SouthwestUSA Bank announces Four Appointments to its Board of Directors.
SouthwestUSA Bank, NevadaÂ’s first private bank, has appointed four directors to its Board of Directors. They are Mark H. Brennan, Gerald L. Ehrens, Jerry E. Polis and William E. Bannen, M. D.
Las Vegas, NV (PRWEB) October 29, 2004
SouthwestUSA Bank, NevadaÂ’s first private bank, has appointed four directors to its Board of Directors. They are Mark H. Brennan, Gerald L. Ehrens, Jerry E. Polis and William E. Bannen, M. D.
Commenting on these appointments, Peter H. Kingman, Chairman of the Board of Directors of SouthwestUSA Bank, said, “We are pleased to welcome each of these accomplished directors to our Bank. Their broad experience and successful trackrecords in diverse pursuits broadens the perspective of our board.”
Mark H. Brennan is currently the Chief Executive Officer of Donuts of Las Vegas, LLC, which owns and operates 24 quick service restaurant franchises in Las Vegas, including Winchell's, Subway and Gourmet Pretzel brands. Mr. Brennan is also President and Chief Operating Officer of Las Vegas Coffee Investors, LLC, the owner and operator of the Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf coffee houses here in Las Vegas.
Mr. Brennan is a founding member and Chairman of Vegas Valley Angels, a non-profit seed and early stage investment organization. He serves on the Boards of Directors of a number of Las Vegas-based companies. From 1981 to 1989, Mr. Brennan served as a fighter pilot in the U. S. Air Force and received numerous decorations for outstanding service.
Mr. Brennan holds a Masters in Business Administration from Harvard Business School, a Master of Arts in Management Science from National University, and a Bachelor of Science degree in International Relations from the United States Air Force Academy. He is a member of the Harvard Business School Alumni Association.
Gerald L. Ehrens is actively involved with major Las Vegas developers such as Insight Holdings in identifying, acquiring, co-managing and developing commercial real estate. He also serves on the advisory board of Sierra Petroleum, an oil and gas production company based in Midland, Texas. His corporate experience includes: Chief Operating Officer of Inamed Corporation, Las Vegas; Vice President and General Manager of New Business Development at Union Carbide; and a 24-year career at E. I. Dupont as Business Development Director/Corporate Manager.
Mr. Ehrens served as President of the Las Vegas Art Museum and remains on the Board. He was a member of the Board of Commercial Bank of Nevada, where he was instrumental in its 1998 sale to Colonial Bank Corporation. He also has served on the board of several early stage companies in apparel, biotech and technology. He received a B. S. in Chemical Engineering from Princeton University in 1961 and a M. S. in Industrial Administration from George Washington University in 1965.
Jerry E. Polis, a major stockholder and President of ASI Technology Corporation, a public company with important patents on jet engine sound reduction technology and leading edge plasma technology applications, provides bridge financing for builders, developers, and public companies. He is the President of the Southern Museum of Fine Art and co-owner of Gallery P, one of Las VegasÂ’ premier art galleries. He also serves on the advisory board of Sierra Petroleum, an oil and gas production company based in Midland, Texas. Mr. PolisÂ’ business interests have included Polis Realty from 1964-2002; co-ownership of 24 Taco Bell franchises operating in Nevada as Las Cal Corporation from 1968-1997; co-founder of Commercial Bank of Nevada, a privately owned bank in Las Vegas that was merged into NYSE-listed Colonial Bank in 1998; and director of ValueStar Corporation, a publicly traded corporation from 1995-2000. In the 1970s, Mr. Polis was the largest shareholder of Far West Bank, Provo, Utah.
Mr. Polis currently serves as the Chairman of the Paradise Sertoma Scholarship Fund for Deaf Students. He has served as director at Temple Ner Tamid and the Las Vegas Art Museum.
Mr. Polis graduated in 1953 from Penn State with a B. A. Degree in Commerce.
William E. Bannen, MD is Vice President, Nevada Healthcare Management of Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield/HMO Nevada. Dr. Bannen is the senior executive in Nevada responsible for the Medical Department setting medical policy, consulting with physicians and performing utilization reviews for all lines of business. As of February 2004, the Nevada plan reported over 235,000 members.
He also is President of Departures Jet Management, Las Vegas, which manages, purchases and operates jet aircraft for fractional owners
Dr. Bannen currently serves as Director and Chairman of the Compensation Committee of Mandalay Resort Group, a NYSE-listed company with assets exceeding $4 billion that operates 14 gaming casinos in five states with 30,000 employees. He has previously served on the Boards of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation; the Las Vegas Art Museum; Caring for Nevada, Inc.; and Commercial Bank of Nevada, which he co-founded.
Dr. Bannen received an M. D. from the College of Medicine, West Virginia University in 1975 and a B. S. in Pre-Med from the University of Dayton in 1971.
SouthwestUSA Bank currently has assets exceeding $85 million. Chartered in 2001 in Las Vegas, Nevada, SouthwestUSA Bank is a Private Bank focusing on the financial needs of successful individuals and their closely held businesses. For more information on SouthwestUSA Bank, please call 702.735.1300 or toll free 1.877.905.1300 or visit our website at www. swusabank. com.
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