Bank of Anguilla president and chief executive officer, Fred Miller, is
one of the South Delta's most concerned citizens. Having been with
the Bank of Anguilla since 1971, Miller has seen the bad times descend
on his area of the Delta, especially in agriculture. Sharkey and Issaquena
Counties consistently show high unemployment figures - some of the highest
in the state. However, despite the area's problems, there are those that
have made lifetime commitments to that region. Fred Miller has made this
commitment.
"I would not live anywhere else," Miller proudly exclaims. "This is a close community. Close communities encourage caring, and in today's world, that means a lot."
Ask anyone who knows Miller and they will describe him as a person of quality, and as someone who has provided outstanding leadership to the Bank of Anguilla, seeing that financial institution through the good and bad times.
"I would have to share that credit with others," laughs Miller in response to those comments. "True enough, we are in some pretty tough times down here, however we've been profitable and have been able to survive because of the conservative nature of our board."
The banking atmosphere is somewhat unique in Miller's area of the Delta in that the only market the bank has is one most other banks run from: agriculture. Industry is almost non-existent in that area of the Delta and in fact, the Bank of Anguilla is one of the largest employers in the area.
"Because our area is so small, and so economically depressed, agriculture is the only market we really have," says Miller. "As the bank moved into becoming an agricultural lender, our risk profile changed and to be honest, the bank prospers, or not, the same way the community does, and that's on the backs of the agricultural community."
The Bank of Anguilla has been serving the area since its founding in 1904. With assets of $75 million there are branches in Rolling Fork, Mayersville and Cary. In fact, it is the only bank in Sharkey and Issaquena counties, providing a valuable service to these areas.
And, although Miller is a true South Deltan to the core, his roots began in the North Delta.
Born in Greenwood, Miller's father was a retail merchant, with stores in Drew and Lexington. The Miller family lived in Drew until 1954 when his father sold his stores and purchased one in Helena, Arkansas. Miller spent his formative years in Helena working in his father's store where he expected to follow him in the retail merchant business.
"Working in a store like that was a great experience for a young person," says Miller. "I was very involved with the financial end of the business by the time I was getting close to graduating from high school. That experience gave me a lot of direction which eventually led me into banking."
After high school, Miller went to LSU where he majored in accounting. It was at LSU that Miller met his wife, the former Leslie Kline of Anguilla. In 1971, just as Miller was finishing LSU, Leslie heard about a position that was available at the Bank of Anguilla.
"I interviewed there and they offered me a better salary than anyone else had - $600.00 per month and a 20 percent bonus, which was very competitive at the time," says Miller.
Miller got the job starting out as a manager trainee "with very high expectations" he says.
"I felt that I would probably work at the bank my entire life and would hopefully be president one day," says Miller. "I thought that's what you were supposed to do."
Miller says that those early years in the bank were indeed an eye-opening, learning experience, and that he had several mentors that taught him a lot.
"They were all good leaders," says Miller of his former bank president and chairmen of the board. "They've always allowed us to run the bank the way the officers thought it should be run and they've supported us."
In just 15 years, Miller achieved his goal of being the bank's president and according to those around him, he has done an excellent job of running the bank. In fact, the average length of employment at the bank is 15 years, and more then half of the bank's employees have been there for 20 years or more.
Through the years, Miller has had offers from other banks, however his home was at the Bank of Anguilla and he just couldn't leave.
Miller has been very involved in the community in various areas from such as serving as the past president of both the Anguilla Rotary Club and Sharkey Country Club to board of directors for Hebrew Union Congregation. He has coached Little League baseball for 27 years, and girls basketball for 15 years.
Miller's major role outside of the bank is serving as the current president of the Mississippi Banking Association. He has had an active role in the organization for a number of years, serving in many capacities.
"I got involved with the Mississippi Banker's Association several years ago and I have very much enjoyed the work," says Miller. "I also have felt that it is my obligation to be a part of the organization, and as one position has ended, either I would volunteer for another job or they would simply put me somewhere else and that's how it has been."
Miller has also served as the organization's chairman of their agricultural committee, chairman of the state legislative committee, chairman of the federal legislative committee for two terms, and he has been appointed to two American Banker's Association boards. Miller is also a member of ABA's national PAC.
"I have loved working for the association, especially being involved in all of the legislative work that we do," says Miller. "It has also been good for our bank. I have encouraged all of our employees to be involved with the organization as well, attending seminars and volunteering for committees, because I feel that every time they learn something different, the bank gains from it."
And how is the banking business in this day and time?
"We say that the financial services industry is one of the most regulated industries in the country, however I'm sure there are those who would argue that point," says Miller. "But I do feel that there is no doubt that we are under more regulation than we have been in the past, and no doubt some of this is necessary to protect depositor's funds and to have good safety and soundness. But, a lot of these regulations are a burden to us - they are costly to us and our customers. There is a big push in congress to eliminate some of the regulations that really serve no purpose.
"I also think that after the first of the year we'll see more bank mergers in Mississippi," says Miller. "I think this will happen once we get past the millennium change and the Y2K scare. Mississippi has not been a big state for multi-bank takeovers. We have had some, however because we are a small state we will be a target for takeovers from out of state banks. I don't think this will be good for Mississippi as we lose control of our financial institutions.
As we end the conversation, Miller admits that he and his bank may be a dying breed.
"There is no doubt that there is a niche for people like us," says Miller. "There are a lot of banks that don't want to do business in the agricultural industry, however in the early eighties we had a choice that we could make loans to the ag community and take a chance that we might sometimes lose money or we could make no loans at all and make no money because all we have down here is agriculture. We made the decision to make loans to farmers and it has been good for us and for the community."