmer, Mr. Olsen was with Hovde Financial and then Milestone Advisors, where he focused on Bank & Thrift M&A in the Southeast U.S. Mr. Olsen has also worked in the Financial Institutions Group of Morgan Stanley’s Investment Banking division as well as for First Annapolis Consulting. He began his career working for Norwest Bank (now Wells Fargo) and then for a 3-branch community bank. Mr. Olsen holds an MBA from Columbia University and a BBA in Finance from The George Washington University.

Washington, D.C.-based Olsen Palmer LLC (“Olsen Palmer”) is a specialized investment banking firm that provides merger & acquisition, valuation, and strategic advice exclusively to independent community banks and thrifts. The principals of Olsen Palmer have been advising financial institutions for three decades, having advised on over 50 M&A transactions with values as small as $4 million and as large as $4 billion. For more information on Olsen Palmer, please visit www.olsenpalmer.com.

OLSEN PALMER LLC FEATURED IN INTERVIEW WITH SNL FINANCIAL

Washington, D.C. – Olsen Palmer was featured by SNL Financial following an interview with Senior Reporter Joe Mantone.

In the article, Olsen Palmer LLC Co-Founders Messrs. Olsen and Palmer discuss the state of the community banking landscape, trends in the M&A environment, and the rationale for launching a community bank-focused M&A advisory firm in order to better meet client needs.

The interview, featured in an article entitled “Olsen Palmer Ready to Explore Strategic Options for Banks” can be read in its entirety by accessing the following link: http://www.snl.com/InteractiveX/Article.aspx?cdid=A-25107852-12337.

About Olsen Palmer

Washington, D.C.-based Olsen Palmer LLC (“Olsen Palmer”) is a specialized investment banking firm that provides merger & acquisition, valuation, and strategic advice exclusively to independent community banks and thrifts. The principals of Olsen Palmer have been advising financial institutions for three decades, having advised on over 50 M&A transactions with values as small as $4 million and as large as $4 billion. For more information on Olsen Palmer, please visit www.olsenpalmer.com.

CHRISTOPHER OLSEN INVITED TO SERVE AS INSTRUCTOR AT BANK ANALYST TRAINING PROGRAM

Washington, D.C. — Christopher Olsen, Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Olsen Palmer LLC, has been invited by SNL Financial to serve as an instructor at the annual Analyst Training in the Banking Sector.  Now in its 16th year, SNL’s Analyst Training in the Bank Sector is a leading forum for educating professionals who analyze, advise, work in or regulate banks; including investment bankers, buy- and sell-side analysts, regulators, and banking professionals.

Mr. Olsen has been asked to specifically address the subject of Advanced Topics in Bank Valuation. In so doing, Mr. Olsen will cover the various drivers of strategic and financial value, trends in valuation multiples over time, techniques for evaluating a potential bank merger or acquisition, the impact of synergies, economic and accounting accretion/dilution, and a review of trends currently influencing M&A and going-concern values.  This will be the third time Mr. Olsen has served as an instructor at this program.

About Olsen Palmer

Washington, D.C.-based Olsen Palmer LLC (“Olsen Palmer”) is a specialized investment banking firm that provides merger & acquisition, valuation, and strategic advice exclusively to independent community banks and thrifts. The principals of Olsen Palmer have been advising financial institutions for three decades, having advised on over 50 M&A transactions with values as small as $4 million and as large as $4 billion. For more information on Olsen Palmer, please visit www.olsenpalmer.com.

Christopher Olsen, Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Olsen Palmer, has focused exclusively on advising financial services companies for the entirety of his career. Before founding Olsen Palmer, Mr. Olsen was with Milestone Advisors (acquired by Houlihan Lokey) where he served as Managing Director and head of the firm’s Southeast U.S. Bank & Thrift M&A practice. Prior to joining Milestone, Mr. Olsen was with Hovde Financial, an investment banking firm that specializes in advising depository institutions. Mr. Olsen has also worked for First Annapolis Consulting, a financial advisory and management consulting firm, as well as for the Financial Institutions Group of Morgan Stanley’s Investment Banking division. He began his career working for a bank, first at Norwest Bank (now Wells Fargo) and then for a 3-branch community bank. Mr. Olsen holds an MBA from Columbia University and a BBA in Finance from The George Washington University.