2010 News Releases

COMMERCE BANK ANNOUNCES NEW RETAIL BANKING OFFICERS

(Columbia, MO – December 21, 2010 ) – Teresa Maledy, president, Commerce Bank, Central Missouri region, recently announced the following new positions in the Retail Management Division of Commerce Bank:

THE COMMERCE FUNDS ANNOUNCES BOARD CHANGES

(St. Louis, MO – December 1, 2010) – The Commerce Funds board of trustees announce several changes to the Funds’ management. Martin E. “Sandy” Galt, III has been elected chairman of the board of The Commerce Funds. He succeeds J. Eric Helsing, who is retiring as chairman. And the board elected James M. Snowden, Jr. to serve on the board of trustees.

COMMERCE BANCSHARES, INC. NAMES DAN CALLAHAN CHIEF CREDIT OFFICER

(St. Louis, MO – November 15, 2010) – David W. Kemper, chairman, president and CEO of Commerce Bancshares, Inc. announced today that Dan Callahan has been named chief credit officer for Commerce Bancshares, Inc., effective December 1st. As chief credit officer, Callahan will be a senior member of the executive management team for the company and will be responsible for overseeing credit administration and lending policies and portfolio management processes to ensure the overall quality and credit culture of Commerce’s lending portfolio. Callahan replaces Bob Matthews who will continue as chief risk officer pending his retirement next year. Matthews will be retiring after 41 years with the company, including the last 21 years as chief credit officer and chief risk officer.

COMMERCE BANCSHARES, INC. DECLARES STOCK AND QUARTERLY DIVIDENDS

(St. Louis, MO – October 29, 2010) – Commerce Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ: CBSH) announced today that its Board of Directors approved a 5 percent stock dividend payable on December 20, 2010 to shareholders of record at the close of business on December 6, 2010. Shares issued as a result of the stock dividend will be entered by Direct Registration System on the records of the Company’s transfer agent, Computershare, and statements reflecting the issuance will be mailed on December 20, 2010. No fractional shares will be issued and shareholders will receive cash for such fractional interests based on the market value of the stock on the record date.

GERMAN JOINS COMMERCE BANK AS SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT, COMMERCIAL BANKING DIVISION

(Kansas City, MO – October 21, 2010) – John Himmel, chairman, Commerce Bank, Springfield Region, recently announced that Richard German has joined Commerce as senior vice president and commercial banking officer. In his new position, he is responsible for business development and relationship management related to Commerce’s full line of banking, borrowing and treasury management solutions for commercial clients. We are extremely pleased to have Rick join our commercial banking team,” said Himmel. “His knowledge and expertise are valued not only by the bank, but will be a great asset to our customers.”

COMMERCE BANCSHARES, INC. ANNOUNCES THIRD QUARTER EARNINGS PER SHARE OF $.67

(Kansas City, MO – October 14, 2010) – Commerce Bancshares, Inc. announced earnings of $.67 per share for the three months ended September 30, 2010 compared to $.63 in the third quarter of 2009 and $.71 per share in the previous quarter. Net income for the third quarter amounted to $55.9 million compared to $51.6 million in the same period last year and $59.7 million in the previous quarter. The return on average assets for the three months ended September 30, 2010 was 1.19%, and the return on average equity was 11.0%.

COMMERCE BANK ANNOUNCES OFFICER PROMOTIONS

(Springfield, MO – October 5, 2010) – John Himmel, chairman, Commerce Bank, Springfield Region, recently announced the following promotions in the Retail Management division of Commerce Bank:

COMMERCE BANK ANNOUNCES NEW BRANCH MANAGER

(Springfield, MO – September 16, 2010) – John Himmel, Chairman, Commerce Bank, Springfield Region, recently announced that Jolene Elliott has been promoted to Assistant Vice President and Branch Manager of Commerce Bank’s Sunshine Banking Center, 3301 E. Sunshine. As branch manager, Elliott is responsible for business development and customer service related to the bank’s consumer banking, lending and small business services.

TREASURER CLINT ZWEIFEL ANNOUNCES $100 MILLION PARTNERSHIP WITH COMMERCE BANK IMPACTING AN ESTIMATED 2,800 JOBS

(Jefferson City, MO – September 28, 2010) – Missouri State Treasurer Clint Zweifel (ZWY-ful) was in Kansas City, Mo., and Clayton, Mo., today to announce Commerce Bank, the largest Missouri-based bank, has committed to a goal of lending $100 million in low-interest loans to small businesses through the Missouri Linked Deposit Program. The investment in the low-interest loan program managed by Treasurer Zweifel is estimated to impact 2,800 Missouri jobs over the next 12 months. Treasurer Zweifel joined Commerce Bank executives for the announcements, which potentially makes the bank the loan program’s largest user.

COMMERCE BANCSHARES, INC. 9CBSH) ANNOUNCES PRESENTATION TO ANALYSTS AND INVESTORS AUGUST 9 AND 10, 2010

(St. Louis, MO – August 3, 2010) – Commerce Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ: CBSH) announced today that Charles G. Kim, chief financial officer, and Jeffery D. Aberdeen, controller of Commerce Bancshares, Inc., will make a presentation to small groups of analysts and investors in San Francisco, Calif., and Portland, Ore., on August 9 and 10, 2010.

COMMERCE BANCSHARES, INC. DECLARES DIVIDEND

(Kansas City, MO – July 23, 2010) – Commerce Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ: CBSH) announced that its Board of Directors has approved a regular quarterly dividend of $0.235 per share on the company's common stock payable September 27, 2010, to stockholders of record at the close of business on September 9, 2010.

COMMERCE BANCSHARES, INC. ANNOUNCES SECOND QUARTER EARNINGS PER SHARE OF $.71

(Kansas City, MO – July 15, 2010 ) – Commerce Bancshares, Inc. announced earnings of $.71 per share for the three months ended June 30, 2010 compared to $.53 per share in the previous quarter and $.46 per share in the second quarter of 2009. Net income for the second quarter amounted to $59.7 million compared to $44.2 million in the previous quarter and $37.0 million in the same period last year. For the quarter, the return on average assets totaled 1.33%, the return on average equity was 12.2% and the efficiency ratio was 58.5%.

COMMERCE BANK ANNOUNCES NEW POSITIONS FOR VETERAN RETAIL BANKING OFFICERS

(Columbia, MO – July 7, 2010 ) – Teresa Maledy, president, Commerce Bank, Central Missouri region, recently announced the following new positions in the Retail Management division of Commerce Bank:

DENNY HIGGINS JOINS COMMERCE BANK, MONITEAU COUNTY AS COMMERCIAL

(Tipton, MO – July 7, 2010 ) – Brad Clay, community president, Commerce Bank, Moniteau County, recently announced that Denny Higgins has joined Commerce as commercial banking specialist. Higgins is a graduate of the University of Central Missouri with a Bachelor of Science and Business Administration degree. Higgins has worked in various areas of banking for a regional banking company including credit analysis, retail, customer relations, lending and branch management. In his new position, he is responsible for business development and relationship management related to Commerce's full line of banking, borrowing and treasury management solutions for commercial clients.

COMMERCE BANK OFFERS NEW SOLUTION TO HELP FAMILIES PAY FOR COLLEGE

(St. Louis, MO – June 16, 2010) – Commerce Bank is joining with Sallie Mae® to offer the Smart Option Student Loan for families who need education funding after maximizing grants, scholarships, and federal loans.

COMMERCE BANK ANNOUNCES NEW POSITIONS FOR VETERAN RETAIL BANKING OFFICERS

(Columbia, MO – May 19, 2010) – Teresa Maledy, president, Commerce Bank, Central Missouri Region, recently announced the following new positions for two members of the Commerce Retail Banking Team

2010 COMMUNITY SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM AWARD WINNERS ANNOUNCED

(Belleville, IL – May 7, 2010) – Commerce Bank announced the winners of the ninth annual Commerce Bank Community Scholarship Program for Belleville high school students at Althoff Catholic High School, Belleville West High School and Belleville East High School. Since 2001, the Commerce Bank Community Scholarship Program has provided scholarships to three Belleville area students each year. The scholarship totals $8,000, providing $2,000 per year for up to four years of full-time enrollment per student. The goal of the Community Scholarship Program is to assist graduating high school seniors in continuing their education beyond high school at a university, college, trade or vocational school.

COMMERCE BANK RANKS HIGHEST IN MIDWEST REGIONAL RETAIL BANKING SATISFACTION STUDY BY J.D. POWER AND ASSOCIATES - Bank ranked highest for the third consecutive year

(St. Louis, MO – April 22, 2010) – For the third consecutive year,* Commerce Bank has ranked highest among retail banks in the Midwest Region in J.D. Power and Associates 2010 Retail Banking Satisfaction Study. J.D. Power and Associates announced the results of the study today. Commerce Bank’s score of 809 increased significantly over last year’s score of 768 and performs particularly well in the account information, account activities, facility, fees and product offerings factors.

COMMERCE BANCSHARES, INC. DECLARES DIVIDEND

(St. Louis, MO – April 21, 2010) – Commerce Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ: CBSH) announced that its Board of Directors has approved a regular quarterly dividend of $0.235 per share on the company's common stock payable June 28, 2010, to stockholders of record at the close of business on June 11, 2010.

COMMERCE BANCSHARES, INC. ANNOUNCES FIRST QUARTER EARNINGS PER SHARE OF $.53

(Kansas City, MO – April 15, 2010) – Commerce Bancshares, Inc. announced earnings of $.53 per share for the three months ended March 31, 2010 compared to $.38 per share in the first quarter of 2009, or an increase of 39.5%. Net income for the first quarter amounted to $44.2 million compared to $30.8 million in the same quarter last year. For the quarter, the return on average assets totaled 1.00%, the return on average equity was 9.3% and the efficiency ratio was 60.5%.

COMMERCE BANCSHARES ANNOUNCES ANNUAL SHAREHOLDERS MEETING AVAILABLE BY WEBCAST

(St. Louis, MO – April 14, 2010) – Commerce Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ: CBSH), a registered bank holding company offering a full line of banking services, announced that the company's annual meeting of shareholders will be available by webcast. Commerce Bancshares, Inc.'s annual shareholder meeting is scheduled for 9:30 a.m. Central Daylight Time, Wednesday, April 21, 2010 at The Ritz Carlton - St. Louis, 100 Carondelet Plaza, Clayton, MO 63105.

STEVEN SCOTT, PH.D. JOINS COMMERCE BANK ADVISORY BOARD OF DIRECTORS

(Pittsburg, KS – March 22, 2010) – Brian Sutton, President, Commerce Bank, Pittsburg, recently announced the election of Steven Scott to the bank’s local Advisory Board of Directors.  Dr. Scott is President, Pittsburg State University.  

KYLE TERRY JOINS COMMERCE BANK MERCHANT SERVICES DIVISION

(Springfield, MO – March 24, 2010) – John Himmel, chairman, Commerce Bank, Springfield Region, recently announced that Kyle Terry has joined Commerce as an account representative for Merchant Services. In his position, he is responsible for offering a full line of products and services to streamline payment processing systems for merchant customers.

COMMERCE BANCSHARES, INC. DECLARES DIVIDEND

(St. Louis, MO – February 5, 2010) – Commerce Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ: CBSH) announced today that its Board of Directors declared a quarterly dividend of $0.235 per share on the company's common stock, which compares to the prior dividend of $0.229 as adjusted for the 5 percent stock dividend that was paid on December 15, 2009. This represents an increase in the quarterly dividend per share of 2.8% and marks the 42nd consecutive year that the company has increased total dividends per adjusted shares. The dividend is payable on March 26, 2010 to stockholders of record at the close of business on March 10, 2010.

TODD STOUT JOINS COMMERCE BANK BOARD OF DIRECTORS

(Joplin, MO – February 1, 2010) – Fred Osborn, President, Commerce Bank, Missouri-Kansas Region, recently announced the election of Joplin community and business leader, Todd Stout, to the bank’s local Advisory Board of Directors. Stout is a Partner and Vice President of Operations at Standard Transportation Services, Inc.

COMMERCE BANCSHARES, INC. (CBSH) ANNOUNCES A PRESENTATION TO ANALYSTS AND INVESTORS IN NEW YORK FEBRUARY 1-3, 2010

(St. Louis, MO – January 25, 2010) – Commerce Bancshares, Inc. announced today that David W. Kemper, Chairman, President, and CEO of Commerce Bancshares, Inc. will make a presentation at the Morgan Stanley 2010 U.S. Financials Conference on February 2, 2010 at 8:00 a.m. (Eastern Time). The presentation will be an update of the company’s 2009 financial performance and general business plan. Kemper’s presentation will be available via live web cast at http://www.corporate-ir.net/ireye/confLobby.zhtml?ticker=CBSH&item_id=2678346.

COMMERCE BANCSHARES, INC. ANNOUNCES FOURTH QUARTER EARNINGS PER SHARE OF $.60

(Kansas City, MO – January 14, 2010) – Commerce Bancshares, Inc. announced earnings of $.60 per share for the quarter ended December 31, 2009 compared to $.55 per share in the fourth quarter of 2008 and $.63 per share in the previous quarter of 2009. Net income for the fourth quarter amounted to $49.6 million compared to $43.8 million in the same quarter last year and $51.6 million in the previous quarter. For the quarter, the return on average assets totaled 1.09%, the return on average equity was 10.5% and the efficiency ratio was 57.4%.