Business Editor's Notebook: Chase opens downtown branch in longtime restaurant spot

Apr. 17—THE LAST TIME Justin Page visited the building now home to Chase's Manchester branch, he was eating pizza.

The Nashua native, who works on regional communications for the bank, helped organize a ribbon cutting Wednesday to celebrate the financial giant's new digs at 786 Elm St., a prime corner spot last occupied by Portland Pie Company, and for nearly 30 years by the Merrimack Restaurant.

Page used to visit Portland Pie back when he performed in Palace Theatre musical productions. One year he was the "turkey boy" who delivered the prize bird to Scrooge in "A Christmas Carol."

He joined Chase three years ago, starting in New York City.

"The pandemic hit, and I came back to New Hampshire to spend time with my parents, was quarantined like everybody else and decided to stay in Boston," Page said. "Chase was kind enough to let me stay there."

Chase aims to nurture such local connections as it expands its footprint across the continental United States.

Last year, the bank announced it now has branches in all 48 lower states — 25 new ones since 2018 — as part of a plan to open 400 branches in new markets by the end of 2022. It reached 300 this month with the opening of a branch in Andover, Mass.

The Manchester bank is Chase's seventh location in New Hampshire and 50th in New England.

As region director of consumer banking, Roxann Cooke has attended nearly every one of those ribbon cuttings. The Dartmouth College alumna joined Chase three years ago after a decade at Eastern Bank.

"There is a lot of buzz about this particular branch in Manchester being branch number 50 in the New England buildout," said Cooke, who is based in Boston.

Among the guests at Wednesday's event were representatives of NeighborWorks Southern New Hampshire, a nonprofit that promotes home ownership and affordable rental housing.

Increasing home ownership in underserved communities is among the goals of parent company JPMorgan Chase. In 2020, the company announced a $30 billion five-year commitment "to advance racial equity," after the killing of George Floyd, a Black man, by a White police officer. About $8 billion is earmarked for home loans.

"To see my company standing up and saying we're going to put $30 billion to making a difference, that fueled me, but it also fueled my passion," Cooke said.

"What was exciting there, it wasn't the $30 billion commitment, it was more around how are we going to double down on efforts," she said. "It was about things we were already doing and why I joined — the social advocacy, the making a difference."

Chase employs about 600 people in New England, including 70 in New Hampshire. Branches are typically staffed with eight to 10 people.

The bank has more than 9,700 business banking customers in New Hampshire and more than 235,000 consumer customers statewide, according to Page. Many already were banking with Chase before the branches arrived.

"The difference is we already have customers here," Cooke said. "For us, it's about connecting with those customers, giving them access to our brick and mortar."

Branch Manager Fahad Kalwar had to wait a little longer than expected for the brick and mortar to be ready in Manchester. Pandemic-related supply chain issues delayed construction of the bank, which was originally scheduled to open in December.

That allowed Kalwar and his wife more time to get more familiar with New Hampshire. The couple moved here last year from West Virginia, settling in Salem after finding Boston-area housing prices too high.

Kalwar's wife, who works for a pharmaceutical company in Woburn, Mass., also had a job offer in San Diego. They chose New England.

"I love the winter. I love the snow," said Kalwar, who took up skiing in West Virginia.

So far, Kalwar says the customer mix is about 25 to 30 percent business clients and the rest consumer banking customers.

"So far we have seen more business than I've seen in other Chases," he said. "I'm not sure if that's because we're new and we have a promotion going on."

Chase CEO optimistic, cites challenges

Chase's continued expansion comes at a time when financial markets are bracing for tough times, sparked by the war in the Ukraine and consequences of the pandemic.

In the company's first quarter earnings report released last week, JPMorgan Chase (NYSE: JPM) reported revenue of $30 billion, down 5 percent, and net earnings of $8.3 billion, down 42 percent. In its consumer and community banking business, deposits were up 18% and client investment assets were up 9%, the bank reported.

Chairman and CEO Jamie Dimon tempered his outlook. The company has added $902 million to its reserves "largely due to higher probabilities of downside risks."

"We remain optimistic on the economy, at least for the short term — consumer and business balance sheets as well as consumer spending remain at healthy levels — but see significant geopolitical and economic challenges ahead due to high inflation, supply chain issues and the war in Ukraine," Dimon said in the release.

Mike Cote is senior editor for news and business. Contact him at mcote@unionleader.com or (603) 206-7724.

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