Reliance Bank opens loan office in partnership with Justine Petersen

ST. LOUIS — Reliance Bank has opened a new loan production office within the Justine Petersen building at 1021 N. Grand Blvd.

The new loan production office will be headed by Community Development Officer Alonzo Shaw and will offer a range of lending products including small business loans, consumer loans and mortgage loans. The location also houses a full-service ATM on the east side of the building facing Grand Boulevard.

Justine Petersen is a nonprofit organization that assists low- wealth individuals and families to develop, maintain and increase financial assets.

Allan D. Ivie, CEO of Reliance Bancshares, said the office is Reliance’s first facility located in the city of St. Louis.

The grand opening and ribbon-cutting event had more than 150 in attendance including Chairman of Reliance Bancshares, Tom Brouster.

“Justine Petersen has done fine work throughout our community and we are proud to partner with them,” Brouster said. “We look forward to helping revitalize the community and this is the first step of many for Reliance Bank in St. Louis.”

Robert Boyle, CEO of Justine Petersen, said the event marks more than a partnership; it marks a cultural exchange as the nonprofit lending institution takes on the good things of Reliance Bank and concurrently Reliance Bank takes on the positive attributes of the nonprofit in exchange.

Reliance Bank recently announced a record profit of $6.57 million in 2013 after aggressively turning around the bank in 2012.

“In its relatively short cultural exchange period, a mere six quarters, Reliance Bank and Justine Petersen have significantly increased our respective double bottom lines with products and services that are impacting neighborhoods with investments in St. Louis City, St. Louis County and in Madison and St. Clair counties in Illinois,” Boyle said.