At its most recent Board of Directors meeting, Progress Financial Corporation declared a special one-time cash dividend for their shareholders at $0.25 per share. Progress Financial is the parent company of Progress Bank which has 13 total locations in Alabama and Florida with their headquarters residing in Huntsville. Since opening in 2008, Progress Bank has grown to over $1.8 billion in assets.

This announcement is the most recent in a trend of good news for Progress Financial as they have continued to grow their assets despite the recent COVID-19 pandemic. The dividend is an increase from $0.21 per share last year and is payable to shareholders on February 15, 2022.

HBJ recently spoke with the President and CEO of Progress Bank, David Nast, about what this announcement means for the bank and how they have adapted their business in order to continue turning profits over the last few years.

“We have enjoyed a very good performance over a very difficult business environment over the past two years. Each of the markets that we operate in has handled these challenges very well in terms of servicing our clients and continuing to grow the bank. This dividend is an increase from last year and it speaks not only to our success over the last year but also to our continued success in 2022,” proclaimed Nast.

When asked about the company’s ability to stay profitable during the pandemic, Nast said it is a cohesive effort in executing a strategic plan that keeps Progress Bank growing.

“We’ve increased our profitability every year since we opened the bank in 2008. 2021 was a record year where we turned in $21 million in profits even with the pandemic,” Nast informed.

“We’ve done this mainly through execution of a strategic plan that is developed by a senior management team that covers everything from growth strategy, expansion into new markets and what lines of business we invest in. It’s a testament to the entire workforce from top to bottom in developing and executing a cohesive strategic plan.”