July 15, 1998
Heritage Trust Marks Growth
By GREGORY Potts, Journal Record Staff Reporter - View Article PDF

OKLAHOMA CITY - When Banc One took over Liberty Bancorp last year, a handful of employees didn’t want to make the transition from working for the locally owned institution. So they formed Heritage Trust Oklahoma City’s only local, independent trust company.

Since opening for business Dec. 1, the company has grown to overseeing $130 million in assets. Mike Carroll, the company’s president and chief executive officer, hopes this figure will approach $200 million by the end of the year.

The firm’s quick success up to now have been due largely to the trust officers’ well-established relationships. Carroll said that at this time, the names of the individuals in the company are more valuable in attracting business than the little known Heritage name.

Heritage offers estate planning, probate administration or estate settlement, trusteeships, custodial accounts, and investment management. Being Oklahoma City’s only trust company that is not a division of a bank allows Heritage to specialize, Chairman Nancy Payne Ellis told a Tuesday luncheon audience.

The company opened in a temporary office in the 50 Penn Place Tower, but began remodeling a space for a permanent office in January. The staff moved into its new offices in the retail area of 50 Penn Place on May 1. The 4,200-square-foot space designed by local architect Alan Porter and finished by David Reynolds of Red Eagle Development has an entrance both from the west parking lot and from inside the mall.

That accessibility has spurred walk-in business the staff rarely saw when working downtown, said Richard Kerrick, vice president and director of marketing. In addition, customers volunteer to stop by to do business in person that they used to do by phone, mail, or a house-call appointment.

The company was formed with the financial support of the Payne family the trust company’s primary owners. In addition to its chairman who is also the president of Coyote Oil and Gas and Premium Pipe and Equipment there are three other board members: Carroll; Stephen Bond Payne, Payne Ellis’ son; and Randolph Royse, president of National Bank of Commerce, which handle’s Heritage’s banking needs. Carroll said the company is extending invitations to expand its board.

Heritage has a staff of seven. Carroll was the manager of the personal trust division at Liberty National Bank before quitting to form Heritage. Donald Balaban, senior vice president and trust officer at Heritage, was the head of the trust department at Liberty. J. Ronald Bowles, senior vice president; Cathy McKinzie, manager of operations; and Kerrick also came from Liberty’s trust department. Bond Payne is serving as the company’s compliance officer. The staff is small, explained Carroll, in part because much of the "back office" operations are out sourced.

Payne Ellis noted that she was a longtime trust customer at Liberty with an established relationship between her and the current Heritage staff. She began discussing with Carroll the changes in store for Liberty last year and eventually invited the others into a meeting to discuss the formation of a new trust company.

Being locally owned provides Heritage advantages over its competitors, according to Carroll. First, he said, customers want to sit across the desk from and look in the eyes of a decision-maker instead of calling a toll-free out-of-state number. In addition, he said customers value flexibility for individual needs rather than strict adherence to set rules.

Finally, they don’t want staff to be shuffled between departments and cities after a relationship has been established. In addition to contacting previous clients, Heritage’s marketing strategy includes print ads in local publications and general networking within the community, explained Kerrick. The company’s slogan: "Money does grow on trees... family trees."

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