TowneBank Announces Partnership With Sera-Brynn

July 31, 2013

SUFFOLK, Va., July 31, 2013 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Hampton Roads based TowneBank (Nasdaq:TOWN) announced that it has entered into an agreement to partner with Sera-Brynn, a top-tier cyber security firm and Payment Card Industry (PCI) Qualified Security Assessor (QSA), to provide information security and compliance services.

Working through TowneBank's newly formed security business line, Towne Security LLC, Sera-Brynn will offer high-end cyber security consulting services to TowneBank's members and to businesses throughout the mid-Atlantic region. Specific cyber security service offerings include threat management, industry and government compliance and risk assessments, network monitoring, and secure network and architecture design.

Sera-Brynn's information security compliance services include risk assessments of key infrastructure industry controls and providing HIPAA security audits and risk analyses. All healthcare organizations must be compliant with the new HIPAA omnibus rule, which goes into effect on September 23, 2013.

Sera-Brynn's client list includes large healthcare organizations, Fortune 500 companies, and regional municipalities.

"We believe this partnership will allow TowneBank to offer a high level of cyber security and compliance services to its current and future members through in-house PCI QSA capabilities," said Rob Hegedus, Sera-Brynn's Chief Executive Officer. "This affiliation reflects TowneBank's solid commitment to assist their members in protecting themselves against cyber threats."

"We are excited to partner with Sera-Brynn in offering our members and others the opportunity for added protection from cyber threats as well as the other essential services they offer. The expertise of these talented professionals allows us to broaden our platform of services while continuing our focus on providing exquisite service," added J. Morgan Davis, President and Chief Banking Officer of TowneBank.

As one of the top community banks in Virginia and North Carolina, TowneBank operates 26 banking offices serving Chesapeake, Hampton, Newport News, Norfolk, Portsmouth, Suffolk, Virginia Beach, Williamsburg, James City County and York County in Virginia along with Moyock, Grandy, Camden, Southern Shores, Corolla and Kill Devil Hills in North Carolina. Towne also offers a full range of financial services through its controlled divisions and subsidiaries that include Towne Investment Group, Towne Insurance Agency, TFA Benefits, TowneBank Mortgage, TowneBank Commercial Mortgage, Prudential Towne Realty, Towne 1031 Exchange, LLC, and Corolla Classic Vacations. Through its strategic partnership with William E. Wood and Associates, the Bank also offers mortgage services in all of their offices in Hampton Roads and Northeastern North Carolina. Local decision-making is a hallmark of its hometown banking strategy that is delivered through the leadership of each group's President and Board of Directors. With total assets of $4.60 billion as of June 30, 2013, TowneBank is one of the largest banks headquartered in Virginia.

Cautionary Statement:

This release may contain forward-looking statements as defined by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements may address issues that involve significant risks, uncertainties, estimates and assumptions made by management. Factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from those contemplated by such forward-looking statements include competitive pressures in the banking industry that may increase significantly, changes in the interest rate environment may reduce margins and/or the volumes and values of loans made or held as well as the value of other financial assets held, general economic conditions, either nationally or regionally, may be less favorable than expected, resulting in, among other things, a deterioration in credit quality and/or a reduced demand for credit or other services, changes in the legislative or regulatory environment, including changes in accounting standards, may adversely affect our businesses, costs or difficulties related to the integration of the business and the businesses we have acquired may be greater than expected, expected cost savings associated with pending or recently completed acquisitions may not be fully realized or realized within the expected time frame, our competitors may have greater financial resources and develop products that enable them to compete more successfully, changes in business conditions, changes in the securities market and changes in our local economy with regards to our market area and its heavy concentration of U.S. military bases and related personnel. We assume no obligation to update information contained in this release.

CONTACT: G. Robert Aston, Chairman and CEO,
         (757) 638-6780
         J. Morgan Davis, President & Chief Banking Officer,
         (757) 673-1673
Source: TowneBank