Hovde

As a consistent leader and one of the first firms to specialize

in the financial services industry, Hovde is committed to the

long-term achievement for our clients and investors in each

of our areas of focus:

Investment Banking – Our skilled investment bankers provide merger and acquisition services; valuations and fairness opinions; financial and strategic advice; corporate restructurings; strategicpartnerships and joint ventures; and investor relations strategies for financial services institutions. In addition, by means of our securities arm, our professionals utilize a variety of capital marketsstrategies for our clients including mutual-to-stock thrift conversions, trust preferred securities (TPS),and underwriting of stock offerings.

Asset Management – Hovde’s funds management team provides alternative investment opportu-nities, through its Financial Institution Partners (FIP) series of hedge funds, to institutions and sophisticated individual investors. The investment group focuses exclusively on the financial servicesindustry and utilizes a deep value, long/short strategy.

Merchant Banking – Hovde enters into partnerships and offers private equity investment opportu-nities in the financial services industry. The firm deploys its own proprietary capital and investors’capital to buy controlling interests in financial services companies and works with company manage-ment to set strategic direction, build franchise value and increase earnings potential. Additionally,Hovde manages a fund which serves as a vehicle for investors looking for private equity opportunitiesin the financial services industry.

Illustrations by David Cutler

THE HOVDE ORGANIZATION IS AN INVESTMENT

BANKING, ASSET MANAGEMENT AND MERCHANT

BANKING FIRM FOCUSED EXCLUSIVELY ON THE

FINANCIAL SERVICES INDUSTRY. WE ARE DEDICATED

TO PROVIDING FINANCIAL INSTITUTION CLIENTS

AND INVESTORS WITH THE HIGHEST LEVEL OF

INTEGRITY AND SERVICE AND SUPERIOR RESULTS.

OVER THE YEARS, WE HAVE FOUND THAT SUCH A

HIGH PERFORMANCE IS ACHIEVED BY SKILLFULLY

HOLDING CERTAIN ATTRIBUTES IN BALANCE:

KNOWLEDGE AND FORESIGHT, COMMITMENT AND

EXECUTION, TENACITY AND JUDGMENT, CREATIVITY

AND VALUE, CONFIDENCE AND OBJECTIVITY. THE

HOVDE STYLE OF MANAGEMENT AND LEADERSHIP

FOSTERS SUCCESSFUL OUTCOMES FOR OUR CLIENTS.

The Art of Balance

Hovde builds on the intellectual

capital of our leaders and of our team

members. We not only thoroughly

comprehend the issues affecting our

industry – but are often able to assess

their impact before these issues are fully

appreciated by others.

OUR FIRM POSSESSES SEVERAL

HUNDRED YEARS OF CUMULATIVE

INDUSTRY EXPERIENCE.

A WEALTH OF EXPERIENCE IN ALL AREAS

OF OUR INDUSTRY ALLOWS US TO

QUICKLY ASSESS AND TAKE ADVANTAGE

OF INDUSTRY DEVELOPMENTS.

Knowledge Foresight&

3 Hovde

The Hovde organization has always been keenly focused on the financial services industry. We are proud of the deepand comprehensive knowledge we have of the micro- andmacro-economic environments affecting the industry andour insightful understanding of the financial services sector.

Since its founding in 1987, the Hovde organization hasbuilt upon the legacy of the intellectual capital and practicalexperience of its leaders and team members. Our team ofprofessionals bring to bear real expertise from four essentialcornerstones of our business: operations and management,investment banking, law and regulation, and government.This depth of expertise stems from experience in a variety of capacities including financial services regulation, creditmanagement, investment management and, importantly,bank and financial services company ownership.

Further, the Hovde team has been consistently dedicated to analyzing every intricate aspect of the financial servicesindustry. As a result, Hovde not only clearly understandseach subsector within the financial services space, but alsothe varying regional markets in which companies operate.This level of understanding enables us to excel in all indus-try subsectors – from banks and thrifts to specialty financecompanies, asset managers and insurance companies – onboth a regional and a nationwide basis.

Hovde also possesses the capability to understand individualcompanies from a very unique perspective. We make it our mission to have familiarity and relationships with all of the key players in financial services, which leads to thebest market intelligence in our field. Each day, our team of professionals meets with CEOs and CFOs of financialservices companies, and also immerse themselves in theanalysis of all factors affecting these companies in order tohave real-time awareness of constantly evolving industrydynamics. As such, we not only thoroughly comprehendeach of the issues affecting our sector in both good and bad markets – but also are often able to assess their impact before these issues are fully appreciated by others.We believe this capability enables Hovde to offer a very significant advantage to our clients and investors: Foresight.

Hovde capitalizes on this foresight by bringing together our most appropriately skilled team members to addressindividual client needs and to identify, analyze and act onspecific opportunities within the financial services industry.We believe that our foresight and our strong foundation of knowledge enable us to accomplish significant feats onbehalf of our clients and investors and to contribute to theirlong-term success in the financial services sector.

e Foresight&Eric Hovde and Steven Hovde

oversee the strategic direction ofthe firm’s several business units.

Eric D. Hovde Chairman

Steven D. Hovde President and CEO

Hovde is committed to

understanding and achieving

the diverse objectives of our

client base and to providing

life-long service that far

exceeds industry standards.

Commitment Execution

THE HOVDE ORGANIZATION

PROVIDES CUSTOMIZED, STRATEGIC

ADVICE TO FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS

THROUGHOUT THE AMERICAS.

HOVDE HAS CONSISTENTLY

RANKED AS A TOP M&A ADVISOR

IN OUR INDUSTRY.

&

5 Hovde

t Execution&Hovde does not view our client relationships as temporarybut, rather, as long-term business partnerships. Our clients’and investors’ interests are always foremost in our minds aswe go about our business, and we are constantly focused on finding opportunities that will help to accomplish theirgoals. Hovde’s long-term and devoted professionals are com-mitted to understanding and achieving the diverse objectivesof our client and investor base and to providing “hands-on,”personalized service that far exceeds industry standards.

This dedication to our clients and investors is evident in allthat we do – from the consistent senior-level attention weprovide to the personalized advice we deliver. As a steadfastadvocate for our clients and investors, we aim to anticipatetheir needs and focus relentlessly to identify opportunities.Further, we will always “go the extra mile” to accomplishour clients’ and investors’ goals, which frequently entails“rolling up our sleeves” to achieve the desired objectives.

Hovde also believes that the strongest sign of commitmentis the alignment of our investment interests with those ofour clients. As a result, Hovde invests its proprietary capitalalongside our investors – demonstrating our commitmentand confidence in our investments.

The Hovde organization understands that the goals of ourclients can change over time and, for this reason, we spendconsiderable time communicating with our clients abouttheir evolving needs. We value the trust our clients andinvestors have in our organization, our focus on their goals,and our ability to execute efficiently and effectively toaccomplish their individual objectives.

As long-time, competent and accomplished practitioners in the financial services field, we are also extremely effectivein one of the most critical areas of any business relationship:Execution. Hovde realizes that, along with commitment,skilled execution is crucial to the success of our clients.Therefore, we focus diligently on the elements of imple-mentation as well as any outside factors that may affect theinvestment or business transaction at hand. Hovde teammembers constantly evaluate sector and overall market conditions and regulatory criteria in order to execute in amanner that is to the greatest advantage to our clients and investors.

Hovde has consistently proven that we are both committedbusiness partners and talented executors, and this continuedsuccess enables us to thrive to the benefit of our clients inthe financial services marketplace.

Our team members evaluate

the landscape thoroughly,

pursue opportunities

vigorously, and negotiate

for our clients relentlessly.

Tenacity Judgment

OUR FINANCIAL INSTITUTION PARTNERS

SERIES OF FUNDS HAS DEMONSTRATED

STRENGTH IN THE MARKET.

HOVDE BENEFITS FROM ONE OF

THE MOST COMPREHENSIVE LEGAL

SUPPORT TEAMS IN THE FIELD.

&

7 Hovde

Immediately upon entering a Hovde office, one feels a sense of energy and motion. Our organization is fast-paced,action-oriented and results-driven. On behalf of our clientsand investors, we dedicate extraordinary effort and resourcesto achieve desired objectives. Hovde is, and has always been,acutely focused on not only meeting, but exceeding, ourclients’ and investors’ expectations. In order to accomplishthis, we work hard and proceed with unwavering andaggressive determination.

“Approach Our Business with Intensity and Passion.”

This work ethic, one of the Hovde “Principles of Business,”is an important component of our culture and is clearlyreflected in the way we do business. Our team membersevaluate the landscape thoroughly, pursue opportunities vigorously, and negotiate for our clients relentlessly. We persist in this manner until our clients’ goals are achievedand, as a result, we are known in the marketplace for our resolute tenacity.

Our tenacity is evident in all areas of our business and inthe actions of our leaders and team members. We value this strength but also realize that the use of thoughtful and

sound judgment is necessary to achieve the desired resultsfor our clients. Moreover, we recognize that our determina-tion must be grounded by a strong backbone of legal, regulatory, and operational considerations and support as well as rigorous controls.

Hovde excels in the area of legal, regulatory and operationalexpertise as a result of our large and focused team of special-ized professionals. This on-site resource is visible in everyarea of the Hovde organization and greatly contributes to our ability to act confidently and swiftly to accomplishour clients’ goals. In addition to these important areas ofsupport, our entire team is experienced in the considerationof the many other factors that can affect any transaction or investment, including organizational, marketing, salesand economic concerns. Finally, and importantly, Hovdehas always been extremely concerned with maintaining theunwavering integrity that is the basis of our firm.

Hovde’s well-rounded team of experts is dedicated toaccomplishing the desired objectives as efficiently and aseffectively as possible. In all business matters, we apply acombination of tenacity and sound judgment to producethe best results for our clients and investors.

y Judgment&

Rather than analyzing and

addressing our clients’ needs

and objectives from simply a

superficial standpoint, we delve

below the surface to present

a diverse range of ideas and

customized solutions.

OUR TEAM TAKES ADVANTAGE OF

CONSTANTLY-CHANGING INDUSTRY DYNAMICS

TO ACHIEVE RESULTS FOR OUR CLIENTS.

HOVDE HAS REPRESENTED FINANCIAL

INSTITUTIONS IN MANY OF THE

HIGHEST PRICE-TO-TANGIBLE

BOOK DEALS TO DATE.

Creativity Value&

9 Hovde

Hovde’s ingenuity is a principal reason our clients come to us for strategic advice and investment opportunitiesagain and again. Our entrepreneurially-minded profes-sionals delve below the surface to analyze and address ourclients’ needs and present a diverse range of ideas and customized solutions.

Hovde consistently strives to anticipate and, often times,more clearly define the needs of our clients during our analytical and strategic development processes. We focus a considerable amount of time studying and evaluating all relevant factors affecting our clients or investments,including those that are specific to the organization, industry sector and subsectors, region, and micro- andmacro-economic environments. This process enables us, in the course of our decision making, to consider the fullspectrum of issues that must be addressed immediately aswell as those that may be encountered years into the future.

Our evaluation process is always conducted by a number ofHovde’s talented specialists in order to glean several differentperspectives on the same situation or opportunity. We believethat this team-oriented and flexible vetting process leads tothe most creative and, most importantly, value-added solu-tions and decisions for our clients and investors.

Adding value is Hovde’s foremost objective in serving ourclients and investors. We carefully target unique opportuni-ties and pursue these opportunities to achieve desired goals.We do not simply track the market; rather, we bring newideas and potential business partners to the table. Further-more, as a result of the lack of institutional obstacles inherentin larger organizations, Hovde is able to act quickly to capitalize on timely opportunities that are often missed byless agile organizations. This enables us to deliver results thatoutperform the expectations of our clients and investors.

y Value&

Decades of experience in the

financial services industry provide

Hovde with the “real world” acumen,

business relationships, and thorough

understanding of industry dynamics

that leads to our company’s success

in each of our business lines.

THE HOVDE TEAM’S “OPERATOR” EXPERIENCE

ENABLES US TO SKILLFULLY MAKE CONTROL

AND NON-CONTROL EQUITY INVESTMENTS

IN FINANCIAL SERVICES INSTITUTIONS.

HOVDE’S PRINCIPALS INVEST

ALONGSIDE OUR INVESTORS TO

ENSURE THE CONTINUED SUCCESS

OF THESE PARTNERSHIPS.

Confidence Objectivity&

11 Hovde

Decades of experience in the financial services industry pro-vide Hovde with the “real world” acumen, sound businessand regulatory relationships, and thorough understanding of industry dynamics that leads to our organization’s successin each of our business lines. This experience also providesour team with the confidence necessary to pursue uniqueopportunities and to execute on these opportunities in anefficient and forthright manner.

Hovde’s confidence is evident in the manner in which we conduct business – from the moment we collectivelydecide on the appropriate course of action until final imple-mentation. Our team is comprised of leaders in the financialservices marketplace, and we negotiate and execute businessas professionals.

Hovde also realizes that we must constantly take a step backto examine each opportunity from an objective standpoint.Accordingly, we encourage multiple viewpoints and intensediscussion during our vetting and decision-making process.This enables us to avoid “groupthink” and to explore everypotential idea and solution along with the correspondingbenefits and drawbacks to each decision. Moreover, the highlevel of objectivity created by our firm’s communicative andteam-oriented culture enables us to develop the most origi-nal and thoroughly-evaluated ideas in the industry.

We have the know-how and experience to identify opportunities that are often overlooked by others and arecomfortable exploring previously uncharted territory. Finally, and importantly, once these unique situations areidentified, Hovde has the resources to confidently andswiftly move to completion.

e Objectivity&

www.hovde.com

Washington | Chicago | Los Angeles | Palm Beach

www.hovde.com