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Zach Brown, Senior Vice President, Director of Customer Solutions & Asset Management
Zach Brown, Senior Vice President, Director of Customer Solutions & Asset Management

 

First Reliance Bank announces that Zach Brown has been promoted to Senior Vice President, Director of Customer Solutions & Asset Management. He is responsible for bank-wide management of collections, special assets, the call center, and facilities.

Rick Saunders, Chief Executive Officer of First Reliance Bank, shared, “Zach continues to provide outstanding customer interaction processes with careful attention to the bank’s asset management.”

Ben Brazell, Executive Vice President of Retail Banking said, “Zach provides value and support of our bank’s purpose and values. As a recipient of the First Reliance Culture Coin, he clearly delivers our brand purpose to make things BETTER.”

Zach earned a degree in Business Management in 2007 from Florence Darlington Technical College.

 

Taft Osborne, Vice President, Branch Manager
Taft Osborne, Vice President, Branch Manager

 

First Reliance Bank announces that Taft Osborne has been promoted to Vice President, Branch Manager for the Simpsonville, SC, branch. He oversees the daily branch operations and is responsible for growing the bank’s customer base while maintaining excellent customer service and serving the community in various activities.

President of First Reliance Justin Strickland said, “Taft’s leadership in the Simpsonville market furthers our bank’s market growth in that area. He is a community leader with the Simpsonville Chamber of Commerce, where he is an “A-List award winner for best Banking & Financial Institution and the CEO Award of Excellence.”

Schaefer Carpenter, Senior Vice President, Retail Banking Manager, shared, “Taft simply lives the bank’s values; Customer’s First, Positive Attitude, and Commitment to Excellence. It is a pleasure to work with him.”

Taft is a graduate of James Madison University, where he earned a B.A. Economics. He is a board member and ...


Nathan Ruth, Vice President, Branch Manager
Nathan Ruth, Vice President, Branch Manager

First Reliance Bank announces that Nathan Ruth has been promoted to Vice President, Branch Manager for the West Columbia branch. He oversees the daily branch operations and is responsible for growing the bank’s customer base while maintaining excellent customer service and serving the community in various activities.

President of First Reliance Justin Strickland said, “Nathan’s leadership in the West Columbia market boosts our bank’s market growth in that area. As an Ambassador for the Greater Cayce West Columbia Chamber of Commerce, Nathan is a community leader.”

Schaefer Carpenter, Senior Vice President, Retail Banking Manager, shared, “It is a pleasure working with Nathan. His commitment to the bank’s values includes Customer’s First, Positive Attitude, and Commitment to Excellence.”

Nathan is a 2005 graduate of DePaul University, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in Communications. He is also a 2022 graduate of the SC Banker School.

 

 

Tiffany (TK) Kiminski, Vice President, Deposit Operations Manager
Tiffany (TK) Kiminski, Vice President, Deposit Operations Manager

First Reliance Bank announces that Tiffany (TK) Kiminski has been promoted to Vice President, Deposit Operations Manager.  As a 2019 graduate of the SC Bankers School, TK manages Deposit Operations for the bank.  Deposit Operations is responsible for numerous operations, including account adjustments, disputes, account reviews, sweeps, escheatment, wires, and much more.  She has led various team assignments to implement new systems that affect the bank’s deposit accounts as well as participating in many others.

Rick Saunders, Chief Executive Officer of First Reliance Bank, shared, “Tiffany is a dependable employee with excellent values that encompass community mindednesses and business leadership. She lives the bank's values of being a committed, caring leader.”

John Lindley, Senior Vice President and Director of Operations, said, “Tiffany’s leadership across all markets furthers our bank’s growth. As a recipient of the First Reliance Culture Coin in 2022, she fully embraces the bank’s core values delivering on ...


Schaefer Carpenter, Senior Vice President, Retail Banking Manager
Schaefer Carpenter, Senior Vice President, Retail Banking Manager

 

First Reliance Bank announces that Schaefer Carpenter has been promoted to Senior Vice President, Retail Banking Manager. He manages the daily operations and staffing of 11 retail banking offices in South Carolina and North Carolina.

Rick Saunders, Chief Executive Officer of First Reliance Bank, shared, “Schaefer’s leadership is noteworthy. As a recipient of the bank’s Culture Coin, he portrays living the bank’s core values and delivering on our brand purpose to make things BETTER.”

Ben Brazell, Executive Vice President Retail Banking, said, “Schaefer meticulously manages mergers, team efforts, and daily banking efforts.”

Schaefer earned a B.S. in Finance from The University of South Carolina. During his career, he furthered his education at the South Carolina Bankers School, the RMA Commercial Lending School (East Carolina University), and the FDIC Examiner School (Washington, DC).

 

Money Mules – A Growing Problem

 

In the 2018 release of “The Mule,” starring Clint Eastwood as Earl Stone, a 90-year-old man who is broke, alone, and facing foreclosure of his business. Earl is offered a job that requires him to drive. While that should be easy enough, Earl doesn’t know that he had signed on as a drug courier for a Mexican cartel. The movie was based on The New York Times article "The Sinaloa Cartel's 90-Year-Old Drug Mule" by Sam Dolnick. Inspired by the true story of Leo Sharp, an 80-year-old World War II veteran, Sharp became the world's oldest and most prolific drug mule for the Sinaloa Cartel.

Money mules and crime have long been one and the same, and financial institutions have been working to prevent them for a very long time. First Reliance Bank knows of the dangers and is aggressive in our efforts to thwart it. One important effort ...


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