LAKEWOOD, NJ / ACCESS Newswire / March 30, 2026 / First Commerce Bancorp, Inc. (the "Company"), (OTCID:CMRB), the holding company for First Commerce Bank (the "Bank"), today announced that the Board of Directors has unanimously declared a cash dividend of $0.05 per common share to all shareholders of record as of April 13, 2026 with a payable date of April 28, 2026.

President & CEO Donald Mindiak commented, "On the heels of a capital raise in the form of a $40.0 million Subordinated Debt Offering, which was noteworthy in that it was accomplished without diluting our current shareholders, coupled with the successful execution of the recently completed Tender Offer, repurchasing 3.0 million shares of our common stock at a discount to our tangible book value, we were able to provide our shareholders with an appreciable increase in their tangible book value while increasing their percentage ownership in the Company by over 28%. These actions underscore our continued focus on enhancing shareholder value and strengthening shareholder investment in our Company. Through the completion of our two, 10% stock repurchase plans in addition to the aforementioned Tender Offer, we have repurchased over 7.5 million shares of our common stock, decreasing the Company's outstanding share count from 24.5 million shares to approximately 17.0 million shares, which will have a positive impact on both our earnings per share and return on equity calculations prospectively".

Board Chairman, Thomas P. Bovino, continued, "The declaration of this cash dividend reflects the benefits realized from the successful execution of those corporate initiatives mentioned above, as well as the confidence that our Board and Management have in our collective ability to identify, institute and execute those initiatives, with the purpose of creating additional and enhanced shareholder value. We remain committed to the continued pursuit of like initiatives that have the capacity to provide opportunities for delivering shareholder value and look forward to building on this momentum."

About First Commerce Bancorp, Inc.
First Commerce Bancorp, Inc, is a financial services organization headquartered in Lakewood, New Jersey. The Bank, the Company's wholly owned subsidiary, provides businesses and individuals a wide range of loans, deposit products and retail and commercial banking services through its branch network located in Allentown, Bordentown, Closter, Englewood, Fairfield, Freehold, Jackson, Lakewood, Robbinsville and Teaneck, New Jersey. For more information, please go to www.firstcommercebk.com.

Forward-Looking Statements
This release, like many written and oral communications presented by First Commerce Bancorp Inc., and our authorized officers, may contain certain forward-looking statements regarding our prospective performance and strategies within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. We intend such forward-looking statements to be covered by the safe harbor provisions for forward-looking statements contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and are including this statement for purposes of said safe harbor provisions. Forward-looking statements, which are based on certain assumptions and describe future plans, strategies, and expectations of the Company, are generally identified by use of the words "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "expect," "intend," "plan," "project," "seek," "strive," "try," or future or conditional verbs such as "could," "may," "should," "will," "would," or similar expressions. Our ability to predict results or the actual effects of our plans or strategies is inherently uncertain. Accordingly, actual results may differ materially from anticipated results.

In addition to the factors previously disclosed in prior Bank communications and those identified elsewhere, the following factors, among others, could cause actual results to differ materially from forward-looking statements or historical performance: the impact of changes in interest rates and in the credit quality and strength of underlying collateral and the effect of such changes on the market value of First Commerce Bank's investment securities portfolio; changes in asset quality and credit risk; the inability to sustain revenue and earnings growth; difficult market conditions and unfavorable economic trends in the United States generally, and particularly in the market areas in which First Commerce Bank operates and in which its loans are concentrated, including the effects of declines in housing market values; inflation; customer acceptance of the Bank's products and services; customer borrowing, repayment, investment and deposit practices; customer disintermediation; the introduction, withdrawal, success and timing of business initiatives; competitive conditions; the inability to realize cost savings or revenues or to implement integration plans and other consequences associated with certain corporate initiatives; economic conditions; and the impact, extent and timing of technological changes, capital management activities, and actions of governmental agencies and legislative and regulatory actions and reforms and the impact of a potential shutdown of the federal government.

Press Contact:
Donald Mindiak
First Commerce Bancorp, Inc.
Lakewood, NJ 08701
(732) 364-0032
dmindiak@firstcommercebk.com
http://firstcommercebk.com

SOURCE: First Commerce Bancorp, Inc.