Item 1A. Risk Factors
ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS
The material risks and uncertainties that management believes affect the Company are described below. Before making an investment decision, you should carefully consider the risks and uncertainties described below together with all of the other information included or incorporated by reference in this report. The risks and uncertainties described below are not the only ones facing the Company. Additional risks and uncertainties that management is not aware of or focused on 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, the Company’s financial condition and results of operations could be materially and adversely affected. If this were to happen, the value of the Company’s common stock could decline significantly, and you could lose all or part of your investment.
Risk Factors Summary
An investment in the Company's common stock is subject to risks inherent to the Company's business. Such risks, including those set forth in the summary of material risks in this Part I. Item 1A. should be carefully considered before purchasing our securities.
COVID-19 Pandemic Risk Factors
• The COVID-19 pandemic has materially impacted our business and financial results, and our business and financial results will likely continue to be adversely affected by the pandemic.
Interest Rate Risk Factor
• Changes in market interest rates could adversely impact the Company.
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Operational, Strategic and Business Risk Factors
• Current economic conditions in the State of Alaska pose challenges for us and could adversely affect our financial condition and results of operations.
• Our concentration of operations in the Anchorage, Matanuska-Susitna Valley, Fairbanks and Southeast areas of Alaska makes us more sensitive to downturns in those areas.
• Residential mortgage lending is a market sector that experiences significant volatility and is influenced by many factors beyond our control.
• Our information systems or those of our third-party vendors may be subject to an interruption or breach in security, including as a result of cyber-attacks.
• A failure in or breach of the Company's operational systems, information systems, or infrastructure, or those of the Company's third-party vendors and other service providers, may result in financial losses, or loss of customers.
• Our business is highly reliant on third party vendors.
• We continually encounter technological change, and we may have fewer resources than many of our competitors to continue to invest in technological improvements.
• Our business, financial condition and results of operations are subject to risk from changes in customer behavior.
• If we do not comply with the agreements governing servicing of loans, if these agreements change materially, or if others allege non-compliance, our business and results of operations may be harmed.
• Certain hedging strategies that we use to manage interest rate risk may be ineffective to offset any adverse changes in the fair value of these assets due to changes in interest rates and market liquidity.
• Our allowance for credit losses may be insufficient.
• We have a significant concentration in real estate lending. A downturn in real estate within our markets would have a negative impact on our results of operations.
• Real estate values may decrease leading to additional and greater than anticipated loan charge-offs and valuation writedowns on our other real estate owned (“OREO”) properties.
• We conduct substantially all of our operations through Northrim Bank, our banking subsidiary; our ability to pay dividends, repurchase our shares, or to repay our indebtedness depends upon liquid assets held by the holding company and the results of operations of our subsidiaries and their ability to pay dividends.
• There can be no assurance that the Company will continue to declare cash dividends or repurchase stock.
• We may be unable to attract and retain key employees and personnel.
• Liquidity risk could impair our ability to fund operations and jeopardize our financial conditions.
• A failure of a significant number of our borrowers, guarantors and related parties to perform in accordance with the terms of their loans would have an adverse impact on our results of operations.
Regulatory, Legislative and Legal Risk Factors
• We operate in a highly regulated environment and changes of or increases in banking or other laws and regulations or governmental fiscal or monetary policies could adversely affect us.
• Changes in the FRB’s monetary or fiscal policies could adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition.
• Non-compliance with the USA PATRIOT Act, Bank Secrecy Act, Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2020, Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act, Truth-in-Lending Act or other laws and regulations could result in fines, sanctions or other adverse consequences.
Accounting, Tax and Financial Risk Factors
• Changes in income tax laws and interpretations, or in accounting standards, could materially affect our financial condition or results of operations.
• Uncertainty about the continuing availability of the London Inter-Bank Offered Rate ("LIBOR") may adversely affect our business.
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General Economic and Market Risk Factors
• Natural disasters and adverse weather could negatively affect real estate property values and Bank operations.
• The soundness of other financial institutions could adversely affect us.
• The financial services business is intensely competitive and our success will depend on our ability to compete effectively.
• We are a community bank and our ability to maintain our reputation is critical to the success of our business and the failure to do so could materially adversely affect our performance.
• Social, political, and economic instability, unrest, and other circumstances beyond our control could adversely affect our business operations.
• Climate change, severe weather, natural disasters, and other external events could significantly impact our business.
We attempt to mitigate the foregoing risks. However, if we are unable to effectively manage the impact of these and other risks, our financial condition, results of operations, our ability to make distributions to our shareholders, or the market price of our common stock could be materially impacted.
COVID-19 Pandemic Risks
The COVID-19 pandemic has materially impacted our business and financial results, and our business and financial results will likely continue to be adversely affected by the pandemic.
The COVID-19 pandemic has created economic and financial disruptions that have adversely affected, and are likely to continue to adversely affect, our business, financial condition, liquidity and results of operations. The extent to which the COVID-19 pandemic will continue to negatively affect our business, financial condition, liquidity and results of operations will depend on future developments, which are highly uncertain and cannot be predicted and many of which are outside of our control, including the scope and duration of the pandemic, the emergence of new variants, the effectiveness of our pandemic response plans, the direct and indirect impact of the pandemic on our employees, customers, clients, counterparties and service providers, as well as other market participants, and actions taken, or that may yet be taken, or inaction, by governmental authorities and other third parties in response to the pandemic. Should the pandemic continue for a more extended period or worsen, we may face additional circumstances such as significant draws on credit lines should customers seek to increase liquidity. Furthermore, should the pandemic continue, we may experience increased rates of employee illness or unavailability, and may experience challenges recruiting new employees.
Any disruption to our ability to deliver financial products or services to, or interact with, our clients and customers could result in losses or increased operational costs, regulatory fines, penalties and other sanctions, or harm our reputation. We are also subject to litigation and reputational risk arising from our response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The length of the pandemic and the efficacy of the measures being put in place to address it are unknown as efforts to combat the virus have been complicated by viral variants and uneven access to, and acceptance and effectiveness of, vaccines globally. To the extent the pandemic adversely affects our business, financial condition, liquidity or results of operations, it may also have the effect of heightening many of the other risks described in this report. See the section captioned “COVID-19 Issues” in Part II. Item 7 of this report for further discussion. In addition, the effects could have a material impact on our results of operations and heighten many of our known risks described in this Part I, Section 1A “Risk Factors”.
Interest Rate Risk
Changes in market interest rates could adversely impact the Company.
Our earnings and cash flows are largely dependent upon our net interest income. Net interest income is the difference between interest income earned on interest-earning assets such as loans and securities and interest expense paid on interest-bearing liabilities such as deposits and borrowed funds. Interest rates are highly sensitive to many factors that are beyond our control, including general economic conditions, inflationary trends, changes in government spending and debt issuances and policies of various governmental and regulatory agencies and, in particular, the Federal Open Market Committee (“FOMC”) . Changes in interest rates affect the demand for new loans, the credit profile of existing loans, the rates received on loans and securities, and rates paid on deposits and borrowings. If the interest rates paid on deposits and other borrowings increase at a faster rate than the interest rates received on loans and other investments, our net interest income, and therefore earnings, could be adversely affected. Earnings could also be adversely affected if the interest rates received on loans and other investments fall more quickly than the interest rates paid on deposits and other borrowings. These impacts may negatively impact our ability to
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attract deposits, make loans, and achieve satisfactory interest rate spreads, which could adversely affect our financial condition or results of operations. In particular, increases in interest rates will likely reduce RML’s revenues by reducing the market for refinancings, as well as the demand for RML’s other residential loan products. Additionally, increases in interest rates may impact our borrowers' ability to make loan payments, particularly in our commercial loan portfolio.
Interest rates may be affected by many factors beyond our control, including general and economic conditions and the monetary and fiscal policies of various governmental and regulatory authorities. The FOMC announced its target to keep the federal funds rate near zero percent in January 2022. However, the FOMC also indicated that due to rising inflation it expects to raise interest rates in the near term. Market volatility in interest rates can be difficult to predict, as unexpected interest rate changes may result in a sudden impact while anticipated changes in interest rates generally impact the mortgage rate market prior to the actual rate change. Exposure to interest rate risk is managed by monitoring the repricing frequency of our rate-sensitive assets and rate-sensitive liabilities over any given period. Although we believe the current level of interest rate sensitivity is reasonable, significant fluctuations in interest rates could potentially have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Operational, Strategic and Business Risks
Current economic conditions in the State of Alaska pose challenges for us and could adversely affect our financial condition and results of operations.
We are operating in an uncertain economic environment. The decrease in the price of oil which began in 2014 has led to a significant deficit in the budget for the State of Alaska, which was partially mitigated in 2018 by the implementation of a percent of market value approach allocating a portion of the Alaska Permanent Fund's investment earnings to help fund the state budget. However, we believe that this has addressed only part of Alaska's structural finance problem and this approach also increased Alaska's exposure to volatility in financial markets. In the longer term, relatively low oil prices are expected to negatively impact the overall economy in Alaska on a larger scale as we estimate that one third of the Alaskan economy is related to oil. Financial institutions continue to be affected by changing conditions in the real estate and financial markets, along with an arduous regulatory climate. Dramatic declines in the United States housing market from 2008 through 2012, with falling home prices and increasing foreclosures and unemployment, resulted in significant writedowns of asset values by financial institutions. While conditions have improved nationally, a return to a recessionary economy could result in financial stress on our borrowers that would adversely affect our financial condition and results of operations. Deteriorating conditions in the regional economies of Anchorage, Matanuska-Susitna Valley, Fairbanks, and the Southeast areas of Alaska served by the Company could drive losses beyond that which is provided for in our allowance for loan losses. We may also face the following risks in connection with events:
▪ Ineffective monetary policy could cause rapid changes in interest rates and asset values that would have a materially adverse impact on our profitability and overall financial condition.
▪ Market developments may affect consumer confidence levels and may cause adverse changes in payment patterns, resulting in increased delinquencies and default rates on loans and other credit facilities.
▪ Regulatory scrutiny of the industry could increase, leading to harsh regulation of our industry that could lead to a higher cost of compliance, limit our ability to pursue business opportunities and increase our exposure to the judicial system and the plaintiff’s bar.
▪ Erosion in the fiscal condition of the U.S. Treasury could lead to new taxes that would limit the ability of the Company to pursue growth and return profits to shareholders.
If these conditions or similar ones develop, we could experience adverse effects on our financial condition and results of operations.
Our concentration of operations in the Anchorage, Matanuska-Susitna Valley, Fairbanks and Southeast areas of Alaska makes us more sensitive to downturns in those areas.
Substantially all of our business is derived from the Anchorage, Matanuska-Susitna Valley, Fairbanks, and Southeast areas of Alaska. The majority of our lending has been with Alaska businesses and individuals. At December 31, 2021, approximately 9% of the Bank's loans are PPP loans which are 100% guaranteed by the SBA. Of the remaining loan portfolio, excluding PPP loans, approximately 75% of loans are secured by real estate and 1% are unsecured. Approximately 24% are for general commercial uses, including professional, retail, and small businesses, and are secured by non-real estate assets. Repayment is expected from the borrowers’ cash flow or, secondarily, the collateral. Our exposure to credit loss, if any, is the outstanding amount of the loan if the collateral is proved to be of no value. These areas rely primarily upon the natural resources industries, particularly oil production, as well as tourism and government and U.S. military spending for their
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economic success. In particular, the oil industry plays a significant role in the Alaskan economy. We estimate that one third of Alaska's gross state product is currently derived from the oil industry.
Our business is and will remain sensitive to economic factors that relate to these industries and local and regional business conditions. As a result, local or regional economic downturns, or downturns that disproportionately affect one or more of the key industries in regions served by the Company, may have a more pronounced effect upon our business than they might on an institution that is less geographically concentrated. The extent of the future impact of these events on economic and business conditions cannot be predicted; however, prolonged or acute fluctuations could have a material and adverse impact upon our financial condition and results of operation.
Residential mortgage lending is a market sector that experiences significant volatility and is influenced by many factors beyond our control.
The Company earns revenue from the residential mortgage lending activities primarily in the form of gains on the sale of mortgage loans that we originate and sell to the secondary market. Residential mortgage lending in general has experienced substantial volatility in recent periods primarily due to changes in interest rates and other market forces beyond our control. Interest rate changes, such as rate increases implemented by the FRB, may result in lower rate locks and closed loan volume, which may adversely impact the earnings and results of operations of RML. In addition, an increase, as is currently expected, in interest rates may materially and adversely affect our future loan origination volume and margins.
Our information systems or those of our third-party vendors may be subject to an interruption or breach in security, including as a result of cyber attacks.
The Company’s technologies, systems, networks and software, and those of other financial institutions have been, and are likely to continue to be, the target of cybersecurity threats and attacks, which may range from uncoordinated individual attempts to sophisticated and targeted measures directed at us. These cybersecurity threats and attacks may include, but are not limited to, breaches, unauthorized access, misuse, malicious code, computer viruses and denial of service attacks that could result in unauthorized access, misuse, loss or destruction of data (including confidential customer information), account takeovers, unavailability of service or other events. These types of threats may result from human error, fraud or malice on the part of external or internal parties, or from accidental technological failure. Further, to access our products and services our customers may use computers and mobile devices that are beyond our security control systems. The risk of a security breach or disruption, particularly through cyber-attack or cyber intrusion, including by computer hackers, has increased as the number, intensity and sophistication of attempted attacks and intrusions from around the world have increased.
Our business requires the collection and retention of large volumes of customer data, including payment card numbers and other personally identifiable information in various information systems that we maintain and in those maintained by third parties with whom we contract to provide data services. We also maintain important internal company data such as personally identifiable information about our employees and information relating to our operations. The integrity and protection of that customer and company data is important to us. As customer, public, legislative and regulatory expectations and requirements regarding operational and information security have increased, our operations systems and infrastructure must continue to be safeguarded and monitored for potential failures, disruptions and breakdowns.
Our customers and employees have been, and will continue to be, targeted by parties using fraudulent e-mails and other communications in attempts to misappropriate passwords, payment card numbers, bank account information or other personal information or to introduce viruses or other malware through “trojan horse” programs to our customers’ computers. These communications may appear to be legitimate messages sent by the Bank or other businesses, but direct recipients to fake websites operated by the sender of the e-mail or request that the recipient send a password or other confidential information via e-mail or download a program. Despite our efforts to mitigate these threats through product improvements, use of encryption and authentication technology to secure online transmission of confidential consumer information, and customer and employee education, such attempted frauds against us or our merchants and our third-party service providers remain a serious issue. The pervasiveness of cyber security incidents in general and the risks of cyber-crime are complex and continue to evolve. In addition, due to COVID-19, we have modified our business practices with a portion of our employees working remotely from their homes. The continuation of these work-from-home measures also introduces additional operational risk, including increased cybersecurity risk. In light of several recent high-profile data breaches at other companies involving customer personal and financial information, we believe the potential impact of a cyber security incident involving the Company, any exposure to consumer losses and the cost of technology investments to improve security could cause customer and/or Bank losses, damage to our brand, and increase our costs.
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Although we make significant efforts to maintain the security and integrity of our information systems and have implemented various measures to manage the risk of a security breach or disruption, there can be no assurance that our security efforts and measures will be effective or that attempted security breaches or disruptions would not be successful or damaging. Even the most well-protected information, networks, systems and facilities remain potentially vulnerable because attempted security breaches, particularly cyber-attacks and intrusions, or disruptions will occur in the future, and because the techniques used in such attempts are constantly evolving and generally are not recognized until launched against a target, and in some cases are designed not to be detected and, in fact, may not be detected. Accordingly, we may be unable to anticipate these techniques or to implement adequate security barriers or other preventative measures, and thus it is virtually impossible for us to entirely mitigate this risk. A security breach or other significant disruption could: disrupt the proper functioning of our networks and systems and therefore our operations and/or those of certain of our customers; result in the unauthorized access to, and destruction, loss, theft, misappropriation or release of confidential, sensitive or otherwise valuable information of ours or our customers, including account numbers and other financial information; result in a violation of applicable privacy, data breach and other laws, subjecting the Bank to additional regulatory scrutiny and exposing the Bank to civil litigation, governmental fines and possible financial liability; require significant management attention and resources to remedy the damages that result; or harm our reputation or cause a decrease in the number of customers that choose to do business with us or reduce the level of business that our customers do with us. The occurrence of any such failures, disruptions or security breaches could have a negative impact on our financial condition and results of operations.
A failure in or breach of the Company's operational systems, information systems, or infrastructure, or those of the Company's third party vendors and other service providers, may result in financial losses, or loss of customers.
The Company relies heavily on communications and information systems to conduct our business. In addition, we rely on third parties to provide key components of our infrastructure, including the processing of sensitive consumer and business customer data, internet connections, and network access. These types of information and related systems are critical to the operation of our business and essential to our ability to perform day-to-day operations, and, in some cases, are critical to the operations of many of our customers. These third parties with which the Company does business or that facilitate our business activities, including exchanges, financial intermediaries or vendors that provide services or security solutions for our operations, could also be sources of operational and information security risk to us, including breakdowns or failures of their own systems or capacity constraints. Although the Company has implemented safeguards and business continuity plans, our business operations may be adversely affected by significant and widespread disruption to our physical infrastructure or operating systems that support our business and our customers, resulting in financial losses or loss of customers.
Our business is highly reliant on third party vendors.
We rely on third parties to provide services that are integral to our operations. These vendors provide services that support our operations, including the storage and processing of sensitive consumer and business customer data. The loss of these vendor relationships, or a failure of these vendors' systems, could disrupt the services we provide to our customers and cause us to incur significant expense in connection with replacing these services.
We continually encounter technological change, and we may have fewer resources than many of our competitors to continue to invest in technological improvements.
The financial services industry is undergoing rapid technological changes with frequent introductions of new technology-driven products and services. The effective use of technology increases efficiency and enables financial institutions to better serve customers and to reduce costs. Our future success will depend, in part, upon our ability to address the needs of our clients by using technology to provide products and services that will satisfy client demands for convenience, as well as to create additional efficiencies in our operations. Many national vendors provide turn-key services to community banks, such as Internet banking and remote deposit capture that allow smaller banks to compete with institutions that have substantially greater resources to invest in technological improvements. We may not be able, however, to effectively implement new technology-driven products and services or be successful in marketing these products and services to our customers.
Our business, financial condition and results of operations are subject to risk from changes in customer behavior.
Individual, economic, political, industry-specific conditions and other factors outside of our control, such as fuel prices, energy costs, real estate values, inflation, taxes or other factors that affect customer income levels, could alter anticipated customer behavior, including borrowing, repayment, investment and deposit practices. Such a change in these practices could materially adversely affect our ability to anticipate business needs and meet regulatory requirements. Further, difficult economic conditions may negatively affect consumer confidence levels. A decrease in consumer confidence levels would likely
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aggravate the adverse effects of these difficult market conditions on us, our customers and adversely affect our future loan origination volume and margins.
If we do not comply with the agreements governing servicing of loans, if these agreements change materially, or if others allege non-compliance, our business and results of operations may be harmed.
We have contractual obligations under the servicing agreements pursuant to which we service mortgage loans. Many of our servicing agreements require adherence to general servicing standards, and certain contractual provisions delegate judgment over various servicing matters to us. If the terms of these servicing agreements change, we may sustain higher costs. Our servicing practices, and the judgments that we make in our servicing of loans, could also be questioned by parties to these agreements. We could also become subject to litigation claims seeking damages or other remedies arising from alleged breaches of our servicing agreements.
Additionally, under our loan servicing program we retain servicing rights on mortgage loans originated by RML and sold to the Alaska Housing Finance Corporation. If we breach any of the representations and warranties in our servicing agreements with the Alaska Housing Finance Corporation, we may be required to repurchase any loan sold under this program and record a loss upon repurchase and/or bear any subsequent loss on the loan. We may not have any remedies available to us against third parties for such losses, or the remedies might not be as broad as the remedies available to the Alaska Housing Finance Corporation against us.
Certain hedging strategies that we use to manage interest rate risk may be ineffective to offset any adverse changes in the fair value of these assets due to changes in interest rates and market liquidity.
We use derivative instruments to economically hedge the interest rate risk in our residential mortgage loan commitments. Our hedging strategies are susceptible to prepayment risk, basis risk, market volatility and changes in the shape of the yield curve, among other factors. In addition, hedging strategies rely on assumptions and projections regarding assets and general market factors. If these assumptions and projections prove to be incorrect or our hedging strategies do not adequately mitigate the impact of changes in interest rates, we may incur losses that would adversely impact our financial condition and results of operations.
Our allowance for credit losses may be insufficient.
We maintain allowances for credit losses on loans, securities and off-balance sheet credit exposures. The amount of each allowance account represents management's best estimate of current expected credit losses on these financial instruments considering available information, from internal and external sources, relevant to assessing exposure to credit loss over the contractual term of the instrument. Relevant available information includes historical credit loss experience, current conditions and reasonable and supportable forecasts. As a result, the determination of the appropriate level of the allowance for credit losses inherently involves a high degree of subjectivity and requires us to make significant estimates related to current and expected future credit risks and trends, all of which may undergo material changes. Continuing deterioration in economic conditions affecting borrowers and securities issuers; new information regarding existing loans, credit commitments and securities holdings; the continuation of the COVID-19 pandemic or other global pandemics; natural disasters and risks related to climate change; and identification of additional problem loans, ratings down-grades and other factors, both within and outside of our control, may require an increase in the allowances for credit losses on loans, securities and off-balance sheet credit exposures. In addition, bank regulatory agencies periodically review our allowance for credit losses and may require an increase in credit loss expense or the recognition of further loan charge-offs, based on judgments different than those of management. Furthermore, if any charge-offs related to loans, securities or off-balance sheet credit exposures in future periods exceed our allowances for credit losses on loans, securities or off-balance sheet credit exposures, we will need to recognize additional credit loss expense to increase the applicable allowance. Any increase in the allowance for credit losses on loans, securities and/or off-balance sheet credit exposures will result in a decrease in net income and, possibly, capital, and may have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
We have a significant concentration in real estate lending. A downturn in real estate within our markets would have a negative impact on our results of operations.
Approximately 75% of the Bank’s loan portfolio, excluding PPP loans, at December 31, 2021 consisted of loans secured by commercial and residential real estate located in Alaska. Additionally, all of the Company's loans held for sale are secured by residential real estate. A slowdown in the residential sales cycle in our major markets and a constriction in the availability of mortgage financing, such as what occurred during the financial crisis in the United States housing market from 2008 through 2012, would negatively impact residential real estate sales, which would result in customers’ inability to repay loans. This would result in an increase in our non-performing assets if more borrowers fail to perform according to loan terms and if we take possession of real estate properties. Additionally, if real estate values decline, the value of real estate collateral
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securing our loans could be significantly reduced. If any of these effects continue or become more pronounced, loan losses will increase more than we expect and our financial condition and results of operations would be adversely impacted.
Further, approximately 52% of the Bank’s loan portfolio at December 31, 2021 consisted of commercial real estate loans. While our investments in these types of loans have not been as adversely impacted as residential construction and land development loans, there can be no assurance that the credit quality in these portfolios will remain stable. Commercial construction and commercial real estate loans typically involve larger loan balances to single borrowers or groups of related borrowers. Consequently, an adverse development with respect to one commercial loan or one credit relationship exposes us to significantly greater risk of loss compared to an adverse development with respect to a consumer loan. The credit quality of these loans may deteriorate more than expected which may result in losses that exceed the estimates that are currently included in our loan loss allowance, which could adversely affect our financial condition and results of operations.
Real estate values may decrease leading to additional and greater than anticipated loan charge-offs and valuation writedowns on our other real estate owned (“OREO”) properties.
Real estate owned by the Bank and not used in the ordinary course of its operations is referred to as “other real estate owned” or “OREO” property. We foreclose on and take title to the real estate serving as collateral for defaulted loans as part of our business. At December 31, 2021, the Bank held $5.6 million of OREO properties, most of which relate to a commercial real estate loan. Increased OREO balances lead to greater expenses as we incur costs to manage and dispose of the properties. Our ability to sell OREO properties is affected by public perception that banks are inclined to accept large discounts from market value in order to quickly liquidate properties. Any decrease in market prices may lead to OREO writedowns, with a corresponding expense in our income statement. We evaluate OREO property values periodically and writedown the carrying value of the properties if the results of our evaluations require it. Further writedowns on OREO or an inability to sell OREO properties could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition.
We conduct substantially all of our operations through Northrim Bank, our banking subsidiary; our ability to pay dividends, repurchase our shares, or to repay our indebtedness depends upon liquid assets held by the holding company and the results of operations of our subsidiaries and their ability to pay dividends.
The Company is a separate legal entity from our subsidiaries. It receives substantially all of its revenue from dividends paid from the Bank. There are legal limitations on the extent to which the Bank may extend credit, pay dividends or otherwise supply funds to, or engage in transactions with us. Our inability to receive dividends from the Bank could adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.
Our net income depends primarily upon the Bank’s net interest income, which is the income that remains after deducting from total income generated by earning assets the expense attributable to the acquisition of the funds required to support earning assets (primarily interest paid on deposits and borrowings). The amount of interest income is dependent on many factors including the volume of earning assets, the general level of interest rates, the dynamics of changes in interest rates and the levels of nonperforming loans. All of those factors affect the Bank’s ability to pay dividends to the Company. On January 1, 2019, a requirement to have a capital conservation buffer went into full effect and could adversely affect the Bank's ability to pay dividends.
Various statutory provisions restrict the amount of dividends the Bank can pay to us without regulatory approval. Under Alaska law, a bank may not declare or pay a dividend in an amount greater than its net undivided profits then on hand. In addition, the Bank may not pay cash dividends if that payment could reduce the amount of its capital below that necessary to meet the “adequately capitalized” level in accordance with regulatory capital requirements. It is also possible that, depending upon the financial condition of the Bank and other factors, regulatory authorities could conclude that payment of dividends or other payments, including payments to us, is an unsafe or unsound practice and impose restrictions or prohibit such payments. It is the policy of the FRB that bank holding companies should pay cash dividends on common stock only out of net income available over the past year and only if the prospective rate of earnings retention is consistent with the organization’s current and expected future capital needs, asset quality and overall financial condition. The policy provides that bank holding companies should not maintain a level of cash dividends that undermines a bank holding company’s ability to serve as a source of strength to its banking subsidiaries.
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There can be no assurance that the Company will continue to declare cash dividends or repurchase stock.
During 2021, the Company repurchased 279,276 shares of common stock at an average price of $41.30 per share under its previously announced share repurchase program. On January 28, 2022, the Company announced that its Board of Directors had authorized the repurchase of up to an additional 300,000 shares of common stock. The Company also paid cash dividends of $1.50 per diluted share in 2021. On February 24, 2022, the Board of Directors approved payment of a $0.41 per share dividend on the Company’s outstanding shares.
Whether we continue, and the amount and timing of, such dividends and/or stock repurchases is subject to capital availability and periodic determinations by our Board. The Company continues to evaluate the potential impact that regulatory proposals may have on our liquidity and capital management strategies, including Basel III and those required under the Dodd-Frank Act. The actual amount and timing of future dividends and share repurchases, if any, will depend on market and economic conditions, applicable SEC rules, federal and state regulatory restrictions, and various other factors. In addition, the amount we spend and the number of shares we are able to repurchase under our stock repurchase program may further be affected by a number of other factors, including the stock price and blackout periods in which we are restricted from repurchasing shares. Our dividend payments and/or stock repurchases may change from time to time, and we cannot provide assurance that we will continue to declare dividends and/or repurchase stock in any particular amounts or at all. A reduction in or elimination of our dividend payments and/or stock repurchases could have a negative effect on our stock price.
We may be unable to attract and retain key employees and personnel.
We will be dependent for the foreseeable future on the services of Joseph M. Schierhorn, our Chairman of the Board, President, Chief Executive Officer, and Chief Operating Officer of the Company; and Jed W. Ballard, our Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. While we maintain keyman life insurance on the lives of Messrs. Schierhorn and Ballard in the amounts of $2.4 million and $2 million, respectively, we may not be able to timely replace Mr. Schierhorn or Mr. Ballard with a person of comparable ability and experience should the need to do so arise, causing losses in excess of the insurance proceeds. The unexpected loss of key employees could have a material adverse effect on our business and possibly result in reduced revenues and earnings.
Liquidity risk could impair our ability to fund operations and jeopardize our financial conditions.
Liquidity is essential to our business. An inability to raise funds through deposits, borrowings and other sources could have a substantial negative effect on our liquidity and severely constrain our financial flexibility. Our primary source of funding is deposits gathered through our network of branch offices. Our access to funding sources in amounts adequate to finance our activities on terms that are acceptable to us could be impaired by factors that affect us specifically or the financial services industry or the economy in general. Factors that could negatively impact our access to liquidity sources include:
• a decrease in the level of our business activity as a result of an economic downturn in the markets in which our loans are concentrated;
• adverse regulatory actions against us; or
• our inability to attract and retain deposits.
Our ability to borrow could be impaired by factors that are not specific to us or our region, such as a disruption in the financial markets or negative views and expectations about the prospects for the financial services industry and unstable credit markets. Our access to deposits may also be negatively impacted by, among other factors, continued periods of low interest rates and increased competition for deposits, including from new financial technology competitors.
A failure of a significant number of our borrowers, guarantors and related parties to perform in accordance with the terms of their loans would have an adverse impact on our results of operations.
A source of risk arises from the possibility that losses will be sustained if a significant number of our borrowers, guarantors and related parties fail to perform in accordance with the terms of their loans. We have adopted underwriting and credit monitoring procedures and credit policies, including the establishment and review of our allowance for loan losses, which we believe are appropriate to minimize this risk by assessing the likelihood of nonperformance, tracking loan performance, and diversifying our credit portfolio. These policies and procedures, however, may not prevent unexpected losses that could materially affect our financial condition and results of operations.
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Regulatory, Legislative and Legal Risks
We operate in a highly regulated environment and changes of or increases in banking or other laws and regulations or governmental fiscal or monetary policies could adversely affect us.
We are subject to extensive regulation, supervision and examination by federal and state banking authorities. In addition, as a publicly-traded company, we are subject to regulation by the SEC and NASDAQ. Any change in applicable regulations or federal or state legislation or in policies or interpretations or regulatory approaches to compliance and enforcement, income tax laws and accounting principles could have a substantial impact on us and our operations. Changes in laws and regulations may also increase our expenses by imposing additional fees or taxes or restrictions on our operations. Additional legislation and regulations that could significantly affect our authority and operations may be enacted or adopted in the future, which could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations. Failure to appropriately comply with any such laws, regulations or principles could result in sanctions by regulatory agencies or damage to our reputation, all of which could adversely affect our business, financial condition or results of operations.
In that regard, the Dodd-Frank Act was enacted in July 2010. Among other provisions, the Dodd-Frank Act created the CFPB with broad powers to regulate consumer financial products such as credit cards and mortgages, created a Financial Stability Oversight Council comprised of the heads of other regulatory agencies, has resulted in new capital requirements from federal banking agencies, placed new limits on electronic debit card interchange fees, and requires banking regulators, the SEC and national stock exchanges to adopt significant new corporate governance and executive compensation reforms.
Certain provisions of these new rules have phase-in periods, including a 2.5% conservation buffer, which began to be phased-in in 2016 and took full effect on January 1, 2019. Further, regulators have significant discretion and authority to prevent or remedy practices that they deem to be unsafe or unsound, or violations of laws or regulations by financial institutions and holding companies in the performance of their supervisory and enforcement duties. These powers have been utilized more frequently in recent years due to the serious national economic conditions that faced the financial system in late 2008 and early 2009. The exercise of regulatory authority may have a negative impact on our financial condition and results of operations. Additionally, our business is affected significantly by the fiscal and monetary policies of the U.S. federal government and its agencies, including the FRB.
We cannot accurately predict the full effects of recent or future legislation or the various other governmental, regulatory, monetary and fiscal initiatives which have been and may be enacted on the financial markets and on the Company. The terms and costs of these activities could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and the trading price of our common stock.
Changes in the FRB’s monetary or fiscal policies could adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition.
Our earnings will be affected by domestic economic conditions and the monetary and fiscal policies of the United States government and its agencies. The FRB has, and is likely to continue to have, an important impact on the operating results of depository institutions through its power to implement national monetary policy, among other things, in order to curb inflation or combat a recession. The FRB affects the levels of bank loans, investments and deposits through its control over the issuance of United States government securities, its regulation of the discount rate applicable to member banks and its influence over reserve requirements to which member banks are subject. The FOMC announced its target to keep the federal funds rate near zero percent in January 2022. However, the FOMC also indicated that due to rising inflation it expects to raise interest rates in the near term. While we expect the FRB to raise short-term interest rates in 2022, we cannot predict the nature or impact of future changes in monetary and fiscal policies.
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Non-compliance with the USA PATRIOT Act, Bank Secrecy Act, Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2020, Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act, Truth-in-Lending Act or other laws and regulations could result in fines, sanctions or other adverse consequences.
Financial institutions are required under the USA PATRIOT Act and Bank Secrecy Act to develop programs to prevent financial institutions from being used for money-laundering and terrorist activities. Financial institutions are also obligated to file suspicious activity reports with the United States Treasury Department’s Office of Financial Crimes Enforcement Network if such activities are detected. These rules also require financial institutions to establish procedures for identifying and verifying the identity of customers seeking to open new financial accounts. Failure or the inability to comply with these regulations could result in fines or penalties, intervention or sanctions by regulators, and costly litigation or expensive additional controls and systems. In recent years, several banking institutions have received large fines for non-compliance with these laws and regulations. In addition, the federal government has in place laws and regulations relating to residential and consumer lending, as well as other activities with customers, that create significant compliance burdens and financial risks. We have developed policies and continue to augment procedures and systems designed to assist in compliance with these laws and regulations; however, it is possible for such safeguards to fail or prove deficient during the implementation phase to avoid non-compliance with such laws.
Accounting, Tax and Financial Risks
Changes in income tax laws and interpretations, or in accounting standards, could materially affect our financial condition or results of operations.
Further changes in income tax laws could be enacted, or interpretations of existing income tax laws could change, causing an adverse effect on our financial condition or results of operations. Similarly, our accounting policies and methods are fundamental to how we report our financial condition and results of operations. Some of these policies require the use of estimates and assumptions that may affect the value of our assets, liabilities, and financial results. Periodically, new accounting standards are issued or existing standards are revised, changing the methods for preparing our financial statements. These changes are not within our control and may significantly impact our financial condition and results of operations.
Uncertainty about the continuing availability of the London Inter-Bank Offered Rate ("LIBOR") may adversely affect our business.
On July 27, 2017, the United Kingdom’s Financial Conduct Authority, which regulates the LIBOR announced that after December 31, 2021 it would no longer compel banks to submit the rates required to calculate LIBOR. With this announcement there is uncertainty about the continued availability of LIBOR after 2021. If LIBOR ceases to be available or the methods of calculating LIBOR change from the current methods, financial products with interest rates tied to LIBOR may be adversely affected. Even if LIBOR remains available it is uncertain whether it will continue to be viewed as an acceptable market benchmark, what rate or rates may become accepted alternatives to LIBOR or what the effect of any such changes in views or alternatives may be on the markets for LIBOR-indexed financial instruments. We have loans, derivative contracts, and other financial instruments, including debentures related to our trust preferred securities, with rates that are either directly or indirectly tied to LIBOR. If any of the foregoing were to occur, the interest rates on these instruments, as well as the revenue and expenses associated with the same, may be adversely affected. Furthermore, failure to adequately manage this transition process with our customers could adversely impact our reputation.
General Economic and Market Risks
Natural disasters and adverse weather could negatively affect real estate property values and Bank operations.
Real estate and real estate property values play an important role for the Bank in several ways. The Bank owns or leases many real estate properties in connection with its operations, located in Anchorage, Juneau, Fairbanks, the Matanuska-Susitna Valley, Kodiak, Ketchikan, Sitka, and the Kenai Peninsula. Real estate is also utilized as collateral for many of our loans. A natural disaster could cause property values to fall, which could require the Bank to record an impairment on its financial statements. A natural disaster could also impact collateral values, which would increase our exposure to loan defaults. Our business operations could also suffer to the extent the Bank cannot utilize its branch network due to a natural disaster or other weather-related damage.
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The soundness of other financial institutions could adversely affect us.
Our ability to engage in routine funding transactions could be adversely affected by the actions and commercial soundness of other financial institutions. Financial services institutions are interrelated as a result of trading, clearing, counterparty or other relationships. As a result, defaults by, or even rumors or questions about, one or more financial services institutions, or the financial services industry generally, have led to market-wide liquidity problems and could lead to losses or defaults by us or by other institutions. Many of these transactions expose us to credit risk in the event of default of our counterparty or client. In addition, our credit risk may be exacerbated when the collateral held by us cannot be realized upon or is liquidated at prices not sufficient to recover the full amount of the financial instrument exposure. There can be no assurance that any such losses would not materially and adversely affect our results of operations.
The financial services business is intensely competitive and our success will depend on our ability to compete effectively.
The financial services business in our market areas is highly competitive. It is becoming increasingly competitive due to changes in regulation, technological advances, and the accelerating pace of consolidation among financial services providers. We face competition both in attracting deposits and in originating loans. We compete for loans principally through the pricing of interest rates and loan fees and the efficiency and quality of services. Increasing levels of competition in the banking and financial services industries may reduce our market share or cause the prices charged for our services to fall. Improvements in technology, communications, and the internet have intensified competition. As a result, our competitive position could be weakened, which could adversely affect our financial condition and results of operations.
We are a community bank and our ability to maintain our reputation is critical to the success of our business and the failure to do so could materially adversely affect our performance.
We are a community bank, and our reputation is one of the most valuable components of our business. As such, we strive to conduct our business in a manner that enhances our reputation. This is done, in part, by recruiting, hiring and retaining employees who share our core values of being an integral part of the communities we serve, delivering superior service to our customers and caring about our customers and associates. If our reputation is negatively affected, by the actions of our employees or otherwise, our business and, therefore, our operating results could be materially adversely affected.
Social, political, and economic instability, unrest, and other circumstances beyond our control could adversely affect our business operations.
Our business may be adversely affected by social, political, and economic instability, unrest, or disruption in a geographic region in which we operate, regardless of cause, including legal, regulatory, and policy changes by a new presidential administration in the U.S., protests, demonstrations, strikes, riots, civil disturbance, disobedience, insurrection, or social and other political unrest.
Such events may result in restrictions, curfews, or other actions and give rise to significant changes in regional and global economic conditions and cycles, which may adversely affect our financial condition and operations. In 2020, there were protests in cities throughout the U.S. as well as globally, including in Hong Kong, in connection with civil rights, liberties, and social and governmental reform. Looting, vandalism, and fires have occurred in cities such as Seattle, Portland, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., New York City, and Minneapolis that have led to the imposition of mandatory curfews and, in some locations, deployment of the U.S. National Guard. Government actions in an effort to protect people and property, including curfews and restrictions on business operations, may disrupt operations, harm perceptions of personal well-being, and increase the need for additional expenditures on security resources. In addition, action resulting from such social or political unrest may pose significant risks to our personnel, facilities, and operations. The effect and duration of demonstrations, protests, or other factors is uncertain, and we cannot ensure there will not be further political or social unrest in the future or that there will not be other events that could lead to social, political, and economic disruptions. If such events or disruptions persist for a prolonged period of time, our overall business and results of operations may be adversely affected.
In addition, a new U.S. President, Joseph R. Biden, was elected in November 2020. The aftermath of the November 2020 presidential election, including the January 6, 2021, violent disruption at the Capitol, has left the U.S. in what many consider to be an extremely heightened state of political and social tension, and it is unclear whether this tension will dissipate or intensify in coming months and what resulting impacts may occur to adversely affect our business operations or the safety of our employees, our customers, and the communities in which we operate.
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Changes in federal policy, including tax policies, and at regulatory agencies occur over time through policy and personnel changes following elections, which lead to changes involving the level of oversight and focus on certain industries and corporate entities. The nature, timing, and economic and political effects of potential changes to the current legal and regulatory frameworks affecting the financial services industry remain highly uncertain.
Climate change, severe weather, natural disasters, and other external events could significantly impact our business.
Severe weather events of increasing strength and frequency due to climate change cannot be predicted and may be exacerbated by global climate change, natural disasters, including volcanic eruptions and earthquakes, and other adverse external events could have a significant impact on our ability to conduct business or upon third parties who perform operational services for us. In addition, there is continuing uncertainty over demand for oil and gas in part due to regulatory changes from climate change related policies. Such events could affect the stability of our deposit base, impair the ability of borrowers to repay outstanding loans, impair the value of collateral securing loans, cause significant property damage, result in lost revenue, or cause us to incur additional expenses. Although management has established disaster recovery policies and procedures, there can be no assurance of the effectiveness of such policies and procedures, and the occurrence of any such event could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
ITEM 1B. UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS
None.
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