COVID-19 has every bank thinking about how to modify its reserves. Some of the largest institutions have taken double-digit hits on that basis. Community banks, understandably, are uncertain about what exactly they should be...
How to Keep Your M&A Deals Alive During COVID-19
As the COVID-19 pandemic keeps the global economy in shackles, most community banks are not focused on strategic initiatives like M&A. However, there are two camps of banks that must think about M&A during the pandemic: those...
Beyond Loan Modifications and PPP: What Lenders Should be Doing with Vulnerable Borrowers
During our recent COVID-19 stress testing webinar, I discussed how one of the primary goals of stress testing is to rank your loans based on their capital at risk as measured by the stress test. Community banks can then use these...
Projecting Interest Income Needs New Approach in Pandemic Economy
COVID-19 may be as contagious economically as it is medically. Community banks, whose lifeblood is interest income, have significant exposure to companies that have been hit particularly hard. They face the question of how to...
Bankers Should Focus on Five Loan Characteristics to Assess Risk from COVID-19 Economy
Many community banks have been in touch with their borrowers to assess their financial condition during this precarious economic environment. Bankers are also segmenting their portfolios based on some of the most affected...
The Hidden “Surcharge” Embedded in the CBLR
The Federal Reserve approved a simplification of the capital rules for the large banks on March 4, which coincided with the beginnings of the collapse in financial markets due to COVID-19. So, what does this have to do with...
Should Community Banks Consider the CBLR at 8 Percent?
Under the CARES Act signed into law by President Trump last month, the Community Bank Leverage Ratio CBLR) threshold temporarily drops from 9 percent to 8 percent until the earlier of December 31, 2020 or the date on which the...
Community Banks Need Stress Testing Now More than Ever: Invictus Webinar
Stress testing is an essential tool for community banks that want to navigate the COVID-19 economy safely and position their banks for opportunities down the road, Invictus CEO Adam Mustafa said on an April 15 webinar attended by...
COVID-19 and Your ALLL: Now What?
Community banks can no longer estimate their loan loss reserves the way they did before the coronavirus upended the global economy. But there’s a solution, as this article explains.