COLUMBUS, Ohio, April 15 /PRNewswire/ -- BANC ONE CORPORATION,
(NYSE: ONE) announced first quarter 1997 earnings per common share of $.86, a
12 percent increase from $.77 per common share reported in the first quarter
of 1996.  The Corporation also reported record first quarter earnings of
$371 million, a 7 percent increase over first quarter 1996 earnings of
$346 million.
    John B. McCoy, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of BANC ONE
CORPORATION, said, "We are pleased with our first quarter results. Solid loan
growth and strong performances from lines of business fueled earnings
momentum. We look forward to our pending mergers with Liberty National
Bancorp, Inc. and FirstUSA, Inc. and are encouraged by the opportunities
offered through both mergers and the resulting value they will add to our
shareholders."
    The Corporation reported a strong return on average common equity of
18.20 percent in the quarter, an increase from 16.38 percent a year ago.
Profitability remained strong as return on average assets was 1.50 percent in
the first quarter, an increase from 1.45 percent in the first quarter of 1996.
    Taxable equivalent net interest income increased 7 percent or
$87.6 million to $1.299 billion from $1.211 billion a year ago reflecting
both average earning asset growth and increased net interest margin. Growth in
average managed loan balances remained strong, up 9 percent compared with the
year-ago quarter, while average securities balances declined 12 percent
reflecting the ongoing strategy to improve the mix of higher-yielding earning
assets. The 1997 first quarter net interest margin was 5.76 percent, an
increase of 17 basis points from 5.59 percent reported a year ago.
    First quarter non-interest income before securities transactions increased
14 percent or $68.7 million to $570.2 million from $501.5 million in the first
quarter of 1996. Strong growth in non-interest income resulted primarily from
increased activity in investment management, insurance and investment banking,
all of which achieved growth in excess of 10 percent. Also contributing to the
growth was revenue from increased deposit activity, securities brokerage and
equity investments.
    Non-interest expense totaled $1.069 billion, an increase of $50 million
from $1.019 billion in the first quarter of 1996. Excluding expense in both
quarters associated with Project One, the Corporation's strategic initiative
for the consolidation and standardization of systems and procedures, non-
interest expense was essentially flat compared with the year ago quarter. The
Corporation's efficiency ratio improved to 57.20% in the first quarter from
59.51% a year ago.
    BANC ONE's ending allowance for credit losses was $1.1 billion or
1.48 percent of ending loans, and provided coverage of 293 percent of
nonperforming loans. The provision for credit losses was $235 million in the
first quarter and exceeded net charge-offs of $212 million by $23 million.
This marked the eighth consecutive quarter provision expense exceeded net
charge-offs.
    On January 20, 1997, BANC ONE announced an agreement to merge with First
USA, Inc. (NYSE: FUS), a financial services company specializing in the bank
card business. First USA is the fourth largest issuer of domestic Visa and
MasterCard services.
    BANC ONE CORPORATION had assets of $101.6 billion and common equity of
$8.2 billion at March 31, 1997. BANC ONE now operates 1,502 offices in
Arizona, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Ohio, Oklahoma,
Texas, Utah, West Virginia and Wisconsin. BANC ONE also owns several
additional corporations that engage in credit card and merchant processing,
consumer finance, mortgage banking, insurance, venture capital, investment and
merchant banking, trust, brokerage, investment management, equipment leasing
and data processing.
    Information about BANC ONE's financial results and its products and
services can be accessed on the Internet at:  http://www.bankone.com and
through InvestQuest(TM) at http://www.investquest.com or Fax-on-demand:
614-844-3860.

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