Over the past two years, a critical trend has emerged in the banking industry: regulators are no longer tolerating lax loan review practices, regardless of a bank’s size or stature. This isn’t just a recommendation; it’s a mandate. Even small banks with seemingly modest loan portfolios are now facing action requirements – whether a Memorandum […]

Good news first: 2024 appears to have been a good year for the community banking sector, but it depends on how it was benchmarked. As usual, banks had different results depending on their priorities. Many insights, emotions, and experiences were learned in 2024. Here are five common threads learned from my clients’ bank examinations. In

Congratulations! You made it to the year end. But before we go headfirst into 2025, let’stake a pause and evaluate where we’ve been so we can plan for where we’re going.Grab a journal and let’s get started. Compare the 2024 Budget versus the Actual through November 30 ☐What worked and what didn’t? On what didn’t work, why

It’s for our own good, so listen up now or pay up later. The Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) is now in full effect, and it’s crucial for businessowners and financial institutions to understand the upcoming deadline to avoid big finesand even jail time. By the end of 2024, all businesses—LLCs, corporations, and other entities—must file

Over the past four years, we have lived in a time not seen in quite some time. We all had ourown experiences with the COVID-19 shutdown and reopening. We experienced massive fear and then funding through the P.P.P., EIDL, and Main StreetProgram funding and pure exhaustion. At the forefront of this scenario, we had historically

No doubt, owning a small business is part of the “American Dream.” But why do so many fail,and what responsibility do banks have to make the odds of success better? Small Businesses comprise approximately 99% of all companies in the United States and havebeen responsible for approximately 63% of new job creation since 1995 (advocacy.sba.gov).

Have you ever wondered how lenders decipher a business’s financial health? Just as a doctoruses vital signs to gauge a patient’s well-being, financial analysts use key ratios to understand acompany’s economic condition. These ratios are numbers and the narrative of a borrower’s pastdecisions and future potential. Let’s dive into the top four ratios that can

In the realm of community banking, credit underwriting is not just a process—it’s an art. It’s atestament to your expertise, requiring a keen eye for detail and a deep understanding of financialmetrics to paint a true picture of a borrower’s fiscal health. Today, we spotlight six key incomestatement ratios that serve as the linchpins of