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Loan Hedging for Community Banks in 2024

South State Correspondent

Community banks’ use of swaps (banks’ primary tool to hedge interest rate risk on loans) has increased substantially over the last ten years. Meanwhile, community banks face net interest margin (NIM) and fee income pressure. Only 304 banks (or 6.7% of the total) used swaps directly.

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How To Do Better Against National Bank Lending Competition

South State Correspondent

Who the competition is, what the lending competition is offering, their delivery channels, and service levels can help community banks differentiate their services and enhance their competitive advantage. Analyzing the competition can also help a bank be realistic about which products it can sell and at what price.

National 195
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Scottsdale Community Bank: Making microloans

Independent Banker

Inspired by the entrepreneurship of lemonade stands, Scottsdale Community Bank created a microloan program. Photo by Brandon Sullivan De novo Scottsdale Community Bank set out to provide microloans to small and mid-size businesses, family organizations and nonprofits—a project that was inspired by the humble lemonade stand.

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Best Community Banks to Work For 2022

Independent Banker

Clockwise from top left: Grand Ridge National Bank, Wheaton, Ill.; Community Financial Services Bank, Benton, Ky.; Bank of Montana, Missoula, Mont.; CNB Bank, Berkeley Springs, W.Va.; Midwest Bank, Norfolk, Neb. Can Bank of Montana’s success be replicated? Grand Ridge National Bank.

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The Top 20 Deposit-Rich Industries for 2023

South State Correspondent

Some customers offer better returns because they use more banking services and have more deposit balances. Not to say you want to ignore parts of your community, but why not focus more of your resources on those industries that will make your bank more profitable? They are also more plentiful.

Industry 195
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How to Manage Your Efficiency Ratio with Loan Size

South State Correspondent

This development is very important to community banks, as their efficiency ratio also increased, but to 61.63%. The national banks have already indicated how they plan to reverse the efficiency ratio increase – through headcount reduction. What is Driving the Efficiency Ratio at Community Banks?

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How Loan Size Impacts Commercial Loan Profitability

South State Correspondent

Several measurable factors drive loan (and, by extension, bank) profitability, including loan size, credit quality, term, cross-sell, and upsell. In this article, we will consider how and why loan size is one of the most significant drivers of profitability for community banks and what community banks can do to improve performance.