CIBH CIB Marine Bancshares Inc (QX)

Bank holding company CIB Marine Bancshares, Inc. (OTCQB: CIBH) is pleased to announce that its wholly owned subsidiary, CIBM Bank, has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire certain assets and liabilities of Avenue Mortgage Corporation ("Avenue") of Naperville, Illinois, which will be operated as a division of the bank upon consummation of the transaction. The transaction requires regulatory approval and satisfaction of standard acquisition conditions.

"We have been looking to acquire a mortgage lending company as a component of our strategy to improve performance and build value. The acquisition of Avenue's employees, in addition to its pipeline and infrastructure, will allow us to execute our strategy with a strong manager and experienced staff," said Mr. Charles J. Ponicki, President & CEO of CIB Marine.

Avenue is an Illinois mortgage banking company that was founded by its current President & CEO, David Pendley, more than 20 years ago. It operates primarily in the suburban Chicago market and, as of December 31, 2012, had total assets of approximately $9.0 million. Mr. Pendley stated that, "we are excited to join CIBM Bank and look forward to being part of the bank's growth. We considered many alternatives and determined CIBM Bank could provide us the resources and support to build the mortgage business with a shared emphasis on customer service and quality products.

CIB Marine Bancshares, Inc. is the holding company for CIBM Bank, which operates 11 banking offices in Central Illinois, Wisconsin and Indiana. More information on the company is available at www.cibmarine.com, including recent shareholder letters, links to regulatory financial reports, and audited financial statements.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS CIB Marine has made statements in this earnings release that constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. CIB Marine intends these forward-looking statements to be subject to the safe harbor created thereby and is including this statement to avail itself of the safe harbor. Forward-looking statements are identified generally by statements containing words and phrases such as "may," "project," "are confident," "should be," "intend," "predict," "believe," "plan," "expect," "estimate," "anticipate" and similar expressions. These forward-looking statements reflect CIB Marine's current views with respect to future events and financial performance that are subject to many uncertainties and factors relating to CIB Marine's operations and the business environment, which could change at any time.

There are inherent difficulties in predicting factors that may affect the accuracy of forward-looking statements.

Stockholders should note that many factors, some of which are discussed elsewhere in this Earnings Release and in the documents that are incorporated by reference, could affect the future financial results of CIB Marine and could cause those results to differ materially from those expressed in forward-looking statements contained or incorporated by reference in this document. These factors, many of which are beyond CIB Marine's control, include but are not limited to:

• operating, legal, and regulatory risks;
• economic, political, and competitive forces affecting CIB Marine's banking business;
• the impact on net interest income and securities values from changes in monetary policy and general economic and political conditions; and
• the risk that CIB Marine's analyses of these risks and forces could be incorrect and/or that the strategies developed to address them could be unsuccessful.

These factors should be considered in evaluating the forward-looking statements, and undue reliance should not be placed on such statements. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made. CIB Marine undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise. Forward-looking statements are subject to significant risks and uncertainties and CIB Marine's actual results may differ materially from the results discussed in forward-looking statements.