HAWTHORN BANCSHARES, INC. 10-Q

Item 3. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk Asset/Liability and Interest Rate Risk Management and the Board of Directors are responsible for managing interest rate risk and employing risk management policies that monitor and limit this exposure. Interest rate risk is measured using net interest income simulations and market value of portfolio equity analyses. These analyses use various assumptions, including the nature and timing of interest rate changes, yield curve shape, prepayments on loans and securities, deposit decay rates, pricing decisions on loans and deposits, and reinvestment/replacement of asset and liability cash flows. The principal objective of the Company’s asset and liability management function is to evaluate the interest rate risk within the balance sheet and pursue a controlled assumption of interest rate risk while maximizing earnings and preserving adequate levels of liquidity and capital. The asset and liability management function is under the guidance of the ALCO with direction from the Board of Directors. The ALCO meets quarterly to review the sensitivity of the Company’s assets and liabilities to interest rate changes and to discuss local and national market conditions. The ALCO also reviews the liquidity, capital, deposit mix, loan mix and investment positions of the Company. Instantaneous parallel rate shift scenarios are modeled and utilized to evaluate risk and establish exposure limits for acceptable changes in net interest margin. These scenarios, known as rate shocks, simulate an instantaneous change in interest rates and use various assumptions, including, but not limited to, prepayments on loans and securities, deposit decay rates, pricing decisions on loans and deposits, reinvestment and replacement of asset and liability cash flows. Management analyzes the economic value of equity as a secondary measure of interest rate risk. This is a complementary measure to net interest income where the calculated value is the result of the market value of assets less the market value of liabilities. The economic value of equity is a longer term view of interest rate risk because it measures the present value of the future cash flows. The impact of changes in interest rates on this calculation is analyzed for the risk to our future earnings and is used in conjunction with the analyses on net interest income. The table below illustrates the impact of an immediate and sustained 200 and 100 basis point increase and a 200 and 100 basis point decrease in interest rates on net interest income based on the interest rate risk model at March 31, 2025 and December 31, 2024. % Change in projected net interest income Hypothetical shift in interest rates March 31, December 31, (bps) 2025 2024 200 12.00% (2.75)% 100 24.00% (1.27)% (100) (1.38) % 0.30 % (200) (3.43) % (0.38) % The change in the Company’s interest rate risk exposure from December 31, 2024 to March 31, 2025 was due to moderately higher rates on interest bearing assets projected to reprice in the next 12 months and projected repricing speeds on interest bearing assets and liabilities. In an immediate and sustained shock, interest bearing assets and liabilities are projected to reprice at relatively the same pace. Management believes the change in projected net interest income from interest rate shifts of up 200 bps and down 200 bps is an acceptable level of interest rate risk. Many assumptions are used to calculate the impact of interest rate fluctuations. Actual results may be significantly different than our projections due to several factors, including the timing and frequency of rate changes, market conditions and the shape of the yield curve. The computations of interest rate risk shown above do not include actions that management may undertake to manage the risks in response to anticipated changes in interest rates and actual results may also differ due to any actions taken in response to the changing rates. 53 Effects of Inflation The effects of inflation on financial institutions are different from the effects on other commercial enterprises since financial institutions make few significant capital or inventory expenditures, which are directly affected by changing prices. Because bank assets and liabilities are virtually all monetary in nature, inflation does not affect a financial institution as much as do changes in interest rates. The general level of inflation does underlie the general level of most interest rates, but interest rates do not increase at the rate of inflation as do prices of goods and services. Rather, interest rates react more to changes in the expected rate of inflation and to changes in monetary and fiscal policy. Inflation does have an impact on the growth of total assets in the banking industry, often resulting in a need to increase capital at higher than normal rates to maintain an appropriate capital to asset ratio. In the opinion of management, inflation did not have a significant effect on the Company’s operations for the three months ended March 31, 2025.