10-K
UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM 10-K
(Mark One)
For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2024
OR
For the transition period from to
Commission File Number 001-41028
THIRD COAST BANCSHARES, INC.
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
(Address of principal executive offices) (Zip Code)
Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: (281) 446-7000
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:
Title of each class TradingSymbol(s) Name of each exchange on which registered
Common Stock, par value $1.00 per share TCBX The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act: None
Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. Yes ☐ No ☒
Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act. Yes ☐ No ☒
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant: (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes ☒ NO ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files). Yes ☒ NO ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company,” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.
Large accelerated filer ☐ Accelerated filer ☒
Non-accelerated filer ☐ Smaller reporting company ☐
Emerging growth company ☒
If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed a report on and attestation to its management’s assessment of the effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (15 U.S.C. 7262(b)) by the registered public accounting firm that prepared or issued its audit report. ☐
If securities are registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act, indicate by check mark whether the financial statements of the registrant included in the filing reflect the correction of an error to previously issued financial statements. ☐
Indicate by check mark whether any of those error corrections are restatements that required a recovery analysis of incentive-based compensation received by any of the registrant’s executive officers during the relevant recovery period pursuant to §240.10D-1(b). ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Act). YES ☐ NO ☒
As of June 28, 2024, the aggregate market value of the registrant's common stock and non-voting common stock held by non-affiliates was approximately $270.0 million.
As of February 28, 2025, the number of shares of registrant’s common stock outstanding was 13,788,945 and there were no shares of registrant's non-voting common stock outstanding.
Documents Incorporated by Reference
Portions of the registrant's Definitive Proxy Statement relating to the 2025 Annual Meeting of Shareholders are incorporated by reference into Part III of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.
Table of Contents
Page
PART I
Item 1. Business 3
Item 1A. Risk Factors 18
Item 1B. Unresolved Staff Comments 42
Item 1C. Cybersecurity 42
Item 2. Properties 43
Item 3. Legal Proceedings 43
Item 4. Mine Safety Disclosures 44
PART II
Item 6. [Reserved] 46
Item 7A. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk 64
Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data 64
Item 9A. Controls and Procedures 64
Item 9B. Other Information 64
Item 9C. Disclosure Regarding Foreign Jurisdictions that Prevent Inspections 65
PART III
Item 10. Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance 66
Item 11. Executive Compensation 66
Item 14. Principal Accountant Fees and Services 66
PART IV
Item 15. Exhibits and Financial Statement Schedules 67
Important Notice about Information in this Annual Report
Unless we state otherwise or the context otherwise requires, references in this Annual Report on Form 10-K to “we,” “our,” “us,” “ourselves,” “the Company,” “Third Coast,” and “TCBX” refer to Third Coast Bancshares, Inc., a Texas corporation, and its consolidated subsidiaries. All references to “Third Coast Bank”, “the Bank”, or “our Bank” refer to Third Coast Bank, a Texas banking association and our wholly owned bank subsidiary. All references to “TCCC” and “Third Coast Commercial Capital” refer to Third Coast Commercial Capital, Inc., a Texas corporation and wholly owned subsidiary of the Bank.
The information contained in this Annual Report on Form 10-K is accurate only as of the date of this Annual Report on Form 10-K and as of the dates specified herein.
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CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
This Annual Report on Form 10-K contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”). These forward-looking statements reflect our current views with respect to, among other things, future events and our financial performance. These statements are often, but not always, made through the use of words or phrases such as “may,” “should,” “could,” “predict,” “potential,” “believe,” “will likely result,” “expect,” “continue,” “will,” “anticipate,” “seek,” “estimate,” “intend,” “plan,” “projection,” “would” and “outlook,” or the negative version of those words or other comparable words or phrases of a future or forward-looking nature. These forward-looking statements are not historical facts, and are based on current expectations, estimates and projections about our industry, management’s beliefs and certain assumptions made by management, many of which, by their nature, are inherently uncertain and beyond our control. Accordingly, we caution you that any such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to risks, assumptions and uncertainties that are difficult to predict. Although we believe that the expectations reflected in these forward-looking statements are reasonable as of the date made, actual results may prove to be materially different from the results expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements.
There are or will be important factors that could cause our actual results to differ materially from those indicated in these forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, the following:
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interest rate risk and fluctuations in interest rates;
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market conditions and economic trends generally and in the banking industry;
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our ability to maintain important deposit relationships;
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our ability to grow or maintain our deposit base;
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our ability to implement our expansion strategy;
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our geographic concentration in the Greater Houston market, Dallas-Fort Worth market, and Austin-San Antonio market;
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changes in the economy affecting real estate values and liquidity;
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changes in value of the collateral securing our loans;
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credit risk associated with our business;
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credit risks associated with our real estate and construction lending;
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the adequacy of our allowance for credit losses;
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the amount of nonperforming and classified assets that we hold;
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our borrowers’ ability to repay loans;
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the risk of fraud related to our asset-based lending and commercial finance products;
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additional debt or future issuances of new debt securities or preferred stock;
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our ability to raise additional capital in the future;
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changes in key management personnel;
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the accuracy of the valuation techniques we use in evaluating collateral;
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competition from financial services companies and other companies that offer banking services;
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systems failures, fraudulent activity, interruptions or data breaches involving our information technology and communications systems of third parties;
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natural disasters, pandemics, epidemics and other catastrophes;
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changes in the laws, rules, regulations, interpretations or policies relating to financial institution, accounting, tax, trade, monetary and fiscal matters;
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the rise of Artificial Intelligence as a commonly used resource in banking;
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monetary policies and regulations of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (the “Federal Reserve”);
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the sustainment of an active, liquid market for our common stock;
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fluctuations in the market price of our common stock; and
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other factors that are discussed in “Part I—Item 1A. Risk Factors.”
If one or more events related to these or other risks or uncertainties materialize, or if our underlying assumptions prove to be incorrect, actual results may differ materially from what we anticipate. Accordingly, you should not place undue reliance on any such forward-looking statements. Any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which it is made, and we do not undertake any obligation to publicly update or review any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise, except as otherwise required by applicable laws. New factors emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for us to predict which will arise. In addition, we cannot assess the impact of each factor on our business or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statements. For additional information with respect to factors that could cause actual results to differ from the expectations stated in the forward-looking statements, see "Risk Factors" under Part I—Item 1A of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.
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PART I
Item 1. Business.
General
We are a bank holding company with headquarters in Humble, Texas that operates through our wholly owned subsidiary, the Bank, and the Bank’s wholly owned subsidiary, TCCC. We focus on providing commercial banking solutions to small and medium-sized businesses and professionals with operations in our markets. Our market expertise, coupled with a deep understanding of our customers’ needs, allows us to deliver tailored financial products and services. We currently operate eighteen branches in the Greater Houston, Dallas-Fort Worth, and Austin-San Antonio markets, and one branch in Detroit, Texas. We have experienced significant organic growth since commencing banking operations in 2008 as well as growth through our 2020 merger with Heritage Bancorp, Inc. As of December 31, 2024, we had, on a consolidated basis, total assets of $4.94 billion, total loans of $3.97 billion, total deposits of $4.31 billion and total shareholders' equity of $460.7 million.
On March 13, 2024, the Bank completed its conversion from a Texas state savings bank to a Texas banking association. As a result of the conversion, the Texas Department of Banking (“TDB”) is the Bank’s primary state regulator. The Bank remains as a member of the Federal Reserve system, and the Federal Reserve is the Bank’s primary federal regulator. The Federal Reserve also continues to be the Company’s primary federal regulator.
Market Area
We currently operate primarily in three distinct but complementary metropolitan markets, the Greater Houston market, the Dallas-Fort Worth market, and the Austin-San Antonio market. We have ten branches in the Greater Houston market, including eight branches located in the Houston – The Woodlands – Sugar Land, Texas Metropolitan Statistical Area (“MSA”) and two branches in the neighboring Beaumont MSA. We have three branches in the Dallas-Fort Worth market, with one location in the North Dallas area, one in Plano, and one in Fort Worth. We also have five branches in the Austin-San Antonio market, with one location in Austin, one in Georgetown, one in La Vernia, one in Nixon, and one in San Antonio. In addition, we have one branch in Detroit, Texas, located approximately 120 miles northeast of Dallas, Texas. We believe our footprint positions us for continued growth in and around the markets we serve.
Competition
The banking business is highly competitive, and our profitability depends upon our ability to compete with other banks and non-bank financial institutions located in each of our markets for lending opportunities, deposit funds, bankers and acquisition candidates. We compete with other commercial banks, savings banks, savings and loan associations, finance companies, credit unions and other providers of financial services, such as money market mutual funds, brokerage firms, consumer finance companies, asset-based non-bank lenders, insurance companies and certain other non-financial entities, including retail stores which may maintain their own credit programs and certain governmental organizations which may offer more favorable financing than we can. Many of the banks and other financial institutions with which we compete have significantly greater financial resources, marketing capability and name recognition than us and operate on a local, statewide, regional or nationwide basis.
Our business has capitalized on our team-oriented culture and diverse product and service offerings to successfully execute our high-touch, relationship driven approach to banking. We strive to know our customers better than our competition and believe our greatest opportunities for organic growth stem from the ability of our relationship managers to provide a greater level of attentiveness to customers and prospects than larger banks and our peers. As a result of consolidation among Texas metropolitan banks, we believe we are one of the few remaining locally-based banks in our markets that are dedicated to providing personalized service to small and medium-sized businesses with sophisticated banking needs.
Lending Activities
Lending limits.Our lending activities are subject to a variety of lending limits imposed by state and federal law. In general, we are subject to a legal limit on loans to a single borrower equal to 25% of the Bank’s Tier 1 capital. This limit increases or decreases as the Bank’s capital increases or decreases. As of December 31, 2024, our legal lending limit was $136.2 million, and our largest relationship was $67.0 million. In order to ensure compliance with legal lending limits and in accordance with our strong risk management culture, we maintain internal lending limits that are significantly less than the legal lending limits. We are able to sell participations in our larger loans to other financial institutions, which allows us to manage the risk involved in these loans and to meet the lending needs of our customers requiring extensions of credit in excess of these limits.
Credit Department. The Bank’s credit department is overseen by the Bank’s Chief Credit Officer. The credit department consists of the following areas: Underwriting, Loan Monitoring, Special Assets, and Credit Analytics. Underwriters provide analytical and underwriting services in support of the loan officers developing their respective loan portfolios. The Bank’s underwriters are further trained to be our future lending officers. Loan monitoring specialists review borrower financial reports to determine compliance with
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covenants and borrowing bases. The Special Assets Officer works to minimize losses in the resolution of problem loan workouts, foreclosures and the disposition of other real estate owned. Credit administration personnel prepare and the Chief Credit Officer provides in-depth credit administration reporting to the Bank’s board of directors on a monthly and quarterly basis to aid the Bank’s board of directors in monitoring and adjusting the Bank’s loan focus as it grows.
Loan Review. The Bank has developed an internal loan risk rating system which utilizes risk rating worksheets based upon the type of loan and collateral. Currently, the Bank has risk rating worksheets within the community bank vertical for commercial and industrial loans, individual loans, non-owner occupied real estate loans, owner-occupied real estate loans, and 1-4 family construction loans. The middle market/corporate vertical has a risk rating worksheet tailored to its type of credits. The builder finance vertical has a risk rating worksheet for homebuilder lines and risk rating worksheet for acquisition and development loans. Risk rating worksheets are completed for substantially all new loan and renewal requests. In addition, an annual loan review form is completed on real estate loans of $2 million or greater, given that these loans tend to have longer terms than loans that are not secured by real estate. The loan officer will prepare the annual loan review form that updates the credit file with new financials, review of the collateral status, and provide any meaningful commentary that documents changes in the borrower’s overall condition. Upon completion of the annual loan review form, the loan officer must present the form to the Regional Credit Officer for final review, appropriate grade change if needed and then approval to place in the credit file for future reference. We believe this process gives the Chief Credit Officer and executive management strong insight into the underlying performance of the Bank’s loan portfolio, allowing for accurate and proper real-time grading of the loan portfolio.
The Bank also has a Special Assets Committee, which generally meets monthly to review loans graded substandard or worse, past due loans, overdrafts, and other real estate owned, and considers and approves other loan grade changes. On a quarterly basis, the meeting includes the review of loans graded special mention. For all loans graded special mention or worse, the loan officer is required to complete a problem asset report, which is submitted to the Special Assets Committee.
Additionally, we employ, from time to time, an external third-party loan review team to review up to a 40% penetration of the Bank’s entire loan portfolio. This review will generally include all large loan relationships, insider loans, and criticized loans.
Deposits
Our core deposits include checking accounts, money market accounts, savings accounts, a variety of certificates of deposit and individual retirement accounts. To attract deposits, we employ a relationship-based marketing approach in our primary service areas and feature a broad product line and competitive offerings. Many of our depositors are residents and businesses located in the markets we serve. We obtain these deposits through in-person, direct mailing, and digital marketing solicitation by our branch staff, lenders, officers, directors, and marketing department.
We also employ a national wholesale deposit strategy to attract and maintain large, relatively low-cost stable deposits through a number of core, fiduciary, and institutional deposit programs. In addition to traditional bank products and services, the deposit strategy includes the utilization of customer digital solutions to broaden the reach of our customer base.
Other Banking Services
We offer a broad array of financial products and services that we believe are easy to use and easy to understand. Our customers enjoy traditional bank products such as checking, savings, money markets, and CD accounts, as well as a full range of competitive banking services including retail and commercial online banking platforms, mobile banking apps, debit cards, credit cards, a suite of treasury management solutions, merchant card services and customer digital solutions.
Investments
As of December 31, 2024, our investment portfolio consisted of U.S. government and agency securities, state and municipal securities, mortgage-backed securities, agency collateralized mortgage obligations, and corporate bonds classified as available for sale. In the future, we may invest in, among other things, U.S. Treasury bills and notes, as well as in securities of federally sponsored agencies, such as Federal Home Loan Bank (“FHLB”) bonds. We may also invest in federal funds, negotiable certificates of deposit, banker’s acceptances, and tax-free bonds. No investment in any of those instruments will exceed any applicable limitation imposed by law or regulation. The Bank’s Asset Liability and Investment Committee (“ALCO”) reviews the investment portfolio on an ongoing basis in order to ensure that the investments conform to our internal policy set by our board of directors.
Borrowings
To supplement our core deposits, we maintain borrowings consisting of advances from the FHLB of Dallas, a holding company line of credit with a third-party lender, and subordinated notes issued to certain qualified institutional buyers and institutional accredited investors. At December 31, 2024, we had no FHLB advances, borrowings under the line of credit totaled $30.9 million, or 0.7% of total liabilities, and subordinated notes totaled $80.8 million, or 1.8% of total liabilities. At December 31, 2024, we had $24.1 million available to be drawn on the line of credit with a third-party lender.
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Information Technology Systems
We have made significant investments in our information technology systems for our banking and lending operations and treasury management activities. We believe information technology system investments are important to enhance our capabilities to offer new products and overall customer experience, to provide scale for future growth and acquisitions, and to increase controls and efficiencies in our back office operations. We outsource our core data processing services to a nationally recognized bank software vendor providing us with capabilities to support the continued growth of the Bank. Our internal network and e-mail systems are maintained in-house. We leverage the capabilities of a third-party service provider to provide the technical expertise around network design and architecture that is required for us to operate as an effective and efficient organization. We actively manage our business continuity plan, and we follow recommendations outlined by the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council to ensure that we have effectively identified our risks and documented contingency plans for key functions and systems including providing for back up sites for all critical applications. We also perform tests to ensure the adequacy of these contingency plans.
The majority of our other systems, including our electronic funds transfer, transaction processing and online banking services, are also hosted by the vendor to whom we outsource our core data processing services. The scalability of this infrastructure is designed to support our growth strategy. These critical business applications and processes are included in the business continuity plans referenced above.
Enterprise Risk Management
We place significant emphasis on risk mitigation as an integral component of our organizational culture. We believe that our emphasis on risk management is manifested in our asset quality statistics and in our history of low charge-offs and losses on deposit-related services due to debit card, ACH or wire fraud. With respect to our lending philosophy, our risk management focuses on structuring credits to provide for multiple sources of repayment, coupled with strong underwriting and monitoring undertaken by the Bank’s experienced officers and credit policy personnel.
Our risk mitigation techniques include weekly Officers’ Loan Committee and Directors’ Loan Committee meetings where loan approvals and pricing are reviewed and discussed for relationships under $10 million and $10 million and over, respectively. In addition, the Bank’s board of directors reviews the allowance for credit losses methodology and level, loan concentrations, and portfolio composition reports on a quarterly basis. The Special Assets Committee also meets monthly to discuss criticized assets and set action plans for those borrowers who display deteriorating financial condition, to monitor those relationships and to implement corrective measures on a timely basis to minimize losses. We also perform an annual stress test on our loan portfolio, in which we evaluate the impact on the portfolio of declining economic conditions.
We also focus on risk management in numerous other areas throughout our organization, including asset/liability management, regulatory compliance and strategic and operational risk. We have implemented an extensive asset/liability management process, and utilize a well-known and experienced third-party to run our interest rate risk model on a quarterly basis.
We also annually engage an experienced third-party to review and assess our controls with respect to technology, as well as to perform penetration and vulnerability testing to assist us in managing the risks associated with information security.
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SUPERVISION AND REGULATION
The following is a general summary of the material aspects of certain statutes and regulations that are applicable to us. These summary descriptions are not complete, and you should refer to the full text of the statutes, regulations, and corresponding guidance for more information. These statutes and regulations are subject to change, and additional statutes, regulations, and corresponding guidance may be adopted. We are unable to predict these future changes or the effects, if any, that these changes could have on our business or our revenues.
General
We are extensively regulated under U.S. federal and state law. As a result, our growth and earnings performance may be affected not only by management decisions and general economic conditions, but also by federal and state statutes and by the regulations and policies of various bank regulatory agencies, including the TDB, the Federal Reserve, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (the “FDIC”) and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (the “CFPB”). Furthermore, tax laws administered by the Internal Revenue Service (the “IRS”), and state taxing authorities, accounting rules developed by the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”), securities laws administered by the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) and state securities authorities and anti-money laundering (“AML”) laws enforced by the U.S. Department of the Treasury (the “Treasury”) also impact our business. The effect of these statutes, regulations, regulatory policies and rules are significant to our financial condition and results of operations. Further, the nature and extent of future legislative, regulatory or other changes affecting financial institutions are impossible to predict with any certainty.
On March 13, 2024, the Bank completed its conversion from a Texas state savings bank to a Texas banking association. As a result of the conversion, the TDB is the Bank’s primary state regulator. The Bank remains as a member of the Federal Reserve System, and the Federal Reserve is the Bank’s primary federal regulator. The Federal Reserve also continues to be the Company’s primary federal regulator.
Federal and state banking laws impose a comprehensive system of supervision, regulation and enforcement on the operations of banks, their holding companies and their affiliates. These laws are intended primarily for the protection of depositors, customers and the Deposit Insurance Fund (the “DIF”), rather than for shareholders. Federal and state laws, and the related regulations of the bank regulatory agencies, affect, among other things, the scope of business, the kinds and amounts of investments banks may make, reserve requirements, capital levels relative to operations, the nature and amount of collateral for loans, the establishment of branches, the ability to merge, consolidate and acquire, dealings with insiders and affiliates and the payment of dividends.
This supervisory and regulatory framework subjects banks and bank holding companies to regular examination by their respective regulatory agencies, which results in examination reports and ratings that, while not publicly available, can affect the conduct and growth of their businesses. These examinations consider not only compliance with applicable laws and regulations, but also capital levels, asset quality and risk, management’s ability and performance, earnings, liquidity and various other factors. These regulatory agencies have broad discretion to impose restrictions and limitations on the operations of a regulated entity where the agencies determine, among other things, that such operations are unsafe or unsound, fail to comply with applicable law or are otherwise inconsistent with laws and regulations or with the supervisory policies of these agencies.
The following is a summary of the material elements of the supervisory and regulatory framework applicable to the Company and the Bank. It does not describe all of the statutes, regulations and regulatory policies that apply, nor does it restate all of the requirements of those that are described. The descriptions are qualified in their entirety by reference to the particular statutory and regulatory provision.
Financial Services Industry Reform
On July 21, 2010, the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (the “Dodd-Frank Act”) was signed into law. The Dodd-Frank Act imposed significant regulatory and compliance requirements, including the changing roles of credit rating agencies, the imposition of increased capital, leverage, and liquidity requirements, and numerous other provisions designed to improve supervision and oversight of, and strengthen safety and soundness within, the financial services sector.
Additionally, the Dodd-Frank Act established a new framework of authority to conduct systemic risk oversight within the financial system to be distributed among new and existing federal regulatory agencies, including the Financial Stability Oversight Council, the Federal Reserve, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (the “OCC”) and the FDIC.
On May 24, 2018, the Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief, and Consumer Protection Act (the “EGRRCPA”) was enacted. The EGRRCPA repealed or modified several provisions of the Dodd-Frank Act and included a number of burden reduction measures for community banks, including, among other things: (i) designating mortgages held in portfolio as “qualified mortgages” for banks with less than $10 billion in assets, subject to certain documentation and product limitations; (ii) exempting banks with less than $10 billion in assets (and total trading assets and trading liabilities of 5% or less of total assets) from Volcker Rule requirements relating to proprietary trading; (iii) simplifying capital calculations for banks with less than $10 billion in assets by requiring federal banking agencies to establish a community bank leverage ratio of tangible equity to average consolidated assets of not less than 8% or more
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than 10%, and providing that banks that maintain tangible equity in excess of such ratio will be deemed to be in compliance with risk-based capital and leverage requirements; (iv) assisting smaller banks with obtaining stable funding by providing an exception for reciprocal deposits from FDIC restrictions on acceptance of brokered deposits; (v) raising the eligibility for use of short-form Call Reports from $1 billion to $5 billion in assets; (vi) clarifying definitions pertaining to high-volatility commercial real estate (“HVCRE”), which require higher capital allocations, so that only loans with increased risk are subject to higher risk weightings; and (vii) directing the Federal Reserve to raise the asset threshold under the Small Bank Holding Company and Savings and Loan Holding Company Policy Statement from $1 billion to $3 billion.
Regulatory Capital Requirements and Capital Adequacy
The federal banking agencies require that banking organizations meet several risk-based capital adequacy requirements. These risk-based capital adequacy requirements are intended to provide a measure of capital adequacy that reflects the perceived degree of risk associated with a banking organization’s operations, both for transactions reported on the banking organization’s balance sheet as assets and for transactions that are recorded as off-balance sheet items, such as letters of credit and recourse arrangements. In 2013, the federal bank regulatory agencies issued final rules, or the Basel III Capital Rules, establishing a new comprehensive capital framework for banking organizations. The Basel III Capital Rules implement the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision’s December 2010 framework for strengthening international capital standards and certain provisions of the Dodd-Frank Act. The Basel III Capital Rules became effective on January 1, 2015.
The Basel III Capital Rules require the Bank to comply with four minimum capital standards: (1) a tier 1 capital to total consolidated assets ratio of at least 4.0%; (2) a common equity tier 1 (“CET1”) capital to risk-weighted assets ratio of at least 4.5%; (3) a tier 1 capital to risk-weighted assets ratio of at least 6.0%; and (4) a total capital to risk-weighted assets ratio of at least 8.0%. CET1 capital is generally comprised of common shareholders’ equity and retained earnings. Tier 1 capital is generally comprised of CET1 capital and “additional tier 1 capital,” which generally includes certain noncumulative perpetual preferred stock and related surplus and minority interests in equity accounts of consolidated subsidiaries. Total capital includes tier 1 capital (CET1 capital plus additional tier 1 capital) and tier 2 capital. Tier 2 capital is generally comprised of capital instruments and related surplus meeting specified requirements, and may include cumulative preferred stock and long-term perpetual preferred stock, mandatory convertible securities, intermediate preferred stock and subordinated debt. Also included in tier 2 capital is the allowance limited to a maximum of 1.25% of risk-weighted assets and, for institutions that have exercised an opt-out election regarding the treatment of Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (“AOCI”), up to 45% of net unrealized gains on available-for-sale equity securities with readily determinable fair market values. Institutions that have not exercised the AOCI opt-out have AOCI incorporated into CET1 capital (including unrealized gains and losses on available-for-sale-securities). We determined to opt-out of this requirement. The calculation of all types of regulatory capital is subject to deductions and adjustments specified in the regulations.
The Basel III Capital Rules also establish a “capital conservation buffer” of 2.5% above the regulatory minimum risk-based capital requirements. An institution is subject to limitations on certain activities, including payment of dividends, share repurchases and discretionary bonuses to executive officers, if its capital level is below the buffered ratio.
The minimum capital ratios under the Basel III Capital Rules as applicable to the Bank after the full phase-in period of the capital conservation buffer are summarized in the table below.
Tier 1 leverage ratio (tier 1 capital to average assets) 4.00% - 4.00%
In determining the amount of risk-weighted assets for purposes of calculating risk-based capital ratios, a banking organization’s assets, including certain off-balance sheet assets (e.g., recourse obligations, direct credit substitutes, residual interests), are multiplied by a risk weight factor assigned by the regulations based on perceived risks inherent in the type of asset. As a result, higher levels of capital are required for asset categories believed to present greater risk. For example, a risk weight of 0% is assigned to cash and U.S. government securities, a risk weight of 50% is generally assigned to prudently underwritten first lien 1-4 family residential mortgages, a risk weight of 100% is assigned to commercial and consumer loans, a risk weight of 150% is assigned to certain past due loans and a risk weight of between 0% to 600% is assigned to permissible equity interests, depending on certain specified factors.
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The Basel III Capital Rules increased the risk weights for a variety of asset classes, including certain commercial real estate mortgages. Additional aspects of the Basel III Capital Rules’ risk-weighting requirements include:
As of December 31, 2024, the Company's and the Bank’s capital ratios exceeded the minimum capital ratio requirements under the Basel III Capital Rules.
On September 17, 2019, the FDIC finalized a rule that provides certain banking organizations with the option to elect out of complying with the Basel III Capital Rules. Under the rule, a qualifying community banking organization (“QCBO”) would be eligible to elect the community bank leverage ratio (“CBLR”) framework. A QCBO is defined as a banking organization that is not an advanced approaches banking organization and that has:
• a leverage ratio of greater than 9%;
• total consolidated assets of less than $10 billion;
A QCBO that elects to use the CBLR framework and that maintains a leverage ratio of greater than 9% is considered to have satisfied the risk-based and leverage capital requirements in the Basel III Capital Rules and to have met the well-capitalized ratio requirements under the Federal Deposit Insurance Act, described below. The final rule became effective as of January 1, 2020. The Company did not elect to opt in to the CBLR framework.
In July 2023, the federal banking regulators proposed revisions to the Basel III Capital Rules to implement the Basel Committee’s 2017 standards and make other changes to the Basel III Capital Rules. The proposal introduces revised credit, equity and operational risks, as well as credit valuation adjustment and market risks, requirements. Because we have less than $100 billion in assets, the revised capital requirements of the proposed rule would not apply to the Company or the Bank.
Prompt Corrective Action
The Federal Deposit Insurance Act requires federal banking agencies to take “prompt corrective action” with respect to depository institutions that do not meet minimum capital requirements. For purposes of prompt corrective action, the law establishes five capital tiers: “well-capitalized,” “adequately capitalized,” “undercapitalized,” “significantly undercapitalized,” and “critically undercapitalized.” A depository institution’s capital tier depends on its capital levels and certain other factors established by regulation. The applicable FDIC regulations have been amended to incorporate the increased capital requirements required by the Basel III Capital Rules that became effective on January 1, 2015. Under the amended regulations, an institution is deemed to be “well-capitalized” if it has a total risk-based capital ratio of 10.0% or greater, a tier 1 risk-based capital ratio of 8.0% or greater, a CET1 capital ratio of 6.5% or greater and a leverage ratio of 5.0% or greater.
At each successively lower capital category, a bank is subject to increased restrictions on its operations. For example, a bank is generally prohibited from making capital distributions and paying management fees to its holding company if doing so would make the bank “undercapitalized.” Asset growth and branching restrictions apply to undercapitalized banks, which are required to submit written capital restoration plans meeting specified requirements (including a guarantee by the parent holding company, if any). “Significantly undercapitalized” banks are subject to broad regulatory restrictions, including among other things, capital directives, forced mergers, restrictions on the rates of interest they may pay on deposits, restrictions on asset growth and activities, and prohibitions on paying bonuses or increasing compensation to senior executive officers without FDIC approval. “Critically undercapitalized” are subject to even more severe restrictions, including, subject to a narrow exception, the appointment of a conservator or receiver within 90 days after becoming critically undercapitalized.
The appropriate federal banking agency may determine (after notice and opportunity for a hearing) that the institution is in an unsafe or unsound condition or deems the institution to be engaging in an unsafe or unsound practice. The appropriate agency is also permitted to require an adequately capitalized or undercapitalized institution to comply with the supervisory provisions as if the
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institution were in the next lower category (but not treat a significantly undercapitalized institution as critically undercapitalized) based on supervisory information other than the capital levels of the institution.
The capital classification of a bank affects the frequency of regulatory examinations, the bank’s ability to engage in certain activities and the deposit insurance premium paid by the bank. A bank’s capital category is determined solely for the purpose of applying prompt correct action regulations and the capital category may not accurately reflect the bank’s overall financial condition or prospects.
As of December 31, 2024, the Bank met the requirements for being deemed “well-capitalized” for purposes of the prompt corrective action regulations.
Enforcement Powers of Federal and State Banking Agencies
The federal bank regulatory agencies have broad enforcement powers, including the power to terminate deposit insurance, impose substantial fines and other civil and criminal penalties, and appoint a conservator or receiver for financial institutions. Failure to comply with applicable laws and regulations could subject us and our officers and directors to administrative sanctions and potentially substantial civil money penalties. In addition to the grounds discussed above under “—Prompt Corrective Action,” the appropriate federal bank regulatory agency may appoint the FDIC as conservator or receiver for a depository institution (or the FDIC may appoint itself, under certain circumstances) if any one or more of a number of circumstances exist, including, without limitation, the fact that the depository institution is undercapitalized and has no reasonable prospect of becoming adequately capitalized, fails to become adequately capitalized when required to do so, fails to submit a timely and acceptable capital restoration plan or materially fails to implement an accepted capital restoration plan. The TDB also has broad enforcement powers over us, including the power to impose orders, remove officers and directors, impose fines and appoint supervisors and conservators.
The Company
General. As a registered bank holding company, the Company is subject to regulation and supervision by the Federal Reserve under the Bank Holding Company Act of 1956, as amended (the “BHCA”). Under the BHCA, the Company is subject to periodic examination by the Federal Reserve. The Company is required to file with the Federal Reserve periodic reports of its operations and such additional information as the Federal Reserve may require.
Acquisitions, Activities and Change in Control. The BHCA generally requires the prior approval by the Federal Reserve for any merger involving a bank holding company or a bank holding company’s acquisition of more than 5% of a class of voting securities of any additional bank or bank holding company or to acquire all or substantially all of the assets of any additional bank or bank holding company. In reviewing applications seeking approval of merger and acquisition transactions, the Federal Reserve considers, among other things, the competitive effect and public benefits of the transactions, the capital position and managerial resources of the combined organization, the risks to the stability of the U.S. banking or financial system, the applicant’s performance record under the CRA and the effectiveness of all organizations involved in the merger or acquisition in combating money laundering activities. In addition, failure to implement or maintain adequate compliance programs could cause bank regulators not to approve an acquisition where regulatory approval is required or to prohibit an acquisition even if approval is not required.
Subject to certain conditions (including deposit concentration limits established by the BHCA and the Dodd-Frank Act), the Federal Reserve may allow a bank holding company to acquire banks located in any state of the United States. In approving interstate acquisitions, the Federal Reserve is required to give effect to applicable state law limitations on the aggregate amount of deposits that may be held by the acquiring bank holding company and its insured depository institution affiliates in the state in which the target bank is located (provided that those limits do not discriminate against out-of-state depository institutions or their holding companies) and state laws that require that the target bank have been in existence for a minimum period of time (not to exceed five years) before being acquired by an out-of-state bank holding company. Furthermore, in accordance with the Dodd-Frank Act, bank holding companies must be well-capitalized and well-managed in order to complete interstate mergers or acquisitions. For a discussion of the capital requirements, see “Regulatory Capital Requirements and Capital Adequacy” above.
Federal law also prohibits any person or company from acquiring “control” of an FDIC-insured depository institution or its holding company without prior notice to the appropriate federal bank regulator. “Control” is conclusively presumed to exist upon the acquisition of 25% or more of the outstanding voting securities of a bank or bank holding company, but may arise under certain circumstances between 5.00% and 24.99% ownership.
Permitted Activities. The BHCA generally prohibits the Company from controlling or engaging in any business other than that of banking, managing and controlling banks or furnishing services to banks and their subsidiaries. This general prohibition is subject to a number of exceptions. The principal exception allows bank holding companies to engage in, and to own shares of companies engaged in, certain businesses found by the Federal Reserve prior to November 11, 1999 to be “so closely related to banking as to be a proper incident thereto.” This authority would permit the Company to engage in a variety of banking-related businesses, including the ownership and operation of a savings association, or any entity engaged in consumer finance, equipment leasing, the operation of a computer service bureau (including software development) and mortgage banking and brokerage. The BHCA generally does not place territorial restrictions on the domestic activities of non-bank subsidiaries of bank holding companies. The Federal Reserve has the
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power to order any bank holding company or its subsidiaries to terminate any activity or to terminate its ownership or control of any subsidiary when the Federal Reserve has reasonable grounds to believe that continuing such activity, ownership or control constitutes a serious risk to the financial soundness, safety or stability of any bank subsidiary of the bank holding company.
Additionally, bank holding companies that meet certain eligibility requirements prescribed by the BHCA and elect to operate as financial holding companies may engage in, or own shares in companies engaged in, a wider range of non-banking activities, including securities and insurance underwriting and sales, merchant banking and any other activity that the Federal Reserve, in consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury, determines by regulation or order is financial in nature or incidental to any such financial activity or that the Federal Reserve determines by order to be complementary to any such financial activity and does not pose a substantial risk to the safety or soundness of depository institutions or the financial system generally. The Company has not elected to be a financial holding company, and we have not engaged in any activities determined by the Federal Reserve to be financial in nature or incidental or complementary to activities that are financial in nature.
If the Company should elect to become a financial holding company, the Company and the Bank must be well-capitalized, well-managed, and have a least a satisfactory Community Reinvestment Act (“CRA”) rating. If the Company were to become a financial holding company and the Federal Reserve subsequently determined that the Company, as a financial holding company, is not well-capitalized or well-managed, the Company would have a period of time during which to achieve compliance, but during the period of noncompliance, the Federal Reserve may place any limitations on the Company that the Federal Reserve believed to be appropriate. Furthermore, if the Company became a financial holding company and the Federal Reserve subsequently determined that the Bank, as a financial holding company subsidiary, had not received a satisfactory CRA rating, the Company would not be able to commence any new financial activities or acquire a company that engages in such activities.
Source of Strength. Federal Reserve policy historically required bank holding companies to act as a source of financial and managerial strength to their subsidiary banks. The Dodd-Frank Act codified this policy as a statutory requirement. Under this requirement the Company is expected to commit resources to support the Bank, including at times when the Company may not be in a financial position to provide it. The Company must stand ready to use its available resources to provide adequate capital to the Bank during periods of financial stress or adversity. The Company must also maintain the financial flexibility and capital raising capacity to obtain additional resources for assisting the Bank. The Company’s failure to meet its source of strength obligations may constitute an unsafe and unsound practice or a violation of the Federal Reserve’s regulations or both. The source of strength obligation most directly affects bank holding companies where a bank holding company’s subsidiary bank fails to maintain adequate capital levels. Any capital loans by a bank holding company to the subsidiary bank are subordinate in right of payment to deposits and to certain other indebtedness of the subsidiary bank. The BHCA provides that in the event of a bank holding company’s bankruptcy any commitment by a bank holding company to a federal bank regulatory agency to maintain the capital of its subsidiary bank will be assumed by the bankruptcy trustee and entitled to priority of payment.
Safe and Sound Banking Practices. Bank holding companies and their non-banking subsidiaries are prohibited from engaging in activities that represent unsafe and unsound banking practices or that constitute a violation of law or regulations. Under certain conditions the Federal Reserve may conclude that certain actions of a bank holding company, such as a payment of a cash dividend, would constitute an unsafe and unsound banking practice. The Federal Reserve also has the authority to regulate the debt of bank holding companies, including the authority to impose interest rate ceilings and reserve requirements on such debt. Under certain circumstances the Federal Reserve may require a bank holding company to file written notice and obtain its approval prior to purchasing or redeeming its equity securities, unless certain conditions are met.
Anti-tying Restrictions. Bank holding companies and their affiliates are prohibited from tying the provision of certain services, such as extensions of credit, to other nonbanking services offered by the bank holding company or its affiliates.
Dividend Payments, Stock Redemptions and Repurchases. The Company’s ability to pay dividends to its shareholders is affected by both general corporate law considerations and the regulations and policies of the Federal Reserve applicable to bank holding companies, including the Basel III Capital Rules. Generally, a Texas corporation may not make distributions to its shareholders if (i) after giving effect to the dividend, the corporation would be insolvent, or (ii) the amount of the dividend exceeds the surplus of the corporation. Dividends may be declared and paid in a corporation’s own treasury shares that have been reacquired by the corporation out of surplus. Dividends may be declared and paid in a corporation’s own authorized but unissued shares out of the surplus of the corporation upon the satisfaction of certain conditions.
It is the Federal Reserve’s policy that bank holding companies should generally pay dividends on common stock only out of income available over the past year, and only if prospective earnings retention is consistent with the organization’s expected future needs and financial condition. It is also the Federal Reserve’s policy that bank holding companies should not maintain dividend levels that undermine their ability to be a source of strength to its banking subsidiaries. Additionally, the Federal Reserve has indicated that bank holding companies should carefully review their dividend policy and has discouraged payment ratios that are at maximum allowable levels unless both asset quality and capital are very strong. The Federal Reserve possesses enforcement powers over bank holding companies and their nonbank subsidiaries to prevent or remedy actions that represent unsafe or unsound practices or violations of applicable statutes and regulations. Among these powers is the ability to proscribe the payment of dividends by banks and bank holding companies.
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Bank holding companies must consult with the Federal Reserve before redeeming any equity or other capital instrument included in tier 1 or tier 2 capital prior to stated maturity, if such redemption could have a material effect on the level or composition of the organization’s capital base. In addition, bank holding companies are unable to repurchase shares equal to 10% or more of its net worth if it would not be well-capitalized (as defined by the Federal Reserve) after giving effect to such repurchase. Bank holding companies experiencing financial weaknesses, or that are at significant risk of developing financial weaknesses, must consult with the Federal Reserve before redeeming or repurchasing common stock or other regulatory capital instruments.
The Bank
General. The Bank is a Texas banking association and state member bank of the Federal Reserve. The Bank is regulated by the TDB and the Federal Reserve. As such, the Bank is subject to examination, supervision and regulation by the TDB and the Federal Reserve. The TDB, which is the chartering authority for Texas banking associations, supervises and regulates all areas of the Bank’s operations including, without limitation, the making of loans, the issuance of securities, the conduct of the Bank’s corporate affairs, the satisfaction of capital adequacy requirements, the payment of dividends and the establishment or closing of banking offices. The Federal Reserve, as the Bank’s primary federal regulator, also supervises and regulates the Bank’s operations and periodically examines the Bank’s operational safety and soundness and compliance with federal law. The TDB and the Federal Reserve have the power to enforce compliance with applicable banking statutes and regulations. Those regulations include requirements to maintain reserves against deposits, restrictions on the nature and amount of loans that may be made and the interest that may be charged on loans, and restrictions relating to investments and other activities of the Bank. In addition, the Bank’s deposit accounts are insured by the FDIC up to applicable limits. This gives the FDIC additional enforcement authority over the Bank, such as the ability to terminate the Bank’s deposit insurance under certain circumstances.
As a Texas banking association, the Bank is empowered by statute, subject to the limitations contained in those statutes, to take and pay interest on savings and time deposits, to accept demand deposits, to make loans on residential and other real estate, to make consumer and commercial loans, to invest, with certain limitations, in equity securities and in debt obligations of banks and corporations, and to provide various other banking services for the benefit of the Bank’s clients. Various state consumer laws and regulations also affect the operations of the Bank, including state usury laws and consumer credit laws.
Under Texas law, a state bank may engage in those activities permissible for national banks domiciled in Texas. The TDB may permit a Texas state bank to engage in additional activities so long as the performance of the activity by the bank would not adversely affect the safety and soundness of the bank. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Improvement Act of 1991 (the “FDICIA”) provides that no state bank or subsidiary thereof may engage as a principal in any activity not permitted for national banks, unless the institution complies with applicable capital requirements and the FDIC determines that the activity poses no significant risk to the DIF.
Depositor Preference. In the event of the “liquidation or other resolution” of an insured depository institution, the claims of depositors of the institution, including the claims of the FDIC as subrogee of insured depositors, and certain claims for administrative expenses of the FDIC as a receiver, will have priority over other general unsecured claims against the institution. If an insured depository institution fails, insured and uninsured depositors, along with the FDIC, will have priority in payment ahead of unsecured, non-deposit creditors including the parent bank holding company with respect to any extensions of credit they have made to that insured depository institution.
Brokered Deposit Restrictions. Well-capitalized institutions are not subject to limitations on brokered deposits, while adequately capitalized institutions are able to accept, renew or roll over brokered deposits only with a waiver from the FDIC and subject to certain restrictions on the yield paid on such deposits. Undercapitalized institutions are generally not permitted to accept, renew or roll over brokered deposits. As of December 31, 2024, the Bank was eligible to accept brokered deposits without a waiver from the FDIC.
Deposit Insurance. FDIC-insured depository institutions are required to pay deposit insurance assessments to the FDIC to fund the DIF. The amount of a particular institution’s deposit insurance assessment is based on that institution’s risk classification under an FDIC risk-based assessment system. The FDIC’s method for determining the assessment rate for a bank with less than $10 billion in assets is generally based on a formula using financial data and assigned Uniform Financial Institutions Rating System ratings. While in the past an insured depository institution’s assessment base was determined by its deposit base, amendments to the Federal Deposit Insurance Act revised the assessment base so that it is calculated using average consolidated total assets minus average tangible equity.
Additionally, the Dodd-Frank Act raised the minimum designated reserve ratio of the DIF from 1.15% to 1.35% of the estimated amount of total insured deposits and eliminated the requirement that the FDIC pay dividends to depository institutions when the reserve ratio exceeds certain thresholds. The DIF reserve ratio reached 1.36 percent on September 30, 2018, exceeding the statutorily required minimum reserve ratio of 1.35 percent ahead of the September 30, 2020, deadline under the Dodd-Frank Act.
At least semi-annually, the FDIC updates its loss and income projections for the DIF and, if needed, may increase or decrease the assessment rates following notice and comment on proposed rulemaking. As a result, the Bank’s FDIC deposit insurance premiums could increase. During the year ended December 31, 2024, the Bank paid $3.8 million in FDIC deposit insurance premiums.
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Audits. For insured institutions with total assets of $1.0 billion or more, financial statements prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”), management’s certifications signed by our and the Bank’s chief executive officer and chief accounting or financial officer concerning management’s responsibility for the financial statements, and an attestation by the auditors regarding the Bank’s internal controls must be submitted. For institutions with total assets of more than $3.0 billion, independent auditors may be required to review quarterly financial statements. The FDICIA requires that the Bank have an independent audit committee, consisting of outside directors only, or that we have an audit committee that is entirely independent. The committees of such institutions must include members with experience in banking or financial management, must have access to outside counsel and must not include representatives of large customers. The Bank’s audit committee consists entirely of independent directors.
FICO Assessments. In addition to paying basic deposit insurance assessments, insured depository institutions must pay Financing Corporation (“FICO”) assessments. FICO is a mixed-ownership governmental corporation chartered by the former Federal Home Loan Bank Board to recapitalize the former Federal Savings and Loan Insurance Corporation. FICO issued 30-year non-callable bonds of approximately $8.1 billion. The last of the remaining FICO bonds matured in September 2019. Since 1996, federal legislation requires that all FDIC-insured depository institutions pay assessments to cover interest payments on FICO’s outstanding obligations. During the year ended December 31, 2024, the Bank paid no FICO assessments.
Examination Assessments. Texas banking associations are required to pay assessments to the TDB to fund its operations. During the year ended December 31, 2024, the Bank paid examination assessments to the TDB totaling $322,000.
Capital Requirements. Banks are generally required to maintain minimum capital ratios. For a discussion of the capital requirements applicable to the Bank, see “Regulatory Capital Requirements and Capital Adequacy” above.
Bank Reserves. The Federal Reserve requires all depository institutions to maintain reserves against some transaction accounts (primarily NOW and Super NOW checking accounts). The balances maintained to meet the reserve requirements imposed by the Federal Reserve may be used to satisfy liquidity requirements. An institution may borrow from the Federal Reserve “discount window” as a secondary source of funds if the institution meets the Federal Reserve’s credit standards.
Liquidity Requirements. Historically, regulation and monitoring of bank and bank holding company liquidity has been addressed as a supervisory matter, without required formulaic measures. The Basel III liquidity framework requires banks and bank holding companies to measure their liquidity against specific liquidity tests. The federal banking agencies adopted final Liquidity Coverage Ratio rules in September 2014 and proposed Net Stable Funding Ratio rules in May 2016. These rules introduced two liquidity related metrics: Liquidity Coverage Ratio is intended to require financial institutions to maintain sufficient high-quality liquid resources to survive an acute stress scenario that lasts for one month; and Net Stable Funding Ratio is intended to require financial institutions to maintain a minimum amount of stable sources relative to the liquidity profiles of the institution’s assets and contingent liquidity needs over a one-year period.
While the Liquidity Coverage Ratio and the proposed Net Stable Funding Ratio rules apply only to the largest banking organizations in the country, certain elements may filter down and become applicable to or expected of all insured depository institutions and bank holding companies.
Dividend Payments. The primary source of funds for the Company is dividends from the Bank. The prior approval of the Federal Reserve is required if the total of all dividends declared by a state-chartered member bank in any calendar year would exceed the sum of the bank’s net profits for that year and its retained net profits for the preceding two calendar years, less any required transfers to surplus or to fund the retirement of preferred stock. Federal law also prohibits a state-chartered, member bank from paying dividends that would be greater than the bank’s undivided profits. The Bank is also subject to limitations under Texas state law regarding the level of dividends that may be paid. Under the foregoing dividend restrictions, and while maintaining its “well capitalized” status, the Bank could pay aggregate dividends of approximately $118.2 million to us, without obtaining affirmative governmental approvals, at December 31, 2024. This amount is not necessarily indicative of amounts that may be paid or available to be paid in future periods.
The Bank is also subject to certain restrictions on the payment of dividends as a result of the requirement that the Bank maintain an adequate level of capital in accordance with federal laws and regulations and with guidelines promulgated from time to time by the federal banking agencies.
The present and future dividend policy of the Bank is subject to the discretion of its board of directors. In determining whether to pay dividends to the Company and, if made, the amount of the dividends, the board of directors of the Bank considers many of the same factors discussed above. The Bank cannot guarantee that it will have the financial ability to pay dividends to the Company, or if dividends are paid, that they will be sufficient for the Company to make distributions to shareholders. The Bank is not obligated to pay dividends. For the year-ended December 31, 2024, the Bank paid $20.0 million in dividends to the Company.
Transactions with Affiliates. The Bank is subject to sections 23A and 23B of the Federal Reserve Act (the “Affiliates Act”) and the Federal Reserve’s implementing Regulation W. An affiliate of a bank is any company or entity that controls, is controlled by or is under common control with the bank. Accordingly, transactions between the Company, the Bank and any non-bank subsidiaries will be subject to a number of restrictions. The Affiliates Act imposes restrictions and limitations on the Bank from making extensions of credit to, or the issuance of a guarantee or letter of credit on behalf of, the Company or other affiliates, the purchase of, or investment
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in, stock or other securities thereof, the taking of such securities as collateral for loans and the purchase of assets of the Company or other affiliates. Such restrictions and limitations prevent the Company or other affiliates from borrowing from the Bank unless the loans are secured by marketable obligations of designated amounts. Furthermore, such secured loans and investments by the Bank to or in the Company or to or in any other non-banking affiliate are limited, individually, to 10% of the Bank’s capital and surplus, and such transactions are limited in the aggregate to 20% of the Bank’s capital and surplus. All such transactions, as well as contracts entered into between the Bank and affiliates, must be on terms that are no less favorable to the Bank than those that would be available from non-affiliated third parties. Federal Reserve policies also forbid the payment by bank subsidiaries of management fees which are unreasonable in amount or exceed the fair market value of the services rendered or, if no market exists, actual costs plus a reasonable profit.
Financial Subsidiaries. Under the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (the “GLBA”), subject to certain conditions imposed by their respective banking regulators, national and state-chartered banks are permitted to form “financial subsidiaries” that may conduct financial activities or activities incidental thereto, thereby permitting bank subsidiaries to engage in certain activities that previously were impermissible. The GLBA imposes several safeguards and restrictions on financial subsidiaries, including that the parent bank’s equity investment in the financial subsidiary be deducted from the bank’s assets and tangible equity for purposes of calculating the bank’s capital adequacy. In addition, the GLBA imposed new restrictions on transactions between a bank and its financial subsidiaries similar to restrictions applicable to transactions between banks and non-bank affiliates.
Loans to Directors, Executive Officers and Principal Shareholders. The authority of the Bank to extend credit to its directors, executive officers and principal shareholders, including their immediate family members and corporations and other entities that they control, is subject to substantial restrictions and requirements under the Federal Reserve’s Regulation O, as well as the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (the “Sarbanes-Oxley Act”). These statutes and regulations impose limits on the amount of loans the Bank may make to directors and other insiders and require that the loans must be made on substantially the same terms, including interest rates and collateral, as prevailing at the time for comparable transactions with persons not affiliated with the Company or the Bank, that the Bank must follow credit underwriting procedures at least as stringent as those applicable to comparable transactions with persons who are not affiliated with the Company or the Bank, and that the loans must not involve a greater than normal risk of non-payment or include other features not favorable to the Bank. Furthermore, the Bank must periodically report all loans made to directors and other insiders to the bank regulators.
Limits on Loans to One Borrower. The Bank is subject to limits on the amount of loans it can make to one borrower. With certain limited exceptions, loans and extensions of credit from the Bank to any borrower (including certain related entities of the borrower) at any one time may not exceed 25% of the tier 1 capital of the Bank. The Bank may lend an additional amount if the loan is fully secured by certain types of collateral, like bonds or notes of the United States. Certain types of loans are exempted from the lending limits, including loans secured by segregated deposits held by the Bank.
Safety and Soundness Standards / Risk Management. The federal banking agencies have adopted guidelines establishing operational and managerial standards to promote the safety and soundness of federally insured depository institutions. The guidelines set forth standards for internal controls, information systems, internal audit systems, loan documentation, credit underwriting, interest rate exposure, asset growth, compensation, fees and benefits, asset quality and earnings.
In general, the safety and soundness guidelines prescribe the goals to be achieved in each area, and each institution is responsible for establishing its own procedures to achieve those goals. If an institution fails to comply with any of the standards set forth in the guidelines, the financial institution’s primary federal regulator may require the institution to submit a plan for achieving and maintaining compliance. If a financial institution fails to submit an acceptable compliance plan, or fails in any material respect to implement a compliance plan that has been accepted by its primary federal regulator, the regulator is required to issue an order directing the institution to cure the deficiency. Until the deficiency cited in the regulator’s order is cured, the regulator may restrict the financial institution’s rate of growth, require the financial institution to increase its capital, restrict the rates the institution pays on deposits or require the institution to take any action the regulator deems appropriate under the circumstances. Noncompliance with the standards established by the safety and soundness guidelines may also constitute grounds for other enforcement action by the federal bank regulatory agencies, including cease and desist orders and civil money penalty assessments.
During the past decade, the bank regulatory agencies have increasingly emphasized the importance of sound risk management processes and strong internal controls when evaluating the activities of the financial institutions they supervise. Properly managing risks has been identified as critical to the conduct of safe and sound banking activities and has become even more important as new technologies, product innovation and the size and speed of financial transactions have changed the nature of banking markets. The agencies have identified a spectrum of risks facing a banking institution including, but not limited to, credit, market, liquidity, operational, legal and reputational risk. In particular, recent regulatory pronouncements have focused on operational risk, which arises from the potential that inadequate information systems, operational problems, breaches in internal controls, fraud or unforeseen catastrophes will result in unexpected losses. New products and services, third party risk management and cybersecurity are critical sources of operational risk that financial institutions are expected to address in the current environment. The Bank is expected to have active board and senior management oversight; adequate policies, procedures and limits; adequate risk measurement, monitoring and management information systems; and comprehensive internal controls.
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Branching Authority. Deposit-taking banking offices of the Bank must be approved by the Federal Reserve and the TDB, which consider a number of factors including financial history, capital adequacy, earnings prospects, character of management, needs of the community and consistency with corporate power. The Dodd-Frank Act permits insured state banks to engage in interstate branching if the laws of the state where the new banking office is to be established would permit the establishment of the banking office if it were chartered by a bank in such state. Finally, the Company may also establish banking offices in other states by merging with banks or by purchasing banking offices of other banks in other states, subject to certain restrictions.
Interstate Deposit Restrictions. The Riegle-Neal Interstate Banking and Branching Efficiency Act of 1994 (the “Riegle-Neal Act”), together with the Dodd-Frank Act, relaxed prior branching restrictions under federal law by permitting, subject to regulatory approval, banks to establish branches in states where the laws permit banks chartered in such states to establish branches.
Section 109 of the Riegle-Neal Act prohibits a bank from establishing or acquiring a branch or branches outside of its home state primarily for the purpose of deposit production. To determine compliance with Section 109, the appropriate federal banking agency first compares a bank’s estimated statewide loan-to-deposit ratio to the estimated host state loan-to-deposit ratio. If a bank’s statewide loan-to-deposit ratio is at least one-half of the published host state loan-to-deposit ratio, the bank has complied with Section 109. A second step is conducted if a bank’s estimated statewide loan-to-deposit ratio is less than one-half of the published ratio for that state. The second step requires the appropriate agency to determine whether the bank is reasonably helping to meet the credit needs of the communities served by the bank’s interstate branches. A bank that fails both steps is in violation of Section 109 and subject to sanctions by the appropriate agency. Those sanctions may include requiring the bank’s interstate branches in the non-compliant state be closed or not permitting the bank to open new branches in the non-compliant state.
Community Reinvestment Act. The CRA is intended to encourage insured depository institutions, while operating safely and soundly, to help meet the credit needs of their communities. The CRA specifically directs the federal bank regulatory agencies, in examining insured depository institutions, to assess their record of helping to meet the credit needs of their entire community, including low and moderate income neighborhoods, consistent with safe and sound banking practices. The CRA further requires the agencies to take a financial institution’s record of meeting its community credit needs into account when evaluating applications for, among other things, domestic branches, consummating mergers or acquisitions or holding company formations.
The federal banking agencies have adopted regulations which measure a bank’s compliance with its CRA obligations on a performance based evaluation system. This system bases CRA ratings on an institution’s actual lending service and investment performance rather than the extent to which the institution conducts needs assessments, documents community outreach or complies with other procedural requirements. The ratings range from a high of “outstanding” to a low of “substantial noncompliance.” The Bank had a CRA rating of “satisfactory” as of its most recent CRA assessment.
In October 2023, the Federal Reserve, the FDIC and the OCC, issued a joint final rule to modernize the CRA regulatory framework. The final rule is intended, among other things, to adapt to changes in the banking industry, including internet and the expanded role of mobile and online banking, and to tailor performance standards to account for differences in bank size, and business models. The final rule introduces new tests under which the performance of banks with over $2 billion in assets will be assessed. The new rule also includes data collection and reporting requirements, some of which are applicable only to banks with over $10 billion in assets. Most provisions of the final rule will become effective on January 1, 2026, and the data reporting requirements will become effective on January 1, 2027.
Anti-Money Laundering and the Office of Foreign Assets Control Regulation. The Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001 (the “USA PATRIOT Act”) is designed to deny terrorists and criminals the ability to obtain access to the U.S. financial system and has significant implications for depository institutions, brokers, dealers and other businesses involved in the transfer of money. The USA PATRIOT Act substantially broadened the scope of United States AML laws and regulations by imposing significant compliance and due diligence obligations, created new crimes and penalties and expanded the extra territorial jurisdiction of the United States. Financial institutions are also prohibited from entering into specified financial transactions and account relationships, must use enhanced due diligence procedures in their dealings with certain types of high risk customers and must implement a written customer identification program. Financial institutions must take certain steps to assist government agencies in detecting and preventing money laundering and report certain types of suspicious transactions. Regulatory authorities routinely examine financial institutions for compliance with these obligations and failure of a financial institution to maintain and implement adequate programs to combat money laundering and terrorist financing, or to comply with the USA PATRIOT Act or its regulations, could have serious legal and reputational consequences for the institution, including causing applicable bank regulatory authorities not to approve merger or acquisition transactions when regulatory approval is required or to prohibit such transactions even if approval is not required. Regulatory authorities have imposed cease and desist orders and civil money penalties against institutions found to be in violation of these obligations.
Among other requirements, the USA PATRIOT Act and implementing regulations require banks to establish AML programs that include, at a minimum:
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• a designated compliance officer;
• employee training;
• an independent audit function to test the AML program;
Additionally, the USA PATRIOT Act requires each financial institution to develop a customer identification program (“CIP”) as part of its AML program. The key components of the CIP are identification, verification, government list comparison, notice and record retention. The purpose of the CIP is to enable the financial institution to determine the true identity and anticipated account activity of each customer. To make this determination, among other things, the financial institution must collect certain information from customers at the time they enter into the customer relationship with the financial institution. This information must be verified within a reasonable time through documentary and non-documentary methods. Furthermore, all customers must be screened against any CIP-related government lists of known or suspected terrorists. Financial institutions are also required to comply with various reporting and recordkeeping requirements. The Federal Reserve and the FDIC consider an applicant’s effectiveness in combating money laundering, among other factors, in connection with an application to approve a bank merger or acquisition of control of a bank or bank holding company.
Likewise, the Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) administers and enforces economic and trade sanctions against targeted foreign countries and regimes under authority of various laws, including designated foreign countries, nationals and others. OFAC publishes lists of specially designated targets and countries. Financial institutions are responsible for, among other things, blocking accounts of, and transactions with, such targets and countries, prohibiting unlicensed trade and financial transactions with them and reporting blocked transactions after their occurrence.
Failure of a financial institution to maintain and implement adequate AML and OFAC programs, or to comply with all of the relevant laws or regulations, could have serious legal and reputational consequences for the institution.
Concentrations in Commercial Real Estate. The federal banking agencies have promulgated guidance governing financial institutions with concentrations in commercial real estate lending. The guidance provides that a bank has a concentration in commercial real estate lending if (i) total reported loans for construction, land development, and other land represent 100% or more of total capital or (ii) total reported loans secured by multifamily and non-farm nonresidential properties (excluding loans secured by owner-occupied properties) and loans for construction, land development, and other land represent 300% or more of total capital and the bank’s commercial real estate loan portfolio has increased 50% or more during the prior 36 months. If a concentration is present, management must employ heightened risk management practices that address the following key elements: including board and management oversight and strategic planning, portfolio management, development of underwriting standards, risk assessment and monitoring through market analysis and stress testing, and maintenance of increased capital levels as needed to support the level of commercial real estate lending. On December 18, 2015, the federal banking agencies jointly issued a “statement on prudent risk management for commercial real estate lending.”
Consumer Protection Laws and Regulations. The Bank is subject to numerous federal laws and regulations intended to protect consumers in transactions with the Bank, including but not limited to the Electronic Fund Transfer Act, the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, the Fair Housing Act, the Expedited Funds Availability Act, the Fair Credit Reporting Act, the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, the Military Lending Act, the Real Estate Procedures Act of 1974, the S.A.F.E. Mortgage Licensing Act of 2008, the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act, the Truth in Lending Act, the Truth in Savings Act and laws prohibiting unfair, deceptive or abusive acts and practices in connection with consumer financial products and services. Many states and local jurisdictions have consumer protection laws analogous, and in addition, to those enacted under federal law. These laws and regulations mandate certain disclosure requirements and regulate the manner in which financial institutions must deal with customers when taking deposits, making loans and conducting other types of transactions. Failure to comply with these laws and regulations could give rise to regulatory sanctions, customer rescission and registration rights, action by state and local attorneys general and civil or criminal liability.
Rulemaking authority for most federal consumer protection laws was transferred from the federal banking regulators to the CFPB on July 21, 2011. The CFPB also has broad authority to prohibit unfair, deceptive and abusive acts and practices and to investigate and penalize financial institutions that violate this prohibition. The CFPB has examination and primary enforcement authority with respect to depository institutions with $10 billion or more in assets. Smaller institutions are subject to rules promulgated by the CFPB but continue to be examined and supervised by federal banking regulators for consumer compliance purposes. The creation of the CFPB by the Dodd-Frank Act has led to enhanced enforcement of consumer financial protection laws.
Incentive Compensation Guidance
The federal bank regulatory agencies have issued comprehensive guidance intended to ensure that the incentive compensation policies of banking organizations do not undermine the safety and soundness of those organizations by encouraging excessive risk-taking. The incentive compensation guidance sets expectations for banking organizations concerning their incentive compensation arrangements and related risk-management, control and governance processes. The incentive compensation guidance, which covers all employees that have the ability to materially affect the risk profile of an organization, either individually or as part of a group, is based
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upon three primary principles: (1) balanced risk-taking incentives; (2) compatibility with effective controls and risk management; and (3) strong corporate governance. Any deficiencies in compensation practices that are identified may be incorporated into the organization’s supervisory ratings, which can affect its ability to make acquisitions or take other actions. In addition, under the incentive compensation guidance, a banking organization’s federal supervisor may initiate enforcement action if the organization’s incentive compensation arrangements pose a risk to the safety and soundness of the organization. Further, the Basel III Capital Rules limit discretionary bonus payments to bank executives if the institution’s regulatory capital ratios fail to exceed certain thresholds. Although the federal bank regulatory agencies proposed additional rules in 2016 related to incentive compensation for all banks with more than $1 billion in assets, those rules have not yet been finalized. The scope and content of the U.S. banking regulators’ policies on executive compensation are continuing to develop and are likely to continue evolving in the near future.
The Dodd-Frank Act requires public companies to include, at least once every three years, a separate non-binding “say-on-pay” vote in their proxy statement by which shareholders may vote on the compensation of the public company’s named executive officers. In addition, if such public companies are involved in a merger, acquisition, or consolidation, or if they propose to sell or dispose of all or substantially all of their assets, shareholders have a right to an advisory vote on any golden parachute arrangements in connection with such transaction (frequently referred to as “say-on-golden parachute” vote). Although we will be exempt from these requirements while we are an emerging growth company, other provisions of the Dodd-Frank Act may impact our corporate governance. For instance, the SEC adopted rules prohibiting the listing of any equity security of a company that does not have a compensation committee consisting solely of independent directors, subject to certain exceptions. In addition, the Dodd-Frank Act requires the SEC to adopt rules requiring all exchange-traded companies to adopt claw-back policies for incentive compensation paid to executive officers in the event of accounting restatements based on material non-compliance with financial reporting requirements. The scope and content of the U.S. banking regulators’ policies on executive compensation are continuing to develop and are likely to continue evolving in the near future.
In August 2022, the SEC adopted the final “pay versus performance” rule mandated by the Dodd-Frank Act. Among other disclosure requirements, the rule requires public companies (other than emerging growth companies, registered investment companies and foreign private issuers) to disclose the relationships among named executive officer compensation “actually paid,” total shareholder return and certain financial performance measures that the company uses to link compensation to company performance for its five most recent fiscal years. The rule will not apply to the Company while it is an emerging growth company and, accordingly, management anticipates that the rule will first apply to disclosures in the Company’s proxy statement for the 2027 Annual Meeting of Shareholders.
In October 2022, the SEC adopted a final rule directing national securities exchanges and associations, including the Nasdaq Stock Market LLC, to implement listing standards that require listed companies to adopt policies mandating the recovery or “clawback” of excess incentive-based compensation earned by a current or former executive officer during the three fiscal years preceding the date the listed company is required to prepare an accounting restatement, including to correct an error that would result in a material misstatement if the error were corrected in the current period or left uncorrected in the current period. The Company adopted a compensation recovery policy to address the SEC final rule. The policy is included in this Form 10-K as Exhibit 97.1.
Financial Privacy
The federal bank regulatory agencies have adopted rules that limit the ability of banks and other financial institutions to disclose non-public information about consumers to non-affiliated third parties. These limitations require disclosure of privacy policies to consumers and, in some circumstances, allow consumers to prevent disclosure of certain personal information to a non-affiliated third party. These regulations affect how consumer information is transmitted through financial services companies and conveyed to outside vendors. In addition, consumers may also prevent disclosure of certain information among affiliated companies that is assembled or used to determine eligibility for a product or service, such as that shown on consumer credit reports and asset and income information from applications. Consumers also have the option to direct banks and other financial institutions not to share information about transactions and experiences with affiliated companies for the purpose of marketing products or services.
Impact of Monetary Policy
The monetary policy of the Federal Reserve has a significant effect on the operating results of financial or bank holding companies and their subsidiaries. Among the tools available to the Federal Reserve to affect the money supply are open market transactions in U.S. government securities, changes in the discount rate on member bank borrowings and changes in reserve requirements against member bank deposits. These tools are used in varying combinations to influence overall growth and distribution of bank loans, investments and deposits, and their use may affect interest rates charged on loans or paid on deposits.
Impact of Current Laws and Regulations
The cumulative effect of these laws and regulations, while providing certain benefits, adds significantly to the cost of our operations and thus may have a negative impact on our profitability. There has also been a notable expansion in recent years of financial service providers that are not subject to the examination, oversight and other rules and regulations to which we are subject.
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Those providers, because they are not so highly regulated, may have a competitive advantage over us and may continue to draw large amounts of funds away from traditional banking institutions, with a continuing adverse effect on the banking industry in general.
Future Legislation and Regulatory Reform
In recent years, regulators have increased their focus on the regulation of financial institutions. From time to time, various legislative and regulatory initiatives are introduced in Congress and state legislatures. New regulations and statutes are regularly proposed that contain wide-ranging proposals for altering the structures, regulations and competitive relationships of financial institutions operating in the United States. We cannot predict whether or in what form any proposed regulation or statute will be adopted or the extent to which our business may be affected by any new regulation or statute. Future legislation, regulation and policies and the effects of such legislation, regulation and policies, may have a significant influence on our operations and activities, financial condition, results of operations, growth plans or future prospects and the overall growth and distribution of loans, investments and deposits. Such legislation, regulation and policies have had a significant effect on the operations and activities, financial condition, results of operations, growth plans and future prospects of commercial banks in the past and are expected to continue to do so.
Human Capital
The Company's success depends on its ability to attract and retain highly qualified management and other skilled employees. The Company focuses on identifying and selecting the best candidates for positions based on their qualifications and skill set. Locating candidates with the necessary qualifications can be difficult and competition for these individuals is often intense. The Company invests in its workforce by offering competitive wages and benefits, continually working to create a strong company culture, and nurturing its talent through training and retention programs.
The Company believes a strong culture and inclusive workforce is critical to its success. The Company is committed to attracting, retaining, and promoting top quality talent regardless of sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, race, color, national origin, age, religion and physical ability. The Company is dedicated to creating an environment where its employees feel inspired to do their best work and where everyone feels valued and respected for their unique capabilities and where everyone is engaged in the Company's strategic vision of continued strong growth.
In 2024, the Company reinforced its dedication to employee engagement and fostering a sense of belonging by enhancing its cultural initiatives. This was achieved through the establishment of an Employee Engagement Council, guided by the Culture Counts framework. The council implemented a peer-to-peer recognition program, through online virtual badges, as well as various other programs, including a holiday kindness campaign, the volunteer captains’ network, and a Week of Inclusion & Belonging, which has featured guest speakers on inclusion, microlearning opportunities, and cultural potlucks at each location.
Additionally, the Company demonstrated its commitment to leadership and professional development with the launch of the Mentoring Circles Program. This initiative allowed multiple mentees to collaborate with a single mentor in a group setting, facilitating the exchange of ideas and collective growth.
As of December 31, 2024, the Company employed 369 employees.
AVAILABLE INFORMATION
The Company’s website address is www.thirdcoast.bank. The Company makes available free of charge on or through its website, under the investors tab, its annual reports on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, current reports on Form 8-K and all amendments to those reports filed or furnished pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), as soon as reasonably practicable after such materials are electronically filed with or furnished to the SEC. Information contained on the Company’s website is not incorporated by reference into this Annual Report on Form 10-K and is not part of this or any other report that the Company files with or furnishes to the SEC. The SEC maintains an internet site that contains reports, proxy statements and other information that the Company files with or furnishes to the SEC and these reports may be accessed at https://www.sec.gov.
Additionally, our corporate governance policies, including the charters of the Audit, Compensation and Corporate Governance and Nominating Committees, and our Code of Business Conduct and Ethics, Whistleblower Policy and Corporate Governance Guidelines may also be found under the “Investors” tab of our website. A written copy of each of the foregoing corporate governance documents is available upon request. Except as explicitly provided, information furnished by the Company and information on, or accessible through, the SEC’s or the Company’s website is not incorporated into this Annual Report on Form 10-K or our other securities filings and is not part of them.
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Item 1A. Risk Factors.
Our business and results of operations are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond our control. The material risks and uncertainties that management believes affect the Company are described below. Additional risks and uncertainties that management is not aware of, or that management currently deems immaterial, may also impair the Company’s business operations. This report is qualified in its entirety by these risk factors. If any of the following risks actually occur, our business, financial condition and results of operations could be materially and adversely affected. If this were to happen, the value of our securities could decline significantly, and you could lose all or part of your investment. Some statements in the following risk factors constitute forward-looking statements. Please refer to "Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements" elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K.
Summary of Risk Factors
The following is a summary of the principal risks that we believe could adversely affect our business, financial condition or results of operations:
Risks Related to our Business and Operations
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We are subject to interest rate risk and fluctuations in interest rates may adversely affect our earnings.
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The withdrawal of deposits by our largest depositors could force us to fund our business through more expensive and less stable sources.
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We may not be able to grow or maintain our deposit base, which could adversely impact our funding costs.
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We may not be able to implement our expansion strategy, which may adversely affect our ability to maintain our historical earnings trends.
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We may not be able to manage the risks associated with our anticipated growth through de novo branching.
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The unexpected loss of our executive management team and other key employees could adversely affect us.
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We may not be able to adequately measure and limit our credit risk, which could lead to unexpected losses.
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Our allowance for credit losses may prove to be insufficient to absorb potential losses in our loan portfolio.
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The amount of nonperforming and classified assets may increase significantly, resulting in losses, costs and expenses.
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Our largest loan relationships currently make up a material percentage of our total loan portfolio.
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New lines of business or new products and services may subject us to additional risks.
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Without effective internal control over financial reporting, we may not be able to report our financial results accurately and timely.
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Faulty data or modeling approaches on which our management’s decision-making relies could negatively impact our decision-making ability or possibly subject us to regulatory scrutiny in the future.
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We have pledged all of the stock of the Bank as collateral for a loan and if the lender forecloses, you could lose your investment.
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A lack of liquidity could impair our ability to fund operations and could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
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We may need to raise additional capital in the future, and such capital may not be available when needed or at all.
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The borrowing needs of our clients may increase, especially in a challenging economic environment, which could result in increased borrowing against our contractual obligations to extend credit.
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We face strong competition from financial services companies and other companies that offer banking services.
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Negative public opinion regarding our company or failure to maintain our reputation in the communities we serve could adversely affect our business and prevent us from growing our business.
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We may not be able to overcome the integration and other risks associated with acquisitions, which could have a material adverse effect on our ability to implement our business strategy.
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If the judgments, assumptions or estimates used in our critical accounting policies are inaccurate our financial statements and related disclosures could be affected.
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Recent negative developments affecting the banking industry, and resulting media coverage, have eroded customer confidence in the banking system.
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Any regulatory examination scrutiny or new regulatory requirements arising from the recent events in the banking industry could increase the Company’s expenses and affect the Company’s operations.
Risks Related to the Economy and our Industry
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Inflationary pressures and rising prices may affect our results of operations and financial condition.
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Changes in U.S. trade policies, including the imposition of tariffs and retaliatory tariffs, may adversely impact our business, financial condition, and results of operations.
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Adverse economic conditions in our primary geographic markets could negatively impact our operations and customers.
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Our primary markets are susceptible to natural disasters and other catastrophes that could negatively impact the economies of our markets, our operations or our customers.
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Climate change, and related legislative and regulatory initiatives, have the potential to disrupt our business and adversely impact the operations and creditworthiness of our customers.
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Increasing scrutiny and evolving expectations from customers, regulators, investors, and other stakeholders with respect to our environmental, social and governance practices may impose additional costs on us or expose us to new or additional risks.
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We could recognize losses on investment securities held in our securities portfolio, particularly if interest rates increase or economic and market conditions deteriorate.
Risks Related to Cybersecurity, Third-Parties and Technology
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System failures, interruptions or data breaches involving third party information technology and telecommunication systems we rely on could adversely affect our operations and financial condition.
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The occurrence of fraudulent activity, breaches of our information security, and cybersecurity attacks could adversely affect our business and operations, as well as cause legal or reputational harm.
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We may face difficulties with respect to the effective availability and implementation of continually necessary technological changes.
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The development and use of artificial intelligence presents risks and challenges that may adversely impact the Company’s business.
Risks Related to the Regulation of Our Industry
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We operate in a highly regulated environment and the laws and regulations that govern us, or changes in them, or our failure to comply with them, could adversely affect us.
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Our failure to comply with any supervisory actions to which we are or become subject as a result of any federal banking agency examination could adversely affect us.
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Conversion to a Texas banking association subjects the Bank to new and potentially heightened examination and reporting requirements that may increase our costs of operations and compliance.
Risks Related to an Investment in Our Common Stock
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The market price of our common stock may be subject to substantial fluctuations.
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The market price of our common stock could decline significantly due to actual or anticipated issuances or sales of our common stock.
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We may incur additional debt or issue new debt securities, which would be senior to our common stock.
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We may issue shares of preferred stock in the future, which could make it difficult for another company to acquire us or could otherwise adversely affect holders of our common stock.
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We are dependent upon the Bank for cash flow, and the Bank’s ability to make cash distributions is restricted.
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Our corporate organizational documents contain certain provisions that could have an anti-takeover effect.
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Our bylaws could limit a shareholder’s ability to obtain a favorable judicial forum for disputes with us.
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An investment in our common stock is not an insured deposit and is subject to risk of loss.
Risks Related to Our Business and Operations
We are subject to interest rate risk and fluctuations in interest rates may adversely affect our earnings.
Changes in interest rates could have an adverse effect on our net interest income and could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. Many factors outside our control impact interest rates, including governmental monetary policies, inflation, recession, changes in unemployment, the money supply and international economic conditions and volatility and instability in domestic and foreign financial markets.
The majority of our banking assets and liabilities are monetary in nature and subject to risk from changes in interest rates. Like most financial institutions, our earnings are significantly dependent on our net interest income. Different types of assets and liabilities may react differently and at different times to market rate changes. We may periodically experience “gaps” in the interest rate sensitivities of our assets and liabilities, meaning that either our interest-bearing liabilities will be more sensitive to changes in market interest rates than our interest-earning assets, or vice versa. In either event, if market interest rates should move contrary to our position, this “gap” will negatively impact our earnings. The impact on earnings is more adverse when short-term interest rates increase more than long-term interest rates or when long-term interest rates decrease more than short-term interest rates.
Interest rate increases often result in larger payment requirements for our borrowers, which increase the potential for default. At the same time, the marketability of the property securing a loan may be adversely affected by any reduced demand resulting from
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higher interest rates. An increase in interest rates can adversely impact the ability of borrowers to pay the principal or interest on loans and may lead to an increase in loans on nonaccrual status and a reduction of interest income recognized. Further, when we place a loan on nonaccrual status, we reverse any accrued but unpaid interest receivable, which decreases interest income. At the same time, we continue to have a cost to fund the loan, which is reflected as interest expense, without any interest income to offset the associated funding expense.
In a low interest rate environment, loan customers often pursue long-term fixed rate credits, which could adversely affect our earnings and net interest margin if rates increase. If short-term interest rates remain at low levels for a prolonged period and longer-term interest rates fall, we could experience net interest margin compression as our interest-earning assets would continue to reprice downward while our interest-bearing liability rates could fail to decline in tandem.
Interest rate increases may also reduce the demand for loans and increase competition for deposits. Changes in interest rates also can affect the value of loans, securities and other assets.
Our largest deposit relationships currently make up a material percentage of our deposits and the withdrawal of deposits by our largest depositors could force us to fund our business through more expensive and less stable sources.
As of December 31, 2024, our fifteen largest depositors (including related entities, but excluding brokered deposits) accounted for $1.61 billion in deposits, or approximately 37.3% of our total deposits. Further, our brokered deposit account balance was $607.1 million, or approximately 14.1% of our total deposits, as of December 31, 2024, and $264.1 million, or 6.1% of our total deposits, was through one brokered deposit relationship as of December 31, 2024.
Withdrawals of deposits by any one of our largest depositors or by one of our related customer groups could force us to rely more heavily on borrowings and other sources of funding for our business and withdrawal demands, adversely affecting our net interest margin and results of operations. We may also be forced, as a result of any withdrawal of deposits, to rely more heavily on other, potentially more expensive and less stable funding sources. Consequently, the occurrence of any of these events could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
We may not be able to grow or maintain our deposit base, which could adversely impact our funding costs.
Our principal sources of liquidity include earnings, deposits, repayment by clients of loans we have made to them, and the proceeds from sales by us of our equity and debt securities or from borrowings that we may obtain. In addition, from time to time, we borrow from the FHLB of Dallas. Our future growth will largely depend on our ability to grow and maintain our deposit base, which we may not be able to achieve. As of December 31, 2024, we had a loan to deposit ratio of 92.0%. The account and deposit balances can decrease when clients perceive alternative investments, such as the stock market or real estate, as providing a better risk/return tradeoff. If clients move money out of bank deposits and into investments (or similar deposit products at other institutions that may provide a higher rate of return), we could lose a relatively low cost source of funds, increasing our funding costs and reducing our net interest income and net income. Additionally, any loss of funds could result in lower loan originations, which could materially negatively impact our growth strategy and results of operations.
We may not be able to implement our expansion strategy, which may adversely affect our ability to maintain our historical earnings trends.
Our expansion strategy focuses on organic growth, supplemented by strategic acquisitions and expansion of the Bank’s banking location network, or de novo branching. We may not be able to execute on aspects of our expansion strategy, which may impair our ability to sustain our historical rate of growth or prevent us from growing at all. More specifically, we may not be able to generate sufficient new loans and deposits within acceptable risk and expense tolerances, obtain the personnel or funding necessary for additional growth or find suitable acquisition candidates. Various factors, such as economic conditions and competition with other financial institutions, may impede or prohibit the growth of our operations, the opening of new banking locations and the consummation of acquisitions. Further, we may be unable to attract and retain experienced bankers, which could adversely affect our growth. The success of our strategy also depends on our ability to effectively manage growth, which is dependent upon a number of factors, including our ability to adapt our credit, operational, technology and governance infrastructure to accommodate expanded operations. If we fail to implement one or more aspects of our strategy, we may be unable to maintain our historical earnings trends, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
We may not be able to manage the risks associated with our anticipated growth and expansion through de novo branching, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Our business strategy includes evaluating strategic opportunities to grow through de novo branching, and we believe that banking location expansion has been meaningful to our growth since inception. De novo branching carries with it certain potential risks, including significant startup costs and anticipated initial operating losses; an inability to gain regulatory approval; an inability to secure the services of qualified senior management to operate the de novo banking locations and successfully integrate and promote our corporate culture; poor market reception for de novo banking locations established in markets where we do not have a preexisting reputation; challenges posed by local economic conditions; challenges associated with securing attractive locations at a reasonable cost; and the additional strain on management resources and internal systems and controls. Failure to adequately manage the risks
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associated with our anticipated growth through de novo branching could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
We rely heavily on our executive management team and other key employees, and we could be adversely affected by the unexpected loss of their services.
Our success depends in large part on the performance of our executive management team and other key personnel, as well as on our ability to attract, motivate and retain highly qualified senior and middle management and other skilled employees. Competition for qualified employees is intense, and the process of locating key personnel with the combination of skills, attributes and business relationships required to execute our business plan may be lengthy. We may not be successful in retaining our key employees, and the unexpected loss of services of one or more of our key personnel could have an adverse effect on our business because of their skills, knowledge of and business relationships within our primary markets, years of industry experience and the difficulty of promptly finding qualified replacement personnel. If the services of any of our key personnel should become unavailable for any reason, we may not be able to identify and hire qualified persons on terms acceptable to us, or at all, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and future prospects.
We may not be able to adequately measure and limit our credit risk, which could lead to unexpected losses.
The business of lending is inherently risky, including risks that the principal of or interest on any loan will not be repaid timely or at all or that the value of any collateral supporting the loan will be insufficient to cover our outstanding exposure. These risks may be affected by the strength of the borrower’s business sector and local, regional and national market and economic conditions. Many of our loans are made to small- to medium-sized businesses that may be less able to withstand competitive, economic and financial pressures than larger borrowers. Our risk management practices, such as monitoring the concentration of our loans within specific industries and our credit approval practices, may not adequately reduce credit risk, and our credit administration personnel, policies and procedures may not adequately adapt to changes in economic or any other conditions affecting customers and the quality of our loan portfolio. A failure to effectively measure and limit the credit risk associated with our loan portfolio could lead to unexpected losses and have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Our allowance for credit losses may prove to be insufficient to absorb potential losses in our loan portfolio, which may adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
We maintain an allowance for credit losses that represents management’s judgment of probable losses and risks inherent in our loan portfolio. As of December 31, 2024, our allowance for credit losses related to our loan portfolio totaled $40.3 million, which represents approximately 1.02% of our total loans. The allowance for credit losses on loans is calculated in accordance with ASC 326, and represents management's best estimate of current expected credit losses on loans considering available information, from internal and external sources, relevant to assessing collectability over the loans' contractual terms, adjusted for expected prepayments when appropriate. Relevant available information includes historical credit loss experience, current conditions and reasonable and supportable forecasts. While historical credit loss experience provides the basis for the estimation of expected credit losses, adjustments to historical loss information may be made for differences in current portfolio-specific risk characteristics, environmental conditions or other relevant factors. The allowance for credit losses is measured on a collective basis for portfolios of loans when similar risk characteristics exist. Expected credit losses for collateral dependent loans, including loans where the borrower is experiencing financial difficulty but foreclosure is not probable, are based on the fair value of the collateral at the reporting date, adjusted for selling costs as appropriate.
The provision for credit losses related to loans reflects the totality of actions taken on all loans for a particular period including any necessary increases or decreases in the allowance related to changes in credit loss expectations associated with specific loans or pools of loans. Portions of the allowance may be allocated for specific credits; however, the entire allowance is available for any credit that, in management’s judgment, should be charged off. While management utilizes its best judgment and information available, the ultimate appropriateness of the allowance is dependent upon a variety of factors beyond our control, including the performance of our loan portfolio, the economy, changes in interest rates and the view of the regulatory authorities toward loan classifications.
Determining the amount of the allowance requires significant judgment and the use of subjective measurements, including management’s assessment of overall portfolio quality. The Company maintains the allowance at an amount the Company believes is sufficient to provide for estimated current expected credit losses in the Company’s loan portfolio, and fluctuations in the provision for credit losses may result from management’s assessment of the adequacy of the allowance. Changes in these estimates and assumptions are possible and may have a material impact on the Company’s allowance, and therefore the Company’s financial position, liquidity or results of operations.
Additional loan losses will likely occur in the future and may occur at a rate greater than we have previously experienced or than we anticipate. We may be required to make additional provisions for credit losses to further supplement our allowance for credit losses, due either to our management’s decision or as a regulatory requirement. In addition, bank regulatory agencies will periodically review our allowance for credit losses and the value attributed to nonaccrual loans or to real estate acquired through foreclosure. Such regulatory agencies may require us to recognize future charge-offs, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, and results of operations.
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The amount of nonperforming and classified assets may increase significantly, resulting in additional losses and costs and expenses that will negatively affect our operations and financial condition.
Our nonperforming assets include nonperforming loans and assets acquired through foreclosure. Nonperforming loans include nonaccrual loans, loans past due 90 days or more, and loans renegotiated or restructured because of a debtor’s financial difficulties and performing under the new terms. Loans are generally placed on nonaccrual status if any of the following events occur: (a) the classification of a loan as nonaccrual internally or by regulatory examiners; (b) delinquency on principal for 90 days or more unless we are in the process of collection; (c) a balance remains after repossession of collateral; (d) notification of bankruptcy; or (e) we determine that nonaccrual status is appropriate. At December 31, 2024, we had $28.8 million of nonperforming assets, or 0.58% of total assets.
Should the amount of nonperforming assets or classified assets increase in the future, we may incur losses and the costs and expenses to maintain such assets can be expected to increase and potentially negatively affect earnings. An increase in the level of nonperforming assets increases our risk profile and may impact the capital levels regulators believe are appropriate considering the ensuing risk profile. An additional increase in losses due to such assets could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Nonperforming assets take significant time and resources to resolve and adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition.
Nonperforming assets adversely affect our net income in various ways. We generally do not record interest income on other real estate owned (“OREO”) or on nonperforming loans, thereby adversely affecting our income and increasing loan administration costs. When we take collateral in foreclosures and similar proceedings, we are required to mark the related asset to the then fair value of the collateral, which may ultimately result in a loss. An increase in the level of nonperforming assets increases our risk profile and may impact the capital levels regulators believe are appropriate in light of the ensuing risk profile. While we seek to reduce problem assets through loan workouts, restructurings, and otherwise, decreases in the value of the underlying collateral, or in these borrowers’ performance or financial condition, whether or not due to economic and market conditions beyond our control, could have a material effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. In addition, the resolution of nonperforming assets requires significant commitments of time from management, which may materially and adversely impact their ability to perform their other responsibilities. We may not experience future increases in the value of nonperforming assets.
The small- to medium-sized businesses that we lend to may have fewer resources to endure adverse business developments, which may impair our borrowers’ ability to repay loans.
We focus some of our business development and marketing strategy on small- to medium-sized businesses. Small- to medium-sized businesses frequently have smaller market shares than their competition, may be more vulnerable to economic downturns, often need substantial additional capital to expand or compete and may experience substantial volatility in operating results, any of which may impair a borrower’s ability to repay a loan. In addition, the success of a small- and medium-sized business often depends on the management skills, talents and efforts of a small group of people, and the death, disability or resignation of one or more of these people could have an adverse effect on the business and its ability to repay its loan. If our borrowers are unable to repay their loans, our business, financial condition and results of operations could be adversely affected.
A portion of our loan portfolio is comprised of commercial loans secured by receivables, inventory, equipment or other commercial collateral, which we refer to generally as commercial and industrial loans, and the deterioration in value of which could expose us to credit losses.
As of December 31, 2024, commercial and industrial loans represented approximately $1.50 billion, or 37.8%, of our gross loans. In general, these loans are collateralized by general business assets, including, among other things, accounts receivable, inventory and equipment, and most are backed by a personal guaranty of the borrower or principal. These commercial and industrial loans are typically larger in amount than loans to individuals and, therefore, have the potential for larger losses on a single loan basis. Additionally, the repayment of commercial and industrial loans is subject to the ongoing business operations of the borrower. The collateral securing such loans generally includes movable property such as equipment and inventory, which may decline in value more rapidly than we anticipate; thus exposing us to increased credit risk. In addition, a portion of our customer base, including customers in the energy and real estate business, may be in industries which are particularly sensitive to commodity prices or market fluctuations, such as energy and real estate prices. Accordingly, negative changes in commodity prices and real estate values and liquidity could impair the value of the collateral securing these loans. Significant adverse changes in the economy or local market conditions or adverse weather events in the markets in which our commercial and industrial lending customers operate could cause rapid declines in loan collectability and the values associated with general business assets resulting in inadequate collateral coverage that may expose us to credit losses and could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Our commercial real estate and real estate construction and development loan portfolio exposes us to credit risks that may be greater than the risks related to other types of loans.
As of December 31, 2024, approximately $1.10 billion, or 27.7%, of our gross loans were nonresidential real estate loans (including owner-occupied commercial real estate loans) and approximately $871.4 million, or 22.0%, of our total loans were
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construction and development loans. These loans typically involve repayment dependent upon income generated, or expected to be generated, by the property securing the loan in amounts sufficient to cover operating expenses and debt service. The availability of such income for repayment may be adversely affected by changes in the economy or local market conditions. Owner-occupied commercial real estate is generally less dependent upon income generated directly from the property but still carries risks from the successful operation of the underlying business or adverse economic conditions. These loans expose a lender to greater credit risk than loans secured by other types of collateral because the collateral securing these loans is typically more difficult to liquidate due to the fluctuation of real estate values. Additionally, non-owner occupied commercial real estate loans generally involve relatively large balances to single borrowers or related groups of borrowers. Unexpected deterioration in the credit quality of our non-owner occupied commercial real estate loan portfolio could require us to increase our allowance for loan losses, which would reduce our profitability and could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Construction and development loans also involve risks because loan funds are secured by a project under construction and the project is of uncertain value prior to its completion. It can be difficult to accurately evaluate the total funds required to complete a project, and construction and development lending often involves the disbursement of substantial funds with repayment dependent, in part, on the success of the ultimate project rather than the ability of a borrower or guarantor, if any, to repay the loan. If we are forced to foreclose on a project prior to completion, we may be unable to recover the entire unpaid portion of the loan. In addition, we may be required to fund additional amounts to complete a project, incur taxes, maintenance and compliance costs for a foreclosed property and may have to hold the property for an indeterminate period of time, any of which could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Because a significant portion of our loan portfolio is comprised of real estate loans, negative changes in the economy affecting real estate values and liquidity could impair the value of collateral securing our real estate loans and result in loan and other losses.
As of December 31, 2024, approximately $2.34 billion, or 59.1%, of our gross loans were loans with real estate as a primary component of collateral. The market value of real estate can fluctuate significantly in a short period of time. As a result, adverse developments affecting real estate values and the liquidity of real estate in our primary markets or in Texas generally could increase the credit risk associated with our loan portfolio, and could result in losses that adversely affect credit quality, financial condition and results of operations. Negative changes in the economy affecting real estate values and liquidity in our market areas could significantly impair the value of property pledged as collateral on loans and affect our ability to sell the collateral upon foreclosure without a loss or additional losses. Collateral may have to be sold for less than the outstanding balance of the loan, which could result in losses on such loans. Such declines and losses could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. If real estate values decline, it is also more likely that we would be required to increase our allowance for loan losses, which could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. In addition, adverse weather events, including hurricanes and flooding, can cause damages to the property pledged as collateral on loans, which could result in additional losses upon a foreclosure.
Our largest loan relationships currently make up a material percentage of our total loan portfolio.
As of December 31, 2024, our ten largest loan relationships (including related entities) totaled approximately $371.1 million in loans, or 9.4% of the total loan portfolio. The concentration risk associated with having a small number of large loan relationships is that, if one or more of these relationships were to become delinquent or suffer default, we could be at serious risk of material losses. The allowance for loan losses may not be adequate to cover losses associated with any of these relationships, and any loss or increase in the allowance would negatively affect our earnings and capital. Even if the loans are collateralized, the large increase in classified assets could harm our reputation with our regulators and inhibit our ability to execute our business plan.
Appraisals and other valuation techniques we use in evaluating and monitoring loans secured by real property, other real estate owned and repossessed personal property may not accurately describe the net value of the asset.
In considering whether to make a loan secured by real property, we generally require an appraisal of the property. However, an appraisal is only an estimate of the value of the property at the time the appraisal is made, and, as real estate values may change significantly in relatively short periods of time (especially in periods of heightened economic uncertainty), this estimate may not accurately describe the net value of the real property collateral after the loan is made. As a result, we may not be able to realize the full amount of any remaining indebtedness when we foreclose on and sell the relevant property. In addition, we rely on appraisals and other valuation techniques to establish the value of our OREO, and personal property that we acquire through foreclosure proceedings and to determine certain loan impairments. If any of these valuations are inaccurate, our combined and consolidated financial statements may not reflect the correct value of our OREO, and our allowance for loan losses may not reflect accurate loan impairments. This could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition or results of operations. As of December 31, 2024, we held $862,000 of OREO or repossessed property and equipment.
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We engage in lending secured by real estate and may be forced to foreclose on the collateral and own the underlying real estate, subjecting us to the costs and potential risks associated with the ownership of the real property, and consumer protection initiatives or changes in state or federal law may substantially raise the cost of foreclosure or prevent us from foreclosing at all.
Since we originate loans secured by real estate, we may have to foreclose on the collateral property to protect our investment and may thereafter own and operate such property, in which case we would be exposed to the risks inherent in the ownership of real estate. As of December 31, 2024, we held $862,000 of OREO. The amount that we, as a mortgagee, may realize after a default is dependent upon factors outside of our control, including, but not limited to general or local economic condition, environmental cleanup liability, assessments, interest rates, real estate tax rates, operating expenses of the mortgaged properties, ability to obtain and maintain adequate occupancy of the properties, zoning laws, governmental and regulatory rules, and natural disasters. Our inability to manage the amount of costs or size of the risks associated with the ownership of real estate, or write-downs in the value of other real estate owned, could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Additionally, consumer protection initiatives or changes in state or federal law may substantially increase the time and expense associated with the foreclosure process or prevent us from foreclosing at all. While Texas foreclosure laws have historically been favorable to lenders, a number of states in recent years have either considered or adopted foreclosure reform laws that make it substantially more difficult and expensive for lenders to foreclose on properties in default, and we cannot be certain that Texas will not adopt similar legislation in the future. Additionally, federal regulators have prosecuted a number of mortgage servicing companies for alleged consumer law violations. If new state or federal laws or regulations are ultimately enacted that significantly raise the cost of foreclosure or raise outright barriers, such cost barriers could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operation.
SBA lending is an important part of our business. Our SBA lending program is dependent upon the federal government and our status as a participant in the SBA’s Preferred Lenders Program, and we face specific risks associated with SBA loans.
We participate in the SBA’s Preferred Lenders Program. As an SBA Preferred Lender, we are able to provide our clients with access to SBA loans without being subject to the potentially lengthy SBA approval process necessary for lenders that are not SBA Preferred Lenders. The SBA periodically reviews the lending operations of participating management. When weaknesses are identified, the SBA may request corrective actions or impose enforcement actions, including revocation of our Preferred Lender status. If we lose our status as a Preferred Lender, we may lose some or all of our customers to lenders who are SBA Preferred Lenders, which could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
On occasion, we may sell the guaranteed portion of our SBA 7(a) loans in the secondary market. If we sell the guaranteed portion of our SBA 7(a) loans, we will incur credit risk on the unguaranteed portion of the loans, and if a customer defaults on the unguaranteed portion of a loan, we would share any loss and recovery related to the loan pro-rata with the SBA.
The laws, regulations and standard operating procedures that are applicable to SBA loan products may change in the future. We cannot predict the effects of these changes on our business and profitability. Because government regulation greatly affects the business and financial results of all commercial banks and bank holding companies and especially our organization, changes in the laws, regulations and procedures applicable to SBA loans could adversely affect our ability to operate profitably. In addition, the aggregate amount of SBA 7(a) and 504 loan guarantees by the SBA must be approved each fiscal year by the federal government. We cannot predict the amount of SBA 7(a) loan guarantees in any given fiscal year. If the federal government were to reduce the amount of SBA loan guarantees, such reduction could adversely impact our SBA lending program.
The SBA may not honor its guarantees if we do not originate loans in compliance with SBA guidelines.
As of December 31, 2024, SBA 7(a) loans totaled $58.3 million and comprised 1.5% of our loan portfolio. SBA lending programs typically guarantee 75% of the principal on an underlying loan. If the SBA establishes that a loss on an SBA guaranteed loan is attributable to significant technical deficiencies in the manner in which the loan was originated, funded or serviced by us, the SBA may seek recovery of the principal loss related to the deficiency from us notwithstanding that a portion of the loan was guaranteed by the SBA, which could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. While we follow the SBA’s underwriting guidelines, our ability to do so depends on the knowledge and diligence of our employees and the effectiveness of controls we have established. If our employees do not follow the SBA guidelines in originating loans and if our loan review and audit programs fail to identify and rectify such failures, the SBA may reduce or, in some cases, refuse to honor its guarantee obligations and we may incur losses as a result.
Our commercial finance clients, particularly with respect to our commercial finance and asset-based lending product lines, may lack the operating history, cash flows or balance sheet necessary to support other financing options and may expose us to additional credit risk, especially if our additional controls for such products are ineffective in mitigating such additional risks.
A significant portion of our loan portfolio consists of commercial finance products. Some of these commercial finance products, particularly asset-based loans and our factored receivables (which totaled $36.8 million, or 1.0% of loans, as of December 31, 2024), arise out of relationships with clients who lack the operating history, cash flows or balance sheet necessary to qualify for more traditional bank financing options. We attempt to control for the additional credit risk in these relationships through credit management processes employed in connection with these transactions. However, if such controls are ineffective in controlling this
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additional risk or if we fail to follow the procedures we have established for managing this additional risk, we could be exposed to additional losses with respect to such product lines that could have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Our asset-based lending and commercial finance products may expose us to an increased risk of fraud.
We rely on the structural features embedded in our asset-based lending and commercial finance products to mitigate the credit risk associated with such products. With respect to our asset-based loans, we limit our lending to a percentage of the customer’s borrowing base assets that we believe can be readily liquidated in the event of financial distress of the borrower. With respect to our commercial finance products, we purchase the underlying invoices of our customers and become the direct payee under such invoices, thus transferring the credit risk in such transactions from our customers to the underlying account debtors on such invoices. In the event one or more of our customers fraudulently represents the existence or valuation of borrowing base assets in the case of an asset-based loan, or the existence or validity of an invoice we purchase in the case of a commercial finance transaction, we may advance more funds to such customer than we otherwise would and lose the benefit of the structural protections of our products with respect to such advances. In such event we could be exposed to material additional losses with respect to such loans or commercial finance products. Although we believe we have controls in place to monitor and detect fraud with respect to our asset-based lending and commercial finance products, there is no guarantee such controls will be effective. Losses from such fraudulent activity could have a material impact on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
New lines of business or new products and services may subject us to additional risks.
From time to time, we may implement or may acquire new lines of business or offer new products and services within existing lines of business. There are substantial risks and uncertainties associated with these efforts, particularly in instances where the markets are not fully developed. In developing and marketing new lines of business and new products and services, we may invest significant time and resources. We may not achieve target timetables for the introduction and development of new lines of business and new products or services and price and profitability targets may not prove feasible. External factors, such as regulatory compliance obligations, competitive alternatives and shifting market preferences, may also impact the successful implementation of a new line of business or a new product or service. Furthermore, any new line of business or new product or service could have a significant impact on the effectiveness of our system of internal controls. Failure to successfully manage these risks in the development and implementation of new lines of business or new products or services could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.
If we fail to maintain effective internal control over financial reporting, we may not be able to report our financial results accurately and timely, in which case our business may be harmed, investors may lose confidence in the accuracy and completeness of our financial reports, we could be subject to regulatory penalties and the price of our common stock may decline.
Our management is responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting and for evaluating and reporting on that system of internal control. Our internal control over financial reporting is a process designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. As a public company, we are required to comply with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and other rules that govern public companies. In particular, we are required to certify our compliance with Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, which requires us to furnish annually a report by management on the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting. In addition, unless we remain an emerging growth company and elect additional transitional relief available to emerging growth companies, our independent registered public accounting firm will be required to report on the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting.
We will continue to periodically test and update, as necessary, our internal control systems, including our financial reporting controls. Our actions, however, may not be sufficient to result in an effective internal control environment, and any future failure to maintain effective internal control over financial reporting could impair the reliability of our financial statements which in turn could harm our business, impair investor confidence in the accuracy and completeness of our financial reports, impair our access to the capital markets, and cause the price of our common stock to decline and subject us to regulatory penalties.
We are dependent on the use of data and modeling in our management’s decision-making, and faulty data or modeling approaches could negatively impact our decision-making ability or possibly subject us to regulatory scrutiny in the future.
The use of statistical and quantitative models and other quantitative analyses is endemic to bank decision-making, and the employment of such analyses is becoming increasingly widespread in our operations. Liquidity stress testing, interest rate sensitivity analysis, and the identification of possible violations of anti-money laundering regulations are all examples of areas in which we are dependent on models and the data that underlies them. The use of statistical and quantitative models is also becoming more prevalent in regulatory compliance. While we are not currently subject to annual Dodd-Frank Act stress testing and the Comprehensive Capital Analysis and Review submissions, we anticipate that model-derived testing may become more extensively implemented by regulators in the future.
We anticipate data-based modeling will penetrate further into bank decision-making, particularly risk management efforts, as the capacities developed to meet rigorous stress testing requirements can be employed more widely and in differing applications. While
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we believe these quantitative techniques and approaches improve our decision-making, they also create the possibility that faulty data or flawed quantitative approaches could negatively impact our decision-making ability or, if we become subject to regulatory stress testing in the future, adverse regulatory scrutiny. Further, because of the complexity inherent in these approaches, misunderstanding or misuse of their outputs could similarly result in suboptimal decision-making.
We have pledged all of the stock of the Bank as collateral for a loan and if the lender forecloses, you could lose your investment.
We have pledged all of the stock of the Bank as collateral for our senior debt - line of credit. As of December 31, 2024, the line of credit had an outstanding balance of approximately $30.9 million. If we were to default, the lender could foreclose on the Bank’s stock and we would lose our principal asset. In that event, if the value of the Bank’s stock is less than the amount of the indebtedness, you could lose the entire amount of your investment.
A lack of liquidity could impair our ability to fund operations and could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.