Forbes names First National of Nebraska one of ‘America’s Best Banks’

First National of Nebraska, the largest privately owned banking company in the United States, has been named to Forbes’ “America’s Best Banks” list for 2012. First National is 17 on the magazine’s list, which ranked the country’s 100 largest publicly traded banks and thrifts based on asset quality, capital adequacy and profitability.

The Forbes recognition includes First National Bank, a division of First National of Nebraska, which is headquartered in Fort Collins and has 24 locations in 15 communities throughout Northern Colorado including a branch at 4100 Harrison Avenue in Wellington. First National Bank has more than 500 employees based in Colorado and in excess of $1.6 billion in managed assets.

“We are honored to be named among ‘America’s Best Banks’ by such a highly-regarded publication as Forbes,” said Mark Driscoll, President of First National Bank’s Colorado market. “This achievement is a testament to our entire organization’s efforts to significantly build our capital reserves while enhancing the quality of our loan portfolio during one of the most challenging times ever for the banking industry. I think we’re in a great position to help consumers and business in our markets as well as continue to grow our own business.”

Forbes’ data is based on the regulatory filings of public banks and thrifts as of Dec. 1. Data supplied by SNL Financial was used by the magazine to rank the financial institutions according to eight metrics of financial health, including return on average equity; net interest margin; nonperforming loans (NPLs) as a percentage of loans; nonperforming assets as percentage of assets; reserves as a percentage of NPLs; Tier 1 capital ratio; risk-based capital ratio; and leverage ratio.