Our History

Ultima Bank Minnesota originated as Farmers State Bank of Winger and was founded in 1904 in Winger, Minnesota, a small farming community in the northwest corner of the state. As typical of such communities, Winger's population peaked in the 1940's and then began to drop from about 400 to a little over 200 people today. While the town has held its own the past couple decades, the surrounding rural population continues to dwindle.

In 1976, my father, Arnie Skeie, purchased Farmers State Bank of Winger, eventually changing its name to Ultima Bank Minnesota.   Today, the bank remains in the Skeie family with my sister and I as co-owners.  Recently, my daughter joined the bank, making it a third generation operation.  

While our charter remains in Winger, a second facility was established in 1994 in Fosston, a nearby community of approximately 1600 people. At the same time, we updated our Strategic Plan, developed an internal financial software suite of modules, aptly named the Ultima Dashboard Suite (UDS), and vowed to stay at the cutting-edge of technology via the products we offer.

In short, in spite of our remote location, the size of the communities we serve, as well as our own relatively small size, it became our Vision at that time...  

"To Market and Provide Our Products and Services "Nationwide" Through State-Of-The-Art Technology."

Today, our Vision Statement is no longer just a vision - it is reality. In fact, we are proud to say we have customers all across the United States!  It is also the primary reason our historical growth rate has been 8-10%, year-over-year.  

With reference to our past, it is easy to picture why, until the early 1990's, the future of this bank was rather grim, what with its population AND deposit base declining each year. This background is provided to underscore what can be accomplished through technology coupled with a "together, we can do it!" attitude. In other words, you will find that neither size nor location have anything to do with being innovative, creative or capable of providing the best service available... much of which is provided to our customers at no charge!

In short, our story is about a small, rural bank that believes in itself! Over the course of the past few years, Ultima Bank Minnesota has added branches in Plummer, Bemidji, East Grand Forks, and Gary for a total of six full-service facilities.   For more information about who we are and where we see ourselves going, now that we are two decades into the 21st century, check out our eSolutions. 

Dawn Skeie Crane

Chief Executive Officer, Owner

                                       

                                            Winger                                                                                Fosston

                             

                                          Bemidji                                                                                Plummer         

     

                                    East Grand Forks                                                                         Gary