First Citizens Offices Move to Downtown Roanoke

Bank now has 80 associates at regional headquarters building

May 23, 2002

ROANOKE, Va. - First Citizens Bank has moved its credit card company and telephone banking center from leased quarters near the airport to the bank's downtown Roanoke regional headquarters building.

The relocation articulates First Citizens' ongoing commitment to downtown Roanoke, according to John Francis, the bank's Virginia and West Virginia regional executive vice president.

"First Citizens is dedicated to downtown," Francis said. "Moving these two offices to our regional headquarters building makes terrific business sense. Downtown Roanoke is a great location that provides a vibrant work environment."

Both the credit card company and customer contact center have moved from the Valley View Corporate Center on Thirlane Road to the bank's main office at Church Avenue and First Street.

In 1997, First Citizens relocated its credit card subsidiary from Raleigh, N.C., to Roanoke. The company, First Citizens Bank, A Virginia Corporation, handles all credit card operations for First Citizens Bank in Virginia, West Virginia and North Carolina as well as another First Citizens BancShares subsidiary, Atlantic States Bank, which serves Georgia and Florida.

"What a great way to celebrate bankcard's fifth anniversary in Roanoke by moving to a new home downtown," said Bill Shaw, president of the credit card company. "We look forward to serving our customers from this location for many years to come."

The new office also represents new surroundings for First Citizens' Roanoke customer contact center. The center provides telephone-based customer service support for First Citizens and Atlantic States retail and business banking customers in five states.

With the move, a total of 80 First Citizens employees work downtown. The five-story office building at 110 Church Ave. houses the bank's credit card company, Roanoke customer contact center, regional administration, commercial banking, leasing and branch operations.

First Citizens has experienced solid growth since it entered the Virginia market in 1995. Currently, there are 46 First Citizens branches in Virginia and five offices in West Virginia with 375 employees. First Citizens has five branches and employs more than 140 people in the Roanoke area.

Headquartered in Raleigh, N.C., with Virginia region headquarters in Roanoke, First Citizens is the lead subsidiary of First Citizens BancShares Inc. (Nasdaq: FCNCA), which has $11.75 billion in assets.

First Citizens Bank operates 347 branches in 203 cities and towns in Virginia, West Virginia and North Carolina. First Citizens is committed to providing superior financial services to individual customers and small to mid-sized businesses.

In addition to telephone banking and branch offices, customers can bank with First Citizens through a network of hundreds of ATMs. The online banking service, firstcitizens.com, gives customers safe and easy access to their accounts through the Internet.

For more information about First Citizens and its services, call toll-free 1-888-FC DIRECT (1-888-323-4732) or visit firstcitizens.com.

For more information, contact:
Frank Smith
(919) 716-4121
First Citizens Bank