The Silex Banking Company has a long and solid history of banking starting…..
The Beginning
On May 2, 1892, The Silex Savings Bank opened its doors with W. E. Williams as cashier in the building located on the corner of North 2nd and Main Street. At that time, Silex had a second bank, the Farmers Exchange Bank, located at the corner of South 1st and Main Street. In 1934, the Farmers Exchange Bank closed, at which time the Silex Savings Bank purchased its assets. On March 24, 1934, the bank reorganized and began business as the Silex Banking Company. On August 23, 1934, the bank was granted its first F.D.I.C. coverage. Each depositor’s account was insured up to $5,000.00. This compares with today’s F.D.I.C. coverage of up to $250,000.00 for each depositor.
The first officers of the reorganized Silex Banking Company included W.E. Williams, President, O.H. Dameron, Vice-President, E.C. Teague, Cashier, and O.Z. Lovell, Assistant Cashier. In July of 1966, O.Z. Lovell took over operations of the bank. John Lovell joined the bank in April of that same year as Assistant Cashier. In August 1972, O.Z. Lovell was killed in a car accident. As a result of his untimely death, John T. Lovell assumed the duties of operating the bank until his retirement in 2017. At that time, current President Michael C. Mudd was chosen to take over as President of the Silex Banking Company.
A major change took place in November 1986, when Silex Bancshares, Inc. was formed. Silex Bancshares, Inc. became a one-bank holding company and a one-for-one stock exchange took place. The Silex Banking Company and its policies were not affected by the change.
Technological Advances
June 1985 marked the beginning of the first major internal changes to the operating systems of the bank. After years of manually serving depositors, the installation of an in-house computer system was started. In 1996 the bank added an ATM machine on the north side of the bank. The ATM has been upgraded as necessitated by the changing environment. Debit cards were introduced to customers in January 1999. Internet Banking was first rolled out in October 2010. This feature included e-statements, bill pay, and funds transfer. In July 2014, the bank introduced the Silex Banking Company mobile app, with mobile check deposit being added in November 2016. The bank is constantly making changes to offer the latest technological features, and our latest improvements took place in February 2026 and include contactless cards, external transfers, and electronic notices.
Building Improvements
On April 12, 1960, the Silex Banking Company moved into a new building at 20 South Second Street. The building was constructed by Bloomsdale Bank Building and Construction Company with a total of 1,581 square feet. Expansion of the bank took place in several stages. The first addition of 640 square feet took place in February 1977. A second addition of 2,100 square feet was completed in February of 1985. This building remained the main location until 2026.
The fall of 2025 marked the start of construction on a new main office east of the town at 1159 Highway E. It has a floorplan of 5,150 square feet and features a design compatible with expansion in the future. Martin General Contractors, LLC was selected by the Board of Directors to be the project's general contractor. This new building opened its doors in 2026.
Major Events
On May 24, 1991, events took place that will forever be etched in the memories of the employees. An armed person entered and robbed the bank. The suspect fled and joined an accomplice on the corner of the bank’s parking lot and escaped. However, within four hours they were apprehended by the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Department and Missouri Highway Patrol. All the money was recovered.
On Sunday, September 14, 2008, the town of Silex suffered a major flood which included the bank. Even though the bank lost a majority of its computer equipment, it was only closed for one day. On Sunday, June 21, 2015, another flash flood hit the town. This flood was a “double” flood as the water came up, went down for about two hours, and then rose again to its full strength. Employees were able to enter the bank during the downtime and secure as many areas as possible. The bank was able to open on Monday with the drive-up opening at normal time and the lobby within a few hours to allow for cleaning of the lobby area.
The main goal of the Silex Banking Company is to meet our customer’s service needs with quality and professionalism, while providing customer satisfaction as we have for the past 134 years with sound country banking.
