A new mexican bank grew checking accounts by more than 100 percent.

• Position: Brief article

Pioneer Bank (assets: $650 million), Roswell, N.M., in January 2008, implemented a growth strategy to maximize the investment in its branch network and increase profitability.

The bank used a primary financial institution (PFI) customer acquisition strategy. The service provider started by reviewing product and policies and decided to drive the program with ongoing training and marketing efforts. Over the next five years, the bank achieved several milestones:

* Grew consumer checking accounts from 12,845 to 32,532.

* Generated $180 million in new low-cost core deposits and $83 million in loans from these new consumer PFI relationships.

* Grew business checking accounts per office from 990 to more than 4,400.

That growth has led to a dramatic increase in deposits and service-charge income as well as interchange income.

By now, incremental interchange revenue could more than fund the entire strategy. But, low-cost core deposits continue to grow, and new...