Vernon Hill

Vernon W. Hill writes to us as co-Chairman of Bankstocks.com (http://www.bankstocks.com/) (together with Tom Brown (http://seekingalpha.com/author/tom-brown)). Hill is the founder and former Chairman, President, and Chief Executive Officer of Commerce Bancorp. Beginning with a single branch in Marlton, New Jersey, Hill proceeded to turn the U.S. banking industry on its head over the ensuing 34 years. Using such innovations as first-class customer service, free coin counting, and seven-day-a-week banking, Commerce went on a growth tear unheard of in retail banking—or just about any other industry, for that matter. By the end of 2007, the company had grown—almost entirely organically--to a 470-branch, $49 billion ...More institution. Many of the innovations Hill pioneered, such as evening and weekend hours, are now standard practice in many parts of the banking business.