He most recently worked as a treasury management officer at Heartland Bank & Trust and was previously a business development officer at Prairie State Bank & Trust. Best has a bachelor's degree in finance from Lindenwood University.
"My family and I lived in Switzerland for about five years; we just moved back around this time last year," Best said. "We moved there with my wife's job and it was a finite contract, so we knew were were coming back to the states at some point."
Best said they made the decision to return to Springfield to be closer to family.
As for his new job, Best said, "This move allows me to do commercial lending and continue on with the treasury management piece, so I have the full banking scope. I'm looking forward to helping to increase the market share in the Springfield area."
American Bank of Freedom, based in Missouri, has 10 locations in Illinois, Missouri and Indiana. The location at 133 N. John St. in Rochester previously operated as Rochester State Bank before being acquired by American Bank of Freedom in 2021.
