Four Team Members Join Western Equipment Finance Office in Marshall, MN

For Immediate Release:
August 10, 2020

Devils Lake, ND – Matt Bauer, Amy Page, Josh Kiley and Brian Frana have joined Western Equipment Finance. The four new team members will be located in Western’s new office in Marshall, MN.

“Matt, Amy, Josh and Brian are wonderful additions to our team,” said Laurie Bakke, President of Western Equipment Finance. “They all have strong connections within the community and possess the expertise and values that will help us continue to grow our business on a national level.”

Bauer joined the Credit team as a Credit Analyst. He will analyze and assess small-ticket transactions and work with the team to evaluate underwriting parameters, guidelines and policy. Bauer joined Western from U.S. Bank Equipment Finance, where he spent nine years in collections and credit analyst roles. He is a graduate of Southwest Minnesota State University.

Page, Kiley and Frana are Business Development Specialists. They will work with new and existing customers and vendors to identify financing needs, as well as finance program negotiations.

From 2003-2020, Page held documentation manager, director, specialist and analyst roles at U.S. Bank Equipment Finance. She graduated from Southwest Minnesota State University.

Kiley spent the past 16 years at U.S. Bank Equipment Finance in credit management, account executive and customer service representative positions. He graduated from Minnesota West Community and Technical College.

Frana previously worked as a coach and professor at Wayne State College and Southwest Minnesota State University. He holds a master’s degree from St. Cloud State University and a bachelor’s degree from Eastern Illinois University.

Bauer, Page, Kiley and Frana will join Hans Zahrbock and Deb Schnaible in the new Marshall office. Zahrbock recently joined Western with more than 25 years of financial services experience, including an extensive background in equipment finance. Schnaible joined the company in 2019 and has more than 25 years of industry experience in account management and business development.

“Together with Hans and Deb, these individuals will form a strong team as we establish our Marshall presence,” Bakke added. “Each has the talent and displays the Midwestern values we were seeking when we selected Marshall as the location for our expansion.”

The 3,000-square-foot office space will open in August in the Tiger Office Park at 408 East Main Street in Marshall. The Marshall team will focus primarily on business development and relationship management.

For additional information on the Marshall office, visit http://www.westernequipmentfinance.com/marshall.

ABOUT WESTERN EQUIPMENT FINANCE
Western Equipment Finance is a bank-owned equipment finance company. The company offers full-service commercial financing and leasing options throughout the United States. It serves several industry segments including agriculture, audio/visual, construction, franchise, funeral, laundry, lawn and tree care, rental and waste management.

Western Equipment Finance consistently ranks among the top 100 equipment finance companies in the nation. According to the Monitor industry publication, Western Equipment Finance is the 78th largest equipment finance company in the country. In the same Monitor rankings, the company is the 65th top equipment finance company by new business volume.

To learn more about the company, visit http://www.westernequipmentfinance.com.

Western Equipment Finance is based in Devils Lake, ND, with additional team members working from locations across the country. It is a subsidiary of Western State Bank, a full-service community bank with nine locations in North Dakota and Arizona. Western State Bank is employee-owned with more than $1 billion in assets and approximately 220 team members. It has a five-star superior rating by Bauer Financial, a trusted and independent research firm. It is their highest possible rating for financial stability and strength.

For more information, contact:

Dean Froslie, Senior Vice President – Marketing and Communications
Western State Bank
701-499-6222
dean.froslie@westernbanks.com

Hans Zahrbock, Vice President – Business Relationship Manager
Western Equipment Finance
701-665-1655
hans.zahrbock@westernequipmentfinance.com