Empower Your Mission Without Banking Fees

Introducing Our Completely Free Checking Account for Non-Profits

First American State Bank is proud to support the non-profits organizations making a difference in our communities. Designed specifically for non-profits — so you can focus on what matters most.

BENEFITS OF A FREE CHECKING ACCOUNT

• No Monthly Fees—Save money to further your mission
• No Minimum Balance Requirements—Enjoy flexibility to optimize your cash position
• No Transaction Limits—Accomplish more and have peace of mind

TREASURY MANAGEMENT SERVICES INCLUDED
Gain access to a full suite of treasury tools — at no cost:

• ACH Debits & Credits — Simplify donations, payroll, and payments
• Wire Transfers — Domestic and International,* fast and secure
• Sweep Accounts — Automatically invest excess funds to support your financial goals
• Mobile Deposit and Remote Deposit Capture — Deposit checks from your office or on the go
• Check Positive Pay — Safeguard your organization from fraud
• Advanced Online Banking Tools & Reporting — Real-time control and visibility, integrates with most ERP systems
*International wires discounted to $25 per transfer

WHY CHOOSE FIRST AMERICAN STATE BANK?

As a local independent community bank, we understand the unique
challenges of running a non-profit — and we’re here to help you succeed.

• Community-Focused Service
• Dedicated Non-Profit Banking Specialists
• Customized Banking Solutions
• Local Support with Digital Convenience

Contact us to learn how we can support your organization.

First American State Bank
8390 East Crescent Parkway, Suite 100
Greenwood Village, CO 80111
Phone: (303) 694-6464
Website: www.fasbank.com
Email: wmartinez@fasbank.com

Integrating ICS and CDARS into Your Company’s Investment Policy: A Strategic Move for Safety and Yield

In today’s volatile economic climate, corporate treasurers and CFOs are under increased pressure to safeguard cash reserves while maximizing returns. For companies with significant cash balances, the challenge lies in achieving both security and liquidity without compromising yield. This is where two innovative tools—ICS (Insured Cash Sweep) and CDARS (Certificate of Deposit Account Registry Service)—play a crucial role. Incorporating ICS and CDARS into your company’s investment policy isn’t just prudent; it’s a strategic decision that enhances capital protection, liquidity and operational efficiency.

Understanding ICS and CDARS

ICS and CDARS are deposit placement services offered by a network of FDIC-insured banks, allowing organizations to access multi-million-dollar FDIC insurance coverage on large deposits—far beyond the standard $250,000 insurance limit.

• ICS provides access to demand deposit accounts and money market deposit accounts (MMDAs), maintaining liquidity while protecting funds through FDIC insurance.
• CDARS places funds into Certificates of Deposit across multiple banks within the network, ensuring full FDIC insurance while offering a range of term options and competitive interest rates.

Both services are accessed through a single relationship with a participating bank, simplifying management and record-keeping.

Why Your Company’s Investment Policy Needs ICS and CDARS

1. Enhanced Security Through FDIC Insurance

One of the primary goals of a corporate investment policy is capital preservation. ICS and CDARS protect large cash balances by distributing them among multiple banks in a way that ensures each deposit remains within the FDIC insurance limit. This mitigates the risk of loss due to bank failure – an essential feature in uncertain financial times.

2. Maintaining Liquidity Without Sacrificing Yield

ICS enables access to liquid, FDIC-insured funds, making it ideal for operational cash or working capital. Meanwhile, CDARS can be used for funds that can be committed for a longer term, earning competitive interest without requiring complex arrangements or sacrificing the safety of the principal. This dual strategy allows treasury teams to segregate cash based on liquidity needs and invest accordingly.

3. Streamlined Administration and Transparency

Using ICS and CDARS simplifies what could otherwise be a complex portfolio of multiple bank relationships. Your company interacts with a single financial institution, receiving consolidated statements and year-end tax documents. This dramatically reduces administrative burden and enhances transparency—especially important for audit readiness and regulatory compliance.

4. Alignment with Corporate Governance Best Practices

Adopting ICS and CDARS demonstrates adherence to prudent investment practices and fiduciary responsibility. These tools align with guidelines often found in conservative investment policies, especially those applicable to public entities, nonprofits, and risk-averse corporations. Including ICS and CDARS in your policy sends a clear message to stakeholders: your company takes capital stewardship seriously.

Conclusion

Incorporating ICS and CDARS into your company’s investment policy is a forward-thinking approach that reinforces safety, boosts efficiency and supports strategic liquidity management. As financial risk management becomes more nuanced, leveraging these tools ensures your company’s cash is protected and working intelligently—all while maintaining the simplicity of dealing with a single trusted banking partner.

With the right framework in place, ICS and CDARS can become foundational components of a modern, resilient investment strategy. Is it time for you to consider an ICS and/or CDARS? First American State Bank can help. Talk to one of our banking professionals today.

First American State Bank

www.fasbank.com

303-694-6464

8390 E. Crescent Parkway, #100

Greenwood Village, Co 80111

30th anniversary of First American – From engineering to banking (and woodworking)

April 11, 2025 – INTERMOUNTAIN JEWISH NEWS
By STEVE MARK, IJN Staff Writer

Regardless of the paths we follow in life, sometimes destiny has a way of changing our direction.

Jay Davidson is a perfect example. A Los Angeles native who later moved to Williston, ND, Davidson attended the University of North Dakota, earning a degree in engineering.

A perfect major to prepare for a career in the banking industry, right?

“The great thing about any STEM training is that you discipline your mind to think,” says Davidson. “The greatest thing I ever learned from engineering school was the   ability to analyze and think, and you can apply that capability anywhere.”

So, an engineer became a banker, no matter the initial indication.

“To be involved in banking was something that I’d always wanted very deep in my heart,” Davidson says.

“My grandfather’s bank (American State Bank in Williston) got into trouble when the oil crisis (in the late 1980s) occurred,” says Davidson. “My dad was on the board with his brother, my uncle, and they asked me to join the board to help him out, to get him out of the hot water we were in.

“I realized, I just loved the business. It made sense to me.”

After working at his grandfather’s bank Davidson migrated to Colorado. In 1995, he founded First American State Bank in Greenwood Village. Davidson’s blueprint for success is as simple as it gets. “When someone walks into our bank,” says Davidson,“ there will be somebody from the bank with a big smile on their face. We go out of our way to greet them.

“Our tellers are probably the most important people in the bank because they interact with my customers more than I get to, and so we only hire the best and brightest people to do that.

“My job is to make my teller happy, so she makes my customer happy.

“We have a culture statement that we built when we first started the bank. It defines the simple things, like do unto others as you’d have them doing to you, respect people when you pick up the telephone and smile — that smile will be transmitted in your voice.

“Simple things, like integrity. What would you do when you’re all alone? Will you take the route of integrity or not?

“We expect you to take the route of integrity, whether somebody’s watching you or not.”

Now, marking the bank’s 30th anniversary, First American is still thriving, with assets  over $260 million. It is no small thing for an independent bank to survive The Great Consolidation of early 2023 following the pandemic.

“It was extremely problematic, because it shut down business,” says Davidson. “It shut says Davidson. “It shut down transactions. But now, we have a really large component of high net worth. We have a lot of people who put a lot of money in the bank, and these people trust us.

“In the midst of COVID, people were still doing their own little transactions, but they’d do it mostly on mobile banking or online. The deal volume went way down. We weren’t making loans because nobody wanted them. We weren’t opening new accounts because nobody would come into the bank. There was a lot of confusion.”

It took great patience, skill and fortitude to navigate that storm. Davidson reflects on the market 30 years ago, compared to someone wishing to open an independent bank today.

“The regulatory environment has gotten very stringent and has made it very, very difficult to start a bank from scratch,” says Davidson. “The capital requirements, the regulatory requirements are pretty steep.

“The regulators would say, ‘Well, we’re just protecting the FDIC insurance by only allowing the best and the most well capitalized people out there.’ You’re also stifling innovation and getting involved in things that maybe you should not be involved in as a bank regulator.”

Davidson eschews any talk of expansion.

“We’re kind of unique in that I don’t have branches,”Davidson says. “I have all the retail products that you could want, but I’m not a consumer based bank. I’m more of a professional business owner type bank.

“Let’s say you’re buying an apartment building and you’re going to rent it out: I’m your bank, because I understand commercial real estate and I understand management.

“So, I don’t really want to build out a bunch of branches, and we are absolutely unique in that area. There are very few other banks that have a single location. What I’m finding now is that I’m pivoting from high net worth professionals, people my age, which is ancient.

“My daughter (Michelle Gruber) is also involved in the bank and she is helping me pivot into the millennials, her generation of business people.

“The reason I started getting into that is that I met the friends of my daughter and her husband, and I was blown away by these young people. They are just top-notch business people, very sincere, with high integrity and ethical standards. But, they don’t wear suits and ties. They don’t go the corporate route. They’re doing their own thing. And they’re my market for the future.”

When he is not greeting customers at the bank,Davidson could easily be found at his home, woodworking.

Yes, Davidson, 75, even draws a parallel between his life’s work and two of his favorite pastimes.

“I love fine furniture,” says Davidson. “I’m a woodworker. I build in the old style, so it’s heirloom stuff that will last forever.

“I also like shooting. I’ve been shooting since I was five years old, so I guess I’ve been shooting guns for 70 years, and I’ve never harmed anybody. I hate the rap that people give us.

“In woodworking, you have to plan things one step at a time. You can’t make side steps. There’s no cheating the system when you’re doing that.

“It takes time and, and you have to be precise. Just right.” Just like at the bank.

The American Heart Assn. is conducting its annual “Woman of Impact” fundraising campaign. Michelle Gruber, vice-president of First American State Bank, is a 2025 Denver Woman of Impact nominee.

She notes that health can be confusing, challenging and sometimes isolating, and that for women these issues are compounded by being underrepresented in research and underfunded in the fight against their number one killer: cardiovascular disease.

From receiving bystander CPR less often than men to facing inequities in care, women deserve better, says Gruber.

Mutual support and uplift is coming to life through the AHA “Go Red for Women” Woman of Impact campaign.

The campaign began on National Wear Red Day, Feb. 7, and runs for nine weeks, through
April 10.

Gruber and six other Women of Impact nominees in Denver are raising awareness and funds to advance research and education initiatives aimed at better identifying, diagnosing,
treating and preventing cardiovascular disease in women.

These nominees will have the opportunity to learn and share the lifesaving skill
of hands-only CPR, contribute to women-centric research and improve their own health and that of the women they love.

They aspire to help create a culture of wellness and to push for equitable health for all women.