Commerce Bancshares Grows Wealth Management Business, With Trust Fees Up 11%

Commerce Bancshares continued growing its wealth management business in the first quarter, after announcing two quarters earlier that it was targeting that business.

The trust fees portion of the wealth management business increased 11% year over year, driven by higher private client fees, the regional bank holding company and parent company of Commerce Bank said in a Wednesday (April 16) earnings highlights presentation.

This growth contributed to 7% year-over-year growth in Commerce Bancshares’ non-interest income and helped the company diversify its revenue, according to the presentation.

“Non-interest income was $159 million and made up 37.1% of total revenue, led by trust fees in our wealth management business of $57 million,” Commerce Bancshares CEO John Kemper said in a Wednesday earnings release. “Our strength in wealth management is exemplified by its continued growth, with trust fees up 10.7% over the same period last year.”

Commerce Bancshares said about six months earlier, in its third-quarter investor update, that it aimed to grow its wealth management business by using its new private banking loan and deposit system to offer specialized products, services and automation, and by expanding into new markets in which wealth is concentrated.

Its subsidiary, Commerce Bank, maintains wealth management offices in three cities outside its core banking footprint: Dallas, Houston and Naples, Florida, according to the presentation released Wednesday. It also offers wealth management services in the Midwestern states that make up its core banking footprint.

Commerce Bancshares’ net interest income grew 8% year over year during the first quarter and reached a record quarterly high of $269 million, Kemper said in the earnings release.

Kemper said that the bank’s credit profile remains strong, and its capital and liquidity levels remain robust, adding that these qualities will help Commerce Bank serve its customers and ensure its own soundness during increasingly uncertain times.

“Given recent news related to tariffs and trade restrictions, and in light of ongoing adjustment in capital markets, the outlook for the future is increasingly uncertain,” Kemper said in the release. “Nonetheless, our franchise is well-positioned to weather any economic disruption, execute our long-term strategies, serve our customers and deliver value to our shareholders.”