RankingBanking 25 - Flipbook - Page 25
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Nicolet’s Rise Through the Rankings
Source: Bank Director’s annual RankingBanking study
Ranking in $5B to $50B asset class
No. 1
no.
17
No. 30
no.
65
No. 60
No. 90
No. 120
no.
no.
121
2022
2023
132
No. 148
2024
2025
all thrive, and it means striving to serve all of a
mercial and industrial loans, a business line that
customer’s needs.
lends itself well to “mattering” to its customers.
It seems as if the bank’s strategy is working.
That’s because this type of lending generally
This year, the $9 billion Nicolet ranked 17th in
involves developing a deeper and ongoing rela-
Bank Director’s RankingBanking list for institu-
tionship with the borrower that includes providing
tions with between $5 billion and $50 billion in
them with other products, such as treasury man-
assets, based on full-year 2024 results. That’s a
agement services or a business savings account.
jump from coming in at No. 65 in 2024, No. 121
At Nicolet, this even extends to striving to pro-
in 2023 and No. 132 in 2022.
vide retirement plan services for a company’s em-
“There’s no doubt it is one of the higher per-
ployees and wealth management for the owners. “A
forming banks across our Midwest coverage,” says
lot of the time we know that people are going to
Damon DelMonte, a managing director of equity
be wealthy before they know they are going to be
research at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods. “They have
wealthy, because they are grinding it out every day
built a strong earnings engine. … Their approach
and they don’t realize what they just built,” Daniels
to how they run the bank and their execution on
says of Nicolet’s wealth management business.
their strategy has led to attractive returns. It’s a
Nicolet’s core return on average assets was
high quality company with great management, and
1.5% at the end of 2024, which ranked 22nd out
that shines through in the results every quarter.”
of 150 banks with between $5 billion and $50
billion in assets, according to the RankingBanking
Capturing a Full Relationship
Nicolet is primarily focused on originating com-
analysis. That points to its success with building
relationships.
