*Pinnacle Earns National Excellence Awards for Client Satisfaction

Honors are for satisfaction among small businesses and middle-market companies

Financial services research firm Greenwich Associates named Pinnacle Financial Partners a 2011 Greenwich Excellence Award winner for distinguished service in six categories.

Greenwich Associates evaluated more than 750 banks that serve small business and middle market clients and found that fewer than 50 had distinctive quality.

“Pinnacle’s internal surveys have always shown that clients are very satisfied with their experience, but it’s gratifying when an independent research firm finds the same results," said Terry Turner, Pinnacle’s president and CEO.

Pinnacle received national and regional awards for overall satisfaction in small business banking. The firm also won in overall satisfaction for treasury management services in the South. Greenwich based the selection on nearly 13,500 interviews with businesses with sales of $1-10 million across the country.

In the middle market banking category, Pinnacle was recognized nationally and in the South for overall satisfaction. The firm also won in overall satisfaction for treasury management services in the South. Greenwich based the middle market awards on nearly 11,500 interviews with businesses with sales of $10-500 million across the country.

Greenwich Associates conducted interviews throughout 2011 to determine the award winners. The banks selected had a significantly different percentage of top-box “excellent” ratings than the mean for all 750 eligible banks.

Pinnacle Financial Partners provides a full range of banking, investment, mortgage and insurance products and services designed for small- to mid-sized businesses and their owners and individuals interested in a comprehensive relationship with their financial institution. Comprehensive wealth management services, such as financial planning and trust, help clients increase, protect and distribute their assets.

The firm began operations in a single downtown Nashville location in October 2000 and has since grown to over $4.86 billion in assets at Dec. 31, 2011. In 2007, Pinnacle launched an expansion into Knoxville, Tenn. At Dec. 31, 2011, Pinnacle is the second-largest bank holding company headquartered in Tennessee, with 29 offices in eight Middle Tennessee counties and three offices in Knoxville. The firm was also added to Standard & Poor’s SmallCap 600 index in 2009. For more information, visit www.pnfp.com.

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