We believe banking is still a “people” business as we remain committed to our proven community banking philosophy. Our retail banking operation designated 2003 as the “Year of Accountability” and our branch employees are working hard to improve Colonial’s share of the market. They began by simply calling their customers, whether to wish them a happy birthday, remind them they have a CD coming due or to tell them about our insurance, annuities and other offerings. Not only did deposits increase, but our cross-sell ratio – which measures the number of our banking products and services per household – jumped from 2.73 at the end of 2002 to 3.13 by year-end 2003. Our personal touch has also been important in winning an increasing amount of cash management, wealth management and private banking business from our most successful individual customers as well as new customers. We have targeted a 3.50 cross-sell ratio for 2004 as we continue to emphasize our broad product base and increasing convenience in high-growth markets.

In 2003, we opened nine new branches and we intend to open 15 more in 2004. We implemented new bank automation technology in our branches, allowing them to be more efficient and more focused on sales and customer service. Colonial also achieved Internet banking penetration of 23%, exceeding our goal of 15%, as more of our customers made use of modern technology for their banking needs. In addition, we are preparing our organization to make the transition to the “checkless society,” the federally mandated move toward the electronic transmission of files among banks without the use of paper.

Colonial continues to go where the opportunities are. In just seven years we have become the seventh-largest bank in Florida, as measured by deposits, with $4.6 billion in deposits, $6.8 billion in assets and 104 branches. More importantly, we have chosen some of the best growth markets in which to be located. Colonial’s Florida franchise is located in areas that represent 80% of the state’s population and 76% of the state’s total deposits. The growth rate in Florida remains strong. It is estimated that the state’s population will increase by 32.5% between 2005 and 2025, and the population in Colonial’s Florida markets is projected to increase 33.4% in that same timeframe. Our most recent acquisitions are located in these growth markets. The Sarasota Bancorporation acquisition added a downtown Sarasota location with $161 million in assets and the pending P.C.B. Bancorp, Inc. acquisition is expected to add $662 million in assets and 16 offices to our impressive franchise on the east and west coasts of south Florida.