Aquesta Bank posts profit in third quarter

Aquesta Bank reported a profit of $315,000 in the third quarter as the Cornelius bank set aside 98 percent less for bad loans.

The bank lost $859,000 in the same quarter last year after setting having to reserve $1.7 million for loan losses. That amount fell to $25,000 in the third quarter this year.

“We are very pleased to report Aquesta’s second consecutive quarter of record earnings," CEO Jim Engel said in a statement. "Although we have a lot of work ahead of us, our operating income, core deposit growth and asset quality all reflect tremendous improvement since the lows of the recession.”