Reliabank turns 100!

A Brighter Banking Experience Since 1920

This is a very proud year for us as we celebrate 100 years in business! Over that time we have experienced many economic changes, added and acquired banks, changed our name a few times, and have grown to nearly 100 employees. Even with the abundance of change, our focus has been to serve Eastern South Dakota, and we look forward to continuing that tradition for the next 100 years.

David W. Johnson was attending graduate school in 1975 when his father, Walter, announced during the Fourth of July that he was going to sell the family bank in Estelline. David, who wasn’t planning to work in banking, decided to give the family business one last shot and returned to Estelline to join Farmers State Bank as its executive vice president. But a short eight months later, David, who was only 23 at the time, found himself in charge of the bank when his father passed away suddenly at the age of 68.

Today, what started as Farmers State Bank in Estelline is now Reliabank, an innovative and expanding bank with nine locations in eight communities along the I-29 corridor. David continues to lead the bank as CEO and chairman, with his wife, Jan, and their sons, Reid and Ethan, playing active roles in the direction of the bank.

Bank History

Reliabank dates back to 1920, when Fred Beskow chartered The Farmers National Bank of South Shore with $25,000 in capital in the northeastern corner of the state. He moved the bank, with assets of $69,281, to Strandburg in 1925 and then to Estelline in 1928.The bank became state chartered in 1946 and changed its name to Farmers State Bank in Estelline.

David’s father, Walter K. Johnson, began working at the bank in 1944 and was the managing officer. Shortly thereafter, Walter contracted with Beskow to buy the bank after Beskow’s death. It took more than 20 years to complete the transaction as Beskow lived to be 90. Walter became the bank’s owner in 1968 and the first generation in what would become a family banking business. David, and his four older siblings, grew up working in the bank in Estelline. They started as janitors cleaning out the bank’s ashtrays, dusting, cleaning and waxing the floors and as vacation tellers in the summers. “I was always tall, so one time when I was 16 and there were no tellers on vacation, my dad went to the loan case and pulled out four past-due loans and said, ‘Here, why don’t you go out and see these people,’” Johnson recalled. “So, I went out and called on these people and said I would like to see a little action on this, and within about a week, three of the four were current.”

David studied economics at Augustana College in Sioux Falls and continued to graduate school at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee part time as he worked as an insurance adjuster. David had no intention of returning to Estelline to work at the family bank. “I was hoping to find some kind of job in academia or with some government agency doing economic research or teaching,” David said.

When Walter announced his plan to sell the bank, David decided to interrupt his graduate school studies and return to the bank as its executive vice president. “Before I even got back home, my dad had already started his life-long dream of branching to Watertown,” David said. “He had made some calls to people and had me fill out the applications to branch into Watertown.” They had already bought property in Watertown across from the post office when Walter passed away. Because of a large estate tax, the Johnson family decided to sell the Watertown property and withdrew the applications.

Leading the Family Bank

In addition to David being only 23 when he took over management of the bank in 1976, that year also brought a drought, followed by a year of no income for farmers. “There was a time when I thought this isn’t much fun, and I think I should find some other line of work,” David recalled. “I really have to credit the staff that we had. We had six people who had worked at the bank for a long time who really wanted me to succeed.”

In addition to leading the bank, David also became the bank’s insurance agent, HR and marketing person. He worked for his family, who owned the bank, for 12 years. For 10 of those years, David said Howard Peters, a seasoned banker from Alpena who also served on Farmers State Bank’s board, was his mentor.

In 1988, David and his sister, Cyndi, bought out the other family members. David then bought out his sister in 2000. The bank began expanding in 1992 when it purchased Hamlin County Bank of Hayti and Hazel. “We had a strategic plan in 1996 and became concerned about the demographics of our customer base, so we thought we have got to get in a younger market,” David explained. “So we looked north and we looked south, and we thought Watertown was more attractive.” David contacted Hugh Bartels, a former banker and deputy director of the South Dakota Division of Banking, to help the bank expand to Watertown. The bank established a de novo bank in Watertown in 1997, with a second branch in Watertown in 2002.

In 1999, the bank changed its name to Reliabank Dakota to appeal to a wider variety of customers.

In 2007, the bank established a de novo branch in Hartford. Reliabank then acquired branches in Humboldt and Tea from Farmers State Bank of Marion in 2010.

In 2015, Reliabank opened a mortgage office in Sioux Falls on West 57th St., followed by its first full-service bank in Sioux Falls on Sept. 12, 2018, at 608 W. 86th St.

Today, David said his main duties at Reliabank are recruitment, staff development and strategic planning. The bank employs around 95 people, and David is proud of the way staff continues to handle change. “I am a sports junkie, and I always envisioned myself as the general manager that puts the best team out on the field,” David said. “I really think that has sped up decision making and has made decision makers out of branch managers. I have been very fortunate to put together a team that performs very well.” When offering financial products, David said a balance is needed among what is good for the customer, the bank and the employee. “We have incentive compensation laced throughout our bank,” he said. “So we have got loan officers, insurance agents, wealth management people going out and asking for the business because it is good for them, it is good for the bank and it is a good product for the customer.”

A Family Approach

David and his wife, Jan, have been married for 40 years. Jan, who is originally from Bruce, taught high school English in Estelline and Watertown for 32 years and recently retired from teaching beginning and advanced composition for 12 years at Mount Marty College’s Watertown campus. “Ever since we have been married, I have been an advisor to Dave,” Jan said. “With my English background, I have touched publications and documents at the bank for 40 years. I am the proof reader and often the editor.”

Jan has served on Reliabank’s Board of Directors since 1991 and currently chairs the audit committee and supervises the compliance and audit functions of the bank. She is also involved in the bank’s high-level strategic planning, oversees the bank’s scholarship program, assists with bank events, and wrote and will be updating a book about the bank’s history.“People have the perception that banking is just numbers, but the truth is that banking is really a lot of words,” Jan said. “It is policies, it is strategic planning, it is marketing and culture building-it is all of those things.” “My skill set has worked really well for the bank. Many banks probably hire people who are good with numbers and forget how important words are to the success of an organization.”

David and Jan have two sons, Reid and Ethan, who both work for Reliabank in the Sioux Falls office. Like their father, Reid and Ethan started working at the bank as summer tellers while they were in high school but didn’t plan to have careers in banking. They both attended the University of Sioux Falls and participated in track.

Reid majored in business and media studies with plans to work for a marketing company in a larger city. After starting his own family, he decided to stay in Sioux Falls and work at the Tea branch in 2011. Reid first worked with the bank’s traditional advertising—TV, radio, billboard and print. His role as marketing director has now expanded to digital advertising and helping keep on top of technology. Reid also oversees many of the bank’s community events. Reid and his fiancée, Jessi Haugen, together have six children. “It has been pretty neat to see this thing grow from when I was a kid,” Reid said. “I grew up in the bank and hung out there. To see the number of locations that we have and how we have expanded to almost $500 million in assets.”

Ethan worked at Reliabank’s Tea branch performing credit reviews during the summers while he was in college. He double majored in business administration and sports management.  “I didn’t know what I wanted to do when I was in college,” Ethan said. “When I was a kid, I wanted to be an architect and then I wanted to be a geologist.” After graduating from college, Ethan went to work for a competing bank. He returned to Reliabank in 2016, working in the bank’s mortgage department in Sioux Falls. After six months in the mortgage department, Ethan started working in lending. He is currently a business banker and securities manager and enjoys the financial side of the bank and managing the bond portfolio. “We don’t currently have a CFO role,” Ethan said. “That is what I would someday like to do.” Ethan owns a four-year-old golden retriever named Bella, and his dream is to create a dog park behind the Sioux Falls bank.

All four family members are active in their communities. David serves on Mount Marty College’s Board of Trustees and has been involved with Rotary, where he would someday like to serve as a district governor. David plays guitar and sings with 2nd Opinion, a rock-and-roll band which plays eight to 12 gigs a year, mainly at charitable banquets for organizations like Make-a-Wish, Lifescape, Beacon Center (a women’s shelter in Watertown) and Family Visitation Center. He also sings in his church choir and has a hobby of singing the National Anthem for sporting events, including at a Minnesota Twins game this past summer.

Jan currently serves on the Friends of South Dakota Public Broadcasting Board, just completed a term with the South Dakota Hall of Fame and volunteers with tending two community gardens.

Reid serves on Volunteers of America, Dakotas Board, and Ethan serves on the St. Francis House Board in Sioux Falls.