Busey Bank is headquartered in Champaign and is the 5th largest bank in the state of Illinois. It is also the 146th largest bank in the nation. It was established in 1946 and as of December of 2020, it had grown to 1,300 employees at 87 locations. Busey Bank has an A+ health rating.
Busey Experience
Busey was my first bank that I ever had an account with. They offered free checking and free checks with a debit card and was very easy to setup. I now have normal bank account, savings, and a business account for a club that I am in charge of. They have an innovative mobile app that I use to cash checks and do most of my banking from. It has been over a year since I've even had to go to the bank for anything as I can do it all online. I enjoy using the online tools and information that they offer. I sometimes have to call and check on some charges in my checking account and they always answer, confirm my identity, and then quickly resolve my issue. I am very happy to bank with this bank,
Busey Bank: No Nonesense
I have been using Busey Bank since I was 16 years old. It was very easy to set up a checking and savings account, get debit cards, and bank online. The customer service is very helpful in most locations. Because they are opening up new branches, there are new tellers being added to the team, so sometimes the wait times are longer than expected, usually because there is a team member being trained or not knowledgeable yet about the procedure you've request them to do. Other than that, I have had no complaints. The fees are very reasonable, and they offer overdraft protection on some accounts, which is very helpful for checking accounts. I would recommend Busey Bank to anyone who wants a simple, no hassle banking experience.
Customer Evaluation of Busey Bank
I have been banking with Busey bank for approximately 3 years. It is a local bank in the Champaign, IL area. They have a few branches in that area and would be considered a small local bank. I chose to bank with them because of the convenience of having a branch in my home town, and the requirements to open a checking account were less strict than other banks in the area. Also, the availability of drive-through ATMs was another factor that made me choose to bank with them.
My experience with the customer service at Busey bank exceeded all my previous experiences with other banks. The employees there are very friendly and they will eagerly solve any issues for you with a pleasant and helpful attitude. My experiences with online chat representatives has also been pleasant and satisfactory. In a situation where I needed the approval of the branch manager, I was also pleasantly surprised with his friendliness and eagerness to help.
Using the bank website is more than adequate for most standard banking activities. The website is robust and intuitive.
The only drawback of Busey bank is probably a lack of a totally free checking. To open and maintain a checking account, one needs at least a $100 deposit and must either maintain a $100 balance or have monthly recurring direct deposits to avoid a $5 monthly service charge. All-in-all, If you live in the Champaign area and don't need a totally free checking, Busey is my number one recommendation.
The Sale Of Bank Of Edwardsville To Busey Has Not Gone Well
Follow up Post: Continuing issues with the Bank of Edwardsville sale to Busey. Because of the lack of planning on Busey's part, during transfer of assets from Bank of Ed to Busey, the computer system for Busey failed. The customers were unable to see their account balances or move money between or to/from accounts. I have been dealing with overdraft fees for nearly a month. This has required multiple phone calls to the "help" line and a trip in to a branch office. The "help" line also failed due to the amount of complaints/problems during the transfer. You would sit on hold, the automatic voice would state that you were the 7th caller in line, then the 6th caller, etc. However, you would then get put back to there were greater than 10 callers in front of you.
If Busey is so poor with planning etc., why do we trust them with our hard earned savings.
In addition, Busey is slow to post deposits to their website even when the source of funds is a separate Busey bank account. I am guessing this is so Busey can use the float without paying interest on either account.
First Post:
Busey, nearly complete in buying the Bank of Edwardsville, has the Bank of Edwardsville customers personal information. The Busey logo is at the top of the Bank of Edwardsville site. However, the Busey bank will not provide services for the B of Ed customers. We went in for a signature guarantee, however, although they have our personal information, they would not provide that service. Not a good way to "greet" a new customer that is a long time client of the bank that Busey is purchasing.
Data as of Q4 2020
Learn why bank health mattersHealth Grade Components
| Overall | |
|---|---|
| FDIC Certificate # | 16450 |
| Year Established | 1946 |
| Employees | 1300 |
| Primary Regulator | FDIC |
| Profit Margin | |
|---|---|
| Return on Assets - YTD | 1.14% |
| Return on Equity - YTD | 8.47% |
| Annual Interest Income | $326.7MM |
| Assets and Liabilities | ||
|---|---|---|
| Assets | Q4 2020vs Q4 2019 | $10.53B$9.68B |
| Loans | Q4 2020vs Q4 2019 | $6.76B$6.70B |
| Deposits | Q4 2020vs Q4 2019 | $8.81B$7.92B |
| Equity Capital | Q4 2020vs Q4 2019 | $1.42B$1.42B |
| Loan Loss Allowance | Q4 2020vs Q4 2019 | $101.0MM$53.7MM |
| Unbacked Noncurrent Loans | Q4 2020vs Q4 2019 | $24.3MM$29.5MM |
| Real Estate Owned | Q4 2020vs Q4 2019 | $4.6MM$3.1MM |
