James B. Gardner

Chairman

Mr. Gardner serves as Chairman of Commerce Street Capital, LLC, managing investment banking and corporate finance. He also serves on the Boards and Investment Committees of Service Equity Partners, LP, Genesis Bank Fund, LP, Commerce Street Income Partners, LP, and Commerce Street Lending Partners, LP. These are private equity and hedge funds which invest in banks and engage in real estate finance. He is also on the Board and Investment Committee of Independent Bankers Capital Fund, an SBIC with banks as limited partners. He previously led investment banking and corporate finance for SAMCO Capital Markets, Inc., after a forty (40) year career in banking.

Mr. Gardner served as President and Chief Executive Officer of Pacific Southwest Bank, F.S.B. from November 1991 to April 1994. He previously served as Managing General Partner of Elm Capital Partners, L.P.

He retired from Bank One, Texas, NA as Vice Chairman of the Board on August 1, 1990. Mr. Gardner previously served as President of The Deposit Insurance Bridge Bank, which was formed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (“FDIC”) to purchase the assets and assume the liabilities of twenty of the MBanks. The FDIC requested that Mr. Gardner assume responsibility for management of The Deposit Insurance Bridge Bank effective March 28, 1989 which continued until the FDIC awarded the Bridge Bank to Banc One Corporation at which time he was elected Vice Chairman of Bank One, Texas, N.A. Prior to this, Mr. Gardner had served as Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of MBank Dallas since July 4, 1987 and as a Group Chairman of MCorp.

Mr. Gardner began his career in the Credit Department of MBank Dallas in 1955 after graduating from Southern Methodist University with a BBA in Finance that same year. He progressed through increasing levels of responsibility before being elected Vice Chairman of the Board and Director in 1979 and President in 1981. Mr. Gardner serves on the board of two NYSE companies, Ennis, Inc. and Century Telephone, Inc.