Category: Banking

  • MIL-OSI: Northfield Bancorp, Inc. Announces Third Quarter 2024 Results

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    NOTABLE ITEMS FOR THE QUARTER INCLUDE:

    • DILUTED EARNINGS PER SHARE WERE $0.16 FOR THE CURRENT QUARTER COMPARED TO $0.14 FOR THE TRAILING QUARTER, AND $0.19 FOR THE THIRD QUARTER OF 2023.
    • NET INTEREST MARGIN REMAINED RELATIVELY STABLE AT 2.08% FOR THE CURRENT QUARTER AS COMPARED TO 2.09% FOR THE TRAILING QUARTER.
    • AVERAGE YIELD ON INTEREST-EARNING ASSETS DECREASED ONE BASIS POINT TO 4.38%, WHILE THE AVERAGE COST OF INTEREST-BEARING LIABILITIES REMAINED STABLE AT 2.95% FOR THE CURRENT QUARTER AS COMPARED TO THE TRAILING QUARTER.
    • DEPOSITS (EXCLUDING BROKERED) DECREASED MODESTLY BY $5.1 MILLION, OR LESS THAN 1% ANNUALIZED, COMPARED TO JUNE 30, 2024, AND INCREASED $15.0 MILLION, OR 0.5% ANNUALIZED, FROM DECEMBER 31, 2023. COST OF DEPOSITS AT SEPTEMBER 30, 2024 WAS 2.07% AS COMPARED TO 2.10% AT JUNE 30, 2024.
    • LOAN BALANCES DECLINED BY $27.2 MILLION, OR 2.7% ANNUALIZED, FROM JUNE 30, 2024, WITH DECREASES IN COMMERCIAL, MULTIFAMILY AND RESIDENTIAL REAL ESTATE LOANS OFFSET BY INCREASES IN HOME EQUITY, CONSTRUCTION AND LAND, AND COMMERCIAL AND INDUSTRIAL LOANS.
    • ASSET QUALITY REMAINS STRONG DESPITE AN INCREASE IN NON-PERFORMING LOANS IN THE CURRENT QUARTER. NON-PERFORMING LOANS TO TOTAL LOANS WAS 0.75% AT SEPTEMBER 30, 2024 AND 0.42% AT JUNE 30, 2024.
    • THE COMPANY MAINTAINED STRONG LIQUIDITY WITH APPROXIMATELY $597 MILLION IN UNPLEDGED AVAILABLE-FOR-SALE SECURITIES AND LOANS READILY AVAILABLE-FOR-PLEDGE OF APPROXIMATELY $699 MILLION.
    • THE COMPANY REPURCHASED 560,683 SHARES FOR A COST OF $6.3 MILLION. THERE IS NO REMAINING CAPACITY UNDER THE CURRENT REPURCHASE PROGRAM.
    • CASH DIVIDEND DECLARED OF $0.13 PER SHARE OF COMMON STOCK, PAYABLE ON NOVEMBER 20, 2024, TO STOCKHOLDERS OF RECORD AS OF NOVEMBER 6, 2024.

    WOODBRIDGE, N.J., Oct. 23, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — NORTHFIELD BANCORP, INC. (Nasdaq:NFBK) (the “Company”), the holding company for Northfield Bank, reported net income of $6.5 million, or $0.16 per diluted share for the three months ended September 30, 2024, compared to $6.0 million, or $0.14 per diluted share, for the three months ended June 30, 2024, and $8.2 million, or $0.19 per diluted share, for the three months ended September 30, 2023. For the nine months ended September 30, 2024, net income totaled $18.7 million, or $0.45 per diluted share, compared to $29.4 million, or $0.67 per diluted share, for the nine months ended September 30, 2023. For the nine months ended September 30, 2024, net income reflected $795,000, or $0.02 per share, of additional tax expense related to options that expired in June 2024, and $683,000, or $0.01 per share, of severance expense related to staffing realignments. For the nine months ended September 30, 2023, net income reflected $440,000, or $0.01 per share of severance expense. The decrease in net income for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, compared to the comparable prior year period was primarily the result of a decrease in net interest income, which was negatively impacted by higher funding costs, partially offset by improved interest and non-interest income.

    Commenting on the quarter, Steven M. Klein, the Company’s Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer stated, “In the third quarter, the Northfield team continued to focus on financial performance, serving the businesses and consumers in our marketplace, and improving upon our operating efficiencies.” Mr. Klein continued, “We delivered solid financial performance for the quarter, increasing our net income, and earnings per share, as we manage our strong capital levels, core deposit and loan relationships, asset quality, and operating expenses. While significant risks remain, the decrease in short-term market interest rates late in the third quarter should provide increased economic activity in our marketplace and opportunities for our Company.”

    Mr. Klein further noted, “I am pleased to announce that the Board of Directors has declared a cash dividend of $0.13 per common share, payable on November 20, 2024 to stockholders of record on November 6, 2024.”

    Results of Operations

    Comparison of Operating Results for the Nine Months Ended September 30, 2024 and 2023

    Net income was $18.7 million and $29.4 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 and September 30, 2023, respectively. Significant variances from the comparable prior year period are as follows: a $10.9 million decrease in net interest income, a $1.3 million increase in the provision for credit losses on loans, a $1.5 million increase in non-interest income, a $3.2 million increase in non-interest expense, and a $3.1 million decrease in income tax expense.

    Net interest income for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, decreased $10.9 million, or 11.4%, to $84.8 million, from $95.7 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2023 due to a $34.8 million increase in interest expense, which was partially offset by a $23.9 million increase in interest income. The increase in interest expense was largely driven by the cost of interest-bearing liabilities, which increased by 96 basis points to 2.93% for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, from 1.97% for the nine months ended September 30, 2023, driven primarily by a 114 basis point increase in the cost of interest-bearing deposits from 1.42% to 2.56% for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, and a 31 basis point increase in the cost of borrowings from 3.58% to 3.89% due to rising market interest rates and a shift in the composition of the deposit portfolio towards higher-costing certificates of deposit and a greater reliance on borrowings. The increase in interest expense was also due to a $277.1 million, or 7.0%, increase in the average balance of interest-bearing liabilities, including an increase of $149.8 million in the average balance of borrowed funds and a $127.1 million increase in average interest-bearing deposits. The increase in interest income was primarily due to a $156.1 million, or 2.9%, increase in the average balance of interest-earning assets coupled with a 47 basis point increase in the yield on interest-earning assets, which increased to 4.35% for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, from 3.88% for the nine months ended September 30, 2023, due to the rising rate environment. The increase in the average balance of interest-earning assets was primarily due to increases in the average balance of interest-earning deposits in financial institutions of $111.7 million, the average balance of other securities of $91.6 million, and the average balance of mortgage-backed securities of $88.5 million, partially offset by a decrease in the average balance of loans of $133.4 million.

    Net interest margin decreased by 34 basis points to 2.07% for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, from 2.41% for the nine months ended September 30, 2023. The decrease in net interest margin was primarily due to interest-bearing liabilities repricing at a faster rate than interest-earning assets. The net interest margin was negatively affected by approximately 12 basis points due to a $300 million low risk leverage strategy implemented in the first quarter of 2024. In January 2024, the Company borrowed $300.0 million from the Federal Reserve Bank through the Bank Term Funding Program at favorable terms and conditions and invested the proceeds in interest-bearing deposits in other financial institutions and investment securities. The Company accreted interest income related to purchased credit-deteriorated (“PCD”) loans of $1.1 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, as compared to $1.0 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2023. Net interest income for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, included loan prepayment income of $648,000 as compared to $1.3 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2023.

    The provision for credit losses on loans increased by $1.3 million to $2.3 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, compared to $1.1 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2023, primarily due to an increase in the specific reserve component of the allowance for credit losses, which was partially offset by a decrease in the general reserve component of the allowance for credit losses. The increase in the specific reserve was related to a single commercial and industrial relationship totaling $12.5 million that experienced credit deterioration and was placed on non-accrual during the current quarter, which has a specific reserve of $1.3 million and incurred a charge-off of $878,000. The decline in the general reserve component of the allowance for credit losses resulted from a decline in loan balances and an improvement in the macroeconomic forecast for the current period within our Current Expected Credit Loss (“CECL”) model, partially offset by an increase in reserves related to changes in model assumptions, including the slowing of prepayment speeds, and an increase in reserves in the commercial and industrial and home equity and lines of credit portfolios related to an increase in non-performing loans in these portfolios and higher loan balances. Net charge-offs were $4.7 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, primarily due to $3.9 million in net charge-offs on small business unsecured commercial and industrial loans, as compared to net charge-offs of $5.2 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2023. Management continues to closely monitor the small business unsecured commercial and industrial loan portfolio, which totaled $31.0 million at September 30, 2024.

    Non-interest income increased by $1.5 million, or 18.7%, to $9.8 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, compared to $8.3 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2023. The increase was primarily due to increases of $790,000 in fees and service charges for customer services, related to an increase in overdraft fees and service charges on deposit accounts, $260,000 in income on bank owned life insurance, and $874,000 in gains on trading securities, net. Partially offsetting the increases was a $303,000 decrease in other income, primarily due to lower swap fee income. Gains on trading securities in the nine months ended September 30, 2024, were $1.6 million, as compared to $723,000 in the nine months ended September 30, 2023. The trading portfolio is utilized to fund the Company’s deferred compensation obligation to certain employees and directors of the plan. The participants of this plan, at their election, defer a portion of their compensation. Gains and losses on trading securities have no effect on net income since participants benefit from, and bear the full risk of changes in the trading securities market values. Therefore, the Company records an equal and offsetting amount in compensation expense, reflecting the change in the Company’s obligations under the plan.

    Non-interest expense increased $3.2 million, or 5.2%, to $65.7 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, compared to $62.5 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2023. The increase was primarily due to a $3.3 million increase in employee compensation and benefits, primarily attributable to higher salary expense, related to annual merit increases and higher medical expense, and an increase of $874,000 in deferred compensation expense, which is described above, and had no effect on net income. Employee compensation and benefits expense also includes severance expense of $683,000 for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, as compared to $440,000 for the nine months ended September 30, 2023. During the second quarter of 2024, due to current economic conditions, the Company implemented a workforce reduction plan which included modest layoffs and staffing realignments. The annual estimated cost savings of this plan is $2.0 million, pre-tax. Partially offsetting the increase was a $461,000 decrease in stock compensation expense related to performance stock awards not expected to vest. Additionally, non-interest expense included a $727,000 increase in credit loss expense/(benefit) for off-balance sheet exposure due to a provision of $337,000 recorded during the nine months ended September 30, 2024, as compared to a benefit of $390,000 for the comparative prior year period. The benefit in the prior year period was attributable to a decrease in the pipeline of loans committed and awaiting closing. Partially offsetting the increases was a $552,000 decrease in advertising expense due to a change in marketing strategy and the timing of specific deposit and lending campaigns.

    The Company recorded income tax expense of $7.9 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, compared to $11.0 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2023, with the decrease due to lower taxable income partially offset by a higher effective tax rate. The effective tax rate for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, was 29.7% compared to 27.2% for the nine months ended September 30, 2023. In June 2024, options granted in 2014 expired and resulted in additional tax expense of $795,000, contributing to the higher effective tax rate for the nine months ended September 30, 2024.

    Comparison of Operating Results for the Three Months Ended September 30, 2024 and 2023

    Net income was $6.5 million and $8.2 million for the quarters ended September 30, 2024 and September 30, 2023, respectively. Significant variances from the comparable prior year quarter are as follows: a $1.5 million decrease in net interest income, a $2.4 increase in the provision for credit losses on loans, a $1.5 million increase in non-interest income, a $189,000 decrease in non-interest expense, and a $513,000 decrease in income tax expense.

    Net interest income for the quarter ended September 30, 2024, decreased $1.5 million, or 4.9%, to $28.2 million, from $29.7 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2023, due to an $8.0 million increase in interest expense, partially offset by an $6.6 million increase in interest income. The increase in interest expense was largely driven by the impact of rising market interest rates and a $227.0 million, or 5.7%, increase in the average balance of interest-bearing liabilities, including increases of $158.4 million and $68.4 million in the average balance of interest-bearing deposits and borrowed funds, respectively. The increase in interest income was primarily due to a $155.1 million, or 3.0%, increase in the average balance of interest-earning assets coupled with a 38 basis point increase in yields on interest-earning assets due to the rising rate environment. The increase in the average balance of interest-earning assets was due to increases in the average balance of mortgage-backed securities of $240.3 million, the average balance of other securities of $64.0 million, and the average balance of interest-earning deposits in financial institutions of $26.8 million, partially offset by decreases in the average balance of loans outstanding of $172.8 million and the average balance of Federal Home Loan Bank of New York stock of $3.2 million.

    Net interest margin decreased by 17 basis points to 2.08% for the quarter ended September 30, 2024, from 2.25% for the quarter ended September 30, 2023, primarily due to the cost of interest-bearing liabilities increasing faster than the repricing of interest-earning assets. The cost of interest-bearing liabilities increased by 64 basis points to 2.95% for the quarter ended September 30, 2024, from 2.31% for the quarter ended September 30, 2023, driven primarily by a 77 basis point increase in the cost of interest-bearing deposits from 1.82% to 2.59%, and a 30 basis point increase in the cost of borrowings from 3.63% to 3.93%. The increase in the cost of interest-bearing liabilities was partially offset by an increase in the yield on interest-earning assets, which increased by 38 basis points to 4.38% for the quarter ended September 30, 2024, from 4.00% for the quarter ended September 30, 2023. Net interest income for the quarter ended September 30, 2024, included loan prepayment income of $87,000, as compared to $183,000 for the quarter ended September 30, 2023. The Company accreted interest income related to PCD loans of $327,000 for the quarter ended September 30, 2024, as compared to $325,000 for the quarter ended September 30, 2023.

    The provision for credit losses on loans increased by $2.4 million to $2.5 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2024, from a provision of $188,000 for the quarter ended September 30, 2023, primarily due to an increase in the specific reserve component of the allowance for credit losses, which was partially offset by a decrease in the general reserve component of the allowance for credit losses. The increase in the specific reserve was related to a single commercial and industrial relationship that experienced credit deterioration and was placed on non-accrual during the current quarter, which has a specific reserve of $1.3 million and incurred a charge-off of $878,000. The decline in the general reserve component of the allowance for credit losses resulted from a decline in loan balances and an improvement in the macroeconomic forecast for the current period within our CECL model, partially offset by an increase in reserves related to changes in model assumptions, including the slowing of prepayment speeds, and an increase in reserves in the commercial and industrial portfolio related to an increase in non-performing loans and higher loan balances. Net charge-offs were $2.1 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2024, and included $1.4 million in net charge-offs on small business unsecured loans, as compared to net charge-offs of $2.9 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2023.

    Non-interest income increased by $1.5 million, or 68.7%, to $3.6 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2024, from $2.1 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2023, primarily due to a $294,000 increase in fees and service charges, primarily related to higher overdraft fees, a $1.0 million increase in gains on trading securities, net, and a $185,000 increase in other income, primarily due to higher swap fee income. For the quarter ended September 30, 2024, gains on trading securities, net, were $710,000, compared to losses of $295,000 in the quarter ended September 30, 2023. Gains and losses on trading securities have no effect on net income since participants benefit from, and bear the full risk of, changes in the trading securities market values. Therefore, the Company records an equal and offsetting amount in compensation expense, reflecting the change in the Company’s obligations under the Plan.

    Non-interest expense decreased by $189,000, or 0.9%, to $20.4 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2024, from $20.6 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2023. The decrease was primarily due to decreases of $386,000 in occupancy expense, attributable to lower real estate taxes, common area maintenance and electricity costs, $214,000 in data processing costs, attributable to a decrease in ongoing core processing costs related to a prior technology-related contract renewed at favorable terms, and $132,000 in advertising expense. Partially offsetting the decreases was a $504,000 increase in compensation and employee benefits, which included a $1.0 million increase in expense related to the Company’s deferred compensation plan which is described above, and had no effect on net income, that was offset by lower medical expense.

    The Company recorded income tax expense of $2.4 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2024, compared to $2.9 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2023, with the decrease due to lower taxable income. The effective tax rate for the quarter ended September 30, 2024 was 26.6%, compared to 26.0% for the quarter ended September 30, 2023.

    Comparison of Operating Results for the Three Months Ended September 30, 2024 and June 30, 2024

    Net income was $6.5 million and $6.0 million for the quarters ended September 30, 2024, and June 30, 2024, respectively. Significant variances from the prior quarter are as follows: an $458,000 decrease in net interest income, a $3.2 million increase in the provision for credit losses on loans, a $719,000 increase in non-interest income, a $2.6 million decrease in non-interest expense, and an $850,000 decrease in income tax expense.

    Net interest income for the quarter ended September 30, 2024, decreased by $458,000, or 1.6%, primarily due to a $902,000 decrease in interest income, partially offset by a $444,000 decrease in interest expense on deposits and borrowings. The decrease in interest income was primarily due to a $124.4 million decrease in the average balance of interest-earning assets. The decrease in the average balance of interest-earning assets was primarily due to decreases in the average balance of interest-earning deposits in financial institutions of $91.6 million, the average balance of other securities of $60.5 million, and the average balance of loans outstanding of $48.1 million, partially offset by an increase in the average balance of mortgage-backed securities of $76.5 million. The decrease in interest expense on deposits and borrowings was primarily due to a $105.8 million, or 2.5%, decrease in the average balance of interest-bearing liabilities attributable to a $73.2 million decrease in the average balance of interest-bearing deposits and a $32.7 million decrease in the average balance of borrowed funds.

    Net interest margin decreased by one basis point to 2.08% from 2.09% for the quarter ended June 30, 2024, primarily due to a one basis point decrease in yields on interest-earning assets whereas the cost of interest-bearing liabilities remained level. Net interest income for the quarter ended September 30, 2024, included loan prepayment income of $87,000 as compared to $210,000 for the quarter ended June 30, 2024. The Company accreted interest income related to PCD loans of $327,000 for the quarter ended September 30, 2024, as compared to $321,000 for the quarter ended June 30, 2024.

    The provision for credit losses on loans increased by $3.2 million to $2.5 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2024, from a benefit of $618,000 for the quarter ended June 30, 2024. The increase in the provision for the current quarter was primarily due to an increase in the specific reserve component of the allowance for credit losses, attributable to a single commercial and industrial relationship that experienced credit deterioration and was placed on non-accrual during the current quarter, higher reserves related to changes in model assumptions during the current quarter, including the slowing of prepayment speeds and higher net-charge-offs. Net charge-offs were $2.1 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2024, as compared to net charge-offs of $1.6 million for the quarter ended June 30, 2024.

    Non-interest income increased by $719,000, or 25.1%, to $3.6 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2024, from $2.9 million for the quarter ended June 30, 2024. The increase was primarily due to a $522,000 increase in gains on sales of trading securities, net, and a $192,000 increase in other income, primarily due to higher swap fee income. For the quarter ended September 30, 2024, gains on trading securities, net, were $710,000, compared to gains of $188,000 for the quarter ended June 30, 2024.

    Non-interest expense decreased by $2.6 million, or 11.4%, to $20.4 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2024, from $23.0 million for the quarter ended June 30, 2024. The decrease was primarily due to a $2.0 million decrease in compensation and employee benefits, primarily attributable to a decrease in salaries and medical expense due to lower employee headcount, partially offset by a $522,000 increase in expense related to the Company’s deferred compensation plan which had no effect on net income. Also contributing to the decrease were decreases of $192,000 in occupancy expense, $397,000 in data processing costs, attributable to a decrease in ongoing core processing costs resulting from a prior technology-related contract renewed at favorable terms, $200,000 in advertising expense, and $122,000 in other non-interest expense. Partially offsetting the decreases was a $262,000 increase in professional fees, primarily due to an increase in outsourced audit services.

    The Company recorded income tax expense of $2.4 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2024, compared to $3.2 million for the quarter ended June 30, 2024. The effective tax rate for the quarter ended September 30, 2024 was 26.6%, compared to 35.0% for the quarter ended June 30, 2024. During the quarter ended June 30, 2024, options granted in 2014 expired and resulted in additional tax expense of $795,000, contributing to the higher effective tax rate for the quarter ended June 30, 2024.

    Financial Condition

    Total assets increased by $132.5 million, or 2.4%, to $5.73 billion at September 30, 2024, from $5.60 billion at December 31, 2023. The increase was primarily due to increases in available-for-sale debt securities of $268.0 million, or 33.7%, and cash and cash equivalents of $3.4 million, or 1.5%, partially offset by a decrease in loans receivable of $139.7 million, or 3.3%.

    Cash and cash equivalents increased by $3.4 million, or 1.5%, to $232.9 million at September 30, 2024, from $229.5 million at December 31, 2023. Balances fluctuate based on the timing of receipt of security and loan repayments and the redeployment of cash into higher-yielding assets such as loans and securities, or the funding of deposit outflows or borrowing maturities.

    Loans held-for-investment, net, decreased by $139.7 million, or 3.3%, to $4.06 billion at September 30, 2024 from $4.20 billion at December 31, 2023, primarily due to decreases in multifamily, commercial and one-to-four family residential real estate loans, partially offset by increases in home equity and lines of credit, construction and land, and commercial and industrial loans. The decrease in loan balances reflects the Company remaining strategically focused on both managing the concentration of its commercial and multifamily real estate loan portfolios and disciplined loan pricing, as well as lower customer demand in the recent elevated interest rate environment. Multifamily loans decreased $110.1 million, or 4.0%, to $2.64 billion at September 30, 2024 from $2.75 billion at December 31, 2023, commercial real estate loans decreased $51.4 million, or 5.5%, to $878.2 million at September 30, 2024 from $929.6 million at December 31, 2023, one-to-four family residential loans decreased $11.1 million, or 6.9%, to $149.7 million at September 30, 2024 from $160.8 million at December 31, 2023, and other loans decreased $925,000, or 35.8%, to $1.7 million at September 30, 2024 from $2.6 million at December 31, 2023. Partially offsetting these decreases were increases in commercial and industrial loans of $19.1 million, or 12.3%, to $174.4 million at September 30, 2024 from $155.3 million at December 31, 2023, home equity and lines of credit of $8.4 million, or 5.2%, to $171.9 million at September 30, 2024 from $163.5 million at December 31, 2023, and construction and land loans of $2.1 million, or 6.6%, to $33.0 million at September 30, 2024 from $31.0 million at December 31, 2023.

    As of September 30, 2024, non-owner occupied commercial real estate loans (as defined by regulatory guidance) to total risk-based capital was estimated at approximately 447%. Management believes that Northfield Bank (the “Bank”) maintains appropriate risk management practices including risk assessments, board-approved underwriting policies and related procedures, which include monitoring Bank portfolio performance, performing market analysis (economic and real estate), and stressing of the Bank’s commercial real estate portfolio under severe, adverse economic conditions. Although management believes the Bank has implemented appropriate policies and procedures to manage its commercial real estate concentration risk, the Bank’s regulators could require it to implement additional policies and procedures or could require it to maintain higher levels of regulatory capital, which might adversely affect its loan originations, the Company’s ability to pay dividends, and overall profitability.

    Our real estate portfolio includes credit risk exposure to loans collateralized by office buildings and multifamily properties in New York State subject to some form of rent regulation limiting rent increases for rent stabilized multifamily properties. At September 30, 2024, office-related loans represented $183.6 million, or 4.5% of our total loan portfolio, with an average balance of $1.7 million (although we have originated these type of loans in amounts substantially greater than this average) and a weighted average loan-to-value ratio of 59%. Approximately 41% were owner-occupied. The geographic locations of the properties collateralizing our office-related loans are: 50.7% in New York, 47.8% in New Jersey and 1.5% in Pennsylvania. At September 30, 2024, our largest office-related loan had a principal balance of $90.0 million (with a net active principal balance for the Bank of $29.9 million as we have a 33.3% participation interest), was secured by an office facility located in Staten Island, New York, and was performing in accordance with its original contractual terms. At September 30, 2024, multifamily loans that have some form of rent stabilization or rent control totaled approximately $447.5 million, or approximately 11% of our total loan portfolio, with an average balance of $1.7 million (although we have originated these type of loans in amounts substantially greater than this average) and a weighted average loan-to-value ratio of 51%. At September 30, 2024, our largest rent-regulated loan had a principal balance of $16.9 million, was secured by an apartment building located in Staten Island, New York, and was performing in accordance with its original contractual terms. Management continues to closely monitor its office and rent-regulated portfolios. For further details on our rent-regulated multifamily portfolio see “Asset Quality”.

    PCD loans totaled $9.3 million and $9.9 million at September 30, 2024 and December 31, 2023, respectively. The majority of the remaining PCD loan balance consists of loans acquired as part of a Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation-assisted transaction. The Company accreted interest income of $327,000 and $1.1 million attributable to PCD loans for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024, respectively, as compared to $325,000 and $1.0 million for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023, respectively. PCD loans had an allowance for credit losses of approximately $2.9 million at September 30, 2024.

    Loan balances are summarized as follows (dollars in thousands):

      September 30, 2024   June 30, 2024   December 31, 2023
    Real estate loans:          
    Multifamily $         2,640,944     $         2,665,202     $         2,750,996  
    Commercial mortgage           878,173               896,157               929,595  
    One-to-four family residential mortgage           149,682               151,948               160,824  
    Home equity and lines of credit           171,946               167,852               163,520  
    Construction and land           33,024               32,607               30,967  
    Total real estate loans           3,873,769               3,913,766               4,035,902  
    Commercial and industrial loans           174,253               165,586               154,984  
    PPP loans           160               202               284  
    Other loans           1,660               2,322               2,585  
    Total commercial and industrial, PPP, and other loans           176,073               168,110               157,853  
    Loans held-for-investment, net (excluding PCD)           4,049,842               4,081,876               4,193,755  
    PCD loans           9,264               9,344               9,899  
    Total loans held-for-investment, net $         4,059,106     $         4,091,220     $         4,203,654  

    The Company’s available-for-sale debt securities portfolio increased by $268.0 million, or 33.7%, to $1.06 billion at September 30, 2024, from $795.5 million at December 31, 2023. The increase was primarily attributable to purchases of securities, partially offset by paydowns, maturities and calls. At September 30, 2024, $869.4 million of the portfolio consisted of residential mortgage-backed securities issued or guaranteed by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, or Ginnie Mae. In addition, the Company held $74.9 million in U.S. Government agency securities, $118.5 million in corporate bonds, substantially all of which were investment grade, and $684,000 in municipal bonds at September 30, 2024. Unrealized losses, net of tax, on available-for-sale debt securities and held-to-maturity securities approximated $19.6 million and $219,000, respectively, at September 30, 2024, and $32.5 million and $279,000, respectively, at December 31, 2023.

    Equity securities were $10.7 million at September 30, 2024 and $10.6 million at December 31, 2023. Equity securities are primarily comprised of an investment in a Small Business Administration Loan Fund. This investment is utilized by the Bank as part of its Community Reinvestment Act program.

    Total liabilities increased $132.3 million, or 2.7%, to $5.03 billion at September 30, 2024, from $4.90 billion at December 31, 2023. The increase was primarily attributable to an increase in borrowings of $131.6 million, partially offset by a decrease in total deposits of $2.9 million. The Company routinely utilizes brokered deposits and borrowed funds to manage interest rate risk, the cost of interest-bearing liabilities, and funding needs related to loan originations and deposit activity.

    Deposits decreased $2.9 million, or 0.1%, to $3.88 billion at September 30, 2024 as compared to December 31, 2023. Brokered deposits decreased by $17.9 million, or 17.9%, due to maturities that were replaced by borrowings. Deposits, excluding brokered deposits, increased $15.0 million, or 0.4%. The increase in deposits, excluding brokered deposits, was primarily attributable to increases of $80.9 million in time deposits, partially offset by decreases of $14.9 million in transaction accounts, $14.7 million in savings accounts, and $36.3 million in money market accounts. Growth in time deposits was attributable to the current interest rate environment and offering competitive interest rates to attract deposits. Estimated gross uninsured deposits at September 30, 2024 were $1.71 billion. This total includes fully collateralized uninsured governmental deposits and intercompany deposits of $859.3 million, leaving estimated uninsured deposits of approximately $852.2 million, or 22.0%, of total deposits. At December 31, 2023, estimated uninsured deposits totaled $869.9 million, or 22.4% of total deposits.

    Deposit account balances are summarized as follows (dollars in thousands):

      September 30, 2024   June 30, 2024   December 31, 2023
    Transaction:          
    Non-interest bearing checking $         681,741     $         685,574     $         694,903  
    Negotiable orders of withdrawal and interest-bearing checking           1,230,176               1,251,342               1,231,943  
    Total transaction           1,911,917               1,936,916               1,926,846  
    Savings and money market:          
    Savings           911,067               916,598               925,744  
    Money market           265,800               255,550               302,122  
    Brokered money market           —               —               50,000  
    Total savings           1,176,867               1,172,148               1,277,866  
    Certificates of deposit:          
    $250,000 and under           585,606               568,809               525,454  
    Over $250,000           119,033               120,601               98,269  
    Brokered           82,146               —               50,000  
    Total certificates of deposit           786,785               689,410               673,723  
    Total deposits $         3,875,569     $         3,798,474     $         3,878,435  

    Included in the table above are business and municipal deposit account balances as follows (dollars in thousands):

      September 30, 2024   June 30, 2024   December 31, 2023
               
    Business customers $         869,990     $         866,403     $         893,296  
    Municipal (governmental) customers $         799,249     $         815,086     $         768,556  

    Borrowed funds increased to $1.05 billion at September 30, 2024, from $920.5 million at December 31, 2023. The increase in borrowings for the period was primarily due to a $205.5 million increase in borrowings under the Federal Reserve Bank Term Funding Program, which included favorable terms and conditions as compared to FHLB advances. Management utilizes borrowings to mitigate interest rate risk, for short-term liquidity, and to a lesser extent from time to time, as part of leverage strategies.

    The following table sets forth borrowing maturities (excluding overnight borrowings and subordinated debt) and the weighted average rate by year at September 30, 2024 (dollars in thousands):

    Year   Amount (1)   Weighted Average Rate
    2024   $25,000   4.71%
    2025   483,184   4.00%
    2026   148,000   4.36%
    2027   173,000   3.19%
    2028   154,288   3.96%
        $983,472   3.92%
             
    __________________________________________________
    (1) Borrowings maturing in 2025 include $300.0 million of FRB borrowings that can be repaid without any penalty.

    Total stockholders’ equity increased by $119,000 to $699.6 million at September 30, 2024, from $699.4 million at December 31, 2023. The increase was attributable to net income of $18.7 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, a $14.1 million increase in accumulated other comprehensive income, associated with an increase in the estimated fair value of our debt securities available-for-sale portfolio due to the increase in market interest rates, and a $1.9 million increase in equity award activity, partially offset by $18.1 million in stock repurchases and $16.5 million in dividend payments. On April 24, 2024, the Board of Directors of the Company approved a $5.0 million stock repurchase program, which was completed in May 2024, and on June 14, 2024, the Board of Directors of the Company approved a $10.0 million stock repurchase program. During the nine months ended September 30, 2024, the Company repurchased 1.8 million of its common stock outstanding at an average price of $10.03 for a total of $18.1 million pursuant to the approved stock repurchase programs. As of September 30, 2024, the Company had no remaining capacity under its current repurchase program.

    The Company’s most liquid assets are cash and cash equivalents, corporate bonds, and unpledged mortgage-related securities issued or guaranteed by the U.S. Government, Fannie Mae, or Freddie Mac, that we can either borrow against or sell. We also have the ability to surrender bank-owned life insurance contracts. The surrender of these contracts would subject the Company to income taxes and penalties for increases in the cash surrender values over the original premium payments. We also have the ability to obtain additional funding from the FHLB and Federal Reserve Bank of New York utilizing unencumbered and unpledged securities and multifamily loans. The Company expects to have sufficient funds available to meet current commitments in the normal course of business. The Company’s on-hand liquidity ratio as of September 30, 2024 was 16.4%.

    The Company had the following primary sources of liquidity at September 30, 2024 (dollars in thousands): 

    Cash and cash equivalents(1) $ 218,733
    Corporate bonds(2) $ 104,633
    Multifamily loans(2) $ 699,343
    Mortgage-backed securities (issued or guaranteed by the U.S. Government, Fannie Mae, or Freddie Mac)(2) $ 491,985
       
    __________________________________________________
    (1) Excludes $14.2 million of cash at Northfield Bank.
    (2) Represents estimated remaining borrowing potential.

    The Company and the Bank utilize the Community Bank Leverage Ratio (“CBLR”) framework. The CBLR replaces the risk-based and leverage capital requirements in the generally applicable capital rules. At September 30, 2024, the Company and the Bank’s estimated CBLR ratios were 12.03% and 12.26%, respectively, which exceeded the minimum requirement to be considered well-capitalized of 9%.

    Asset Quality

    The following table details total non-accrual loans (excluding PCD), non-performing assets, loans over 90 days delinquent on which interest is accruing, and accruing loans 30 to 89 days delinquent at September 30, 2024, June 30, 2024, and December 31, 2023 (dollars in thousands):

      September 30, 2024   June 30, 2024   December 31, 2023
    Non-accrual loans:          
    Held-for-investment          
    Real estate loans:          
    Multifamily $         2,651       $         2,691       $         2,709    
    Commercial           8,823                 10,244                 6,491    
    One-to-four family residential           66                 69                 104    
    Home equity and lines of credit           1,123                 1,124                 499    
    Commercial and industrial           15,117                 2,570                 305    
    Other           6                 6                 7    
    Total non-accrual loans           27,786                 16,704                 10,115    
    Loans delinquent 90 days or more and still accruing:          
    Held-for-investment          
    Real estate loans:          
    Multifamily           —                 —                 201    
    Commercial           1,161                 —                 —    
    One-to-four family residential           304                 136                 406    
    Home equity and lines of credit           343                 467                 711    
    Commercial and industrial           835                 —                 —    
    Total loans held-for-investment delinquent 90 days or more and still accruing           2,643                 603                 1,318    
    Total non-performing loans/assets $         30,429       $         17,307       $         11,433    
    Non-performing loans to total loans           0.75   %             0.42   %             0.27   %
    Non-performing assets to total assets           0.53   %             0.30   %             0.20   %
    Accruing loans 30 to 89 days delinquent $         16,057       $         6,265       $         8,683    

    The Company’s non-performing loans at September 30, 2024 totaled $30.4 million, or 0.75%, of total loans as compared to $11.4 million, or 0.27%, at December 31, 2023. The $19.0 million increase in non-performing loans was primarily attributable to an increase in non-performing commercial and industrial loans of $15.6 million and an increase of $3.5 million in non-performing commercial real estate loans. One commercial and industrial relationship with an outstanding balance of $12.5 million at September 30, 2024, experienced credit deterioration and was placed on non-accrual status during the third quarter of 2024. The loan is currently in the process of being restructured and we expect to receive a partial payment of $10.0 million on or before October 31, 2024, with the remaining $2.5 million to be repaid over three years. The loan was individually evaluated for impairment, we charged off $878,000 and provided a specific reserve of $1.3 million. Additionally, management evaluated the collateral from the Company and assets subject to personal guarantees and, based on current estimates, believes there is adequate collateral and assets to support the current value of the loan absent the expected repayment of $10.0 million. Another commercial and industrial relationship with an outstanding balance of $750,000 is in the process of maturity extension. Additionally, there was an increase in non-performing unsecured small business loans. Unsecured small business loans totaled $31.0 million and $37.4 million at September 30, 2024 and December 31, 2023, respectively. Management continues to closely monitor the small business unsecured commercial and industrial loan portfolio.

    The increase in non-performing commercial real estate loans was primarily attributable to one loan with a balance of $4.4 million, which was put on non-accrual status during the first quarter of 2024. Based on the results of the impairment analysis for this loan, no impairment reserve was necessary as the loan is adequately covered by collateral (a private residence and retail property, both located in New Jersey), with aggregate appraised values totaling $8.7 million.

    Accruing Loans 30 to 89 Days Delinquent

    Loans 30 to 89 days delinquent and on accrual status totaled $16.1 million, $6.3 million and $8.7 million at September 30, 2024, June 30, 2024, and December 31, 2023, respectively. The following table sets forth delinquencies for accruing loans by type and by amount at September 30, 2024, June 30, 2024, and December 31, 2023 (dollars in thousands):
      

      September 30, 2024   June 30, 2024   December 31, 2023
    Held-for-investment          
    Real estate loans:          
    Multifamily $         2,259     $         168     $         740  
    Commercial           5,689               1,557               1,010  
    One-to-four family residential           2,286               1,769               3,339  
    Home equity and lines of credit           1,369               786               817  
    Commercial and industrial loans           4,450               1,977               2,767  
    Other loans           4               8               10  
    Total delinquent accruing loans held-for-investment $         16,057     $         6,265     $         8,683  

    The increase in multifamily delinquent loans was primarily due to two relationships totaling $1.5 million that became current subsequent to September 30, 2024. The increase in commercial real estate delinquent loans was primarily due to two participation loans totaling $5.6 million that matured, and the lead bank is in the process of extending their maturity and should become current in the fourth quarter of 2024. The increase in commercial and industrial delinquent loans from December 31, 2023, was primarily due to two loans to one borrower totaling $1.5 million which we expect to become current in the fourth quarter of 2024, and, to a lesser extent, an increase in delinquencies in unsecured small business loans.

    Subsequent to the quarter end, $1.1 million of home equity and lines of credit loans, $1.5 million of one-to-four family residential loans, and $1.5 million of commercial and industrial loans became current.

    PCD Loans (Held-for-Investment)

    The Company accounts for PCD loans at estimated fair value using discounted expected future cash flows deemed to be collectible on the date acquired. Based on its detailed review of PCD loans and experience in loan workouts, management believes it has a reasonable expectation about the amount and timing of future cash flows and accordingly has classified PCD loans ($9.3 million at September 30, 2024 and $9.9 million at December 31, 2023, respectively) as accruing, even though they may be contractually past due. At September 30, 2024, 2.1% of PCD loans were past due 30 to 89 days, and 24.6% were past due 90 days or more, as compared to 2.9% and 27.1%, respectively, at December 31, 2023.

    Our multifamily loan portfolio at September 30, 2024 totaled $2.64 billion, or 65% of our total loan portfolio, of which $447.5 million, or 11%, included loans collateralized by properties in New York with units subject to some percentage of rent regulation. The table below sets forth details about our multifamily loan portfolio in New York (dollars in thousands).

    % Rent Regulated   Balance   % Portfolio Total NY Multifamily Portfolio   Average Balance   Largest Loan   LTV*   Debt Service Coverage Ratio (DSCR)*   30-89 Days Delinquent   Non-Accrual   Special Mention   Substandard
    0   $         286,728             39.1   %   $         1,166     $         16,603     51.0%   1.57x   $         1,709     $         534     $         782     $         874  
    >0-10             4,745             0.7                 1,582               2,128     51.4   1.46             —               —               —               —  
    >10-20             18,681             2.5                 1,437               2,865     49.2   1.59             —               —               —               —  
    >20-30             19,585             2.7                 2,176               5,512     54.1   1.64             —               —               —               —  
    >30-40             15,183             2.1                 1,265               3,088     48.3   1.63             —               —               —               —  
    >40-50             22,208             3.0                 1,306               2,740     48.2   1.84             —               —               —               —  
    >50-60             9,452             1.3                 1,575               2,341     39.9   2.03             —               —               —               —  
    >60-70             19,201             2.6                 3,200               11,339     53.0   1.46             —               —               —               —  
    >70-80             22,405             3.1                 2,489               4,914     48.0   1.53             —               —               —               —  
    >80-90             20,820             2.8                 1,157               3,148     46.6   1.71             —               —               —               —  
    >90-100             295,256             40.1                 1,779               16,909     52.6   1.65             —               2,117               1,204               4,482  
    Total   $         734,264     100.0   %   $         1,454     $         16,909     51.2%   1.62x   $         1,709     $         2,651     $         1,986     $         5,356  

    The table below sets forth our New York rent-regulated loans by county (dollars in thousands).

    County   Balance   LTV*   DSCR*
    Bronx   $         118,400     51.7%   1.64x
    Kings             191,745     51.5%   1.66
    Nassau             2,176     36.2%   1.88
    New York             49,871     47.3%   1.64
    Queens             38,864     44.3%   1.81
    Richmond             28,790     60.6%   1.64
    Westchester             17,689     61.8%   1.37
    Total   $         447,535     51.4%   1.65x
                 
    * Weighted Average

    None of the loans that are rent-regulated in New York are interest only. During the remainder of 2024, one loan with an aggregate principal balance of $1.8 million will re-price.

    About Northfield Bank

    Northfield Bank, founded in 1887, operates 38 full-service banking offices in Staten Island and Brooklyn, New York, and Hunterdon, Middlesex, Mercer, and Union counties, New Jersey. For more information about Northfield Bank, please visit www.eNorthfield.com.

    Forward-Looking Statements: This release may contain certain “forward looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, and may be identified by the use of such words as “may,” “believe,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “should,” “plan,” “estimate,” “predict,” “continue,” and “potential” or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology. Examples of forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, estimates with respect to the financial condition, results of operations and business of Northfield Bancorp, Inc. Any or all of the forward-looking statements in this release and in any other public statements made by Northfield Bancorp, Inc. may turn out to be wrong. They can be affected by inaccurate assumptions Northfield Bancorp, Inc. might make or by known or unknown risks and uncertainties as described in our SEC filings, including, but not limited to, those related to general economic conditions, particularly in the market areas in which the Company operates, changes in liquidity, the size and composition of our deposit portfolio and the percentage of uninsured deposits in the portfolio, competition among depository and other financial institutions, including with respect to fees and interest rates, changes in laws or government regulations or policies affecting financial institutions, including changes in the monetary policies of the U.S. Treasury and the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, changes in asset quality, prepayment speeds, charge-offs and/or credit loss provisions, our ability to access cost-effective funding, changes in the value of our goodwill or other intangible assets, changes in regulatory fees, assessments and capital requirements, inflation and changes in the interest rate environment that reduce our margins, reduce the fair value of financial instruments or reduce our ability to originate loans, cyber security and fraud risks against our information technology and those of our third-party providers and vendors, the effects of war, conflict, and acts of terrorism, our ability to successfully integrate acquired entities, adverse changes in the securities markets, and the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Consequently, no forward-looking statement can be guaranteed. Northfield Bancorp, Inc. does not intend to update any of the forward-looking statements after the date of this release, or conform these statements to actual events.

     
    (Tables follow)
     
    NORTHFIELD BANCORP, INC.
    SELECTED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL AND OTHER DATA
    (Dollars in thousands, except per share amounts) (unaudited)
                   
                  At or For the
      At or For the Three Months Ended   Nine Months Ended
      September 30,   June 30   September 30,
      2024   2023   2024   2024   2023
    Selected Financial Ratios:                  
    Performance Ratios (1)                  
    Return on assets (ratio of net income to average total assets)         0.46   %           0.59   %           0.41   %           0.43   %           0.71   %
    Return on equity (ratio of net income to average equity)         3.74               4.74               3.45               3.59               5.69    
    Average equity to average total assets         12.24               12.49               12.00               12.09               12.44    
    Interest rate spread         1.42               1.69               1.44               1.42               1.91    
    Net interest margin         2.08               2.25               2.09               2.07               2.41    
    Efficiency ratio (2)         64.07               64.65               72.89               69.44               60.06    
    Non-interest expense to average total assets         1.43               1.49               1.60               1.53               1.50    
    Non-interest expense to average total interest-earning assets         1.50               1.56               1.68               1.60               1.57    
    Average interest-earning assets to average interest-bearing liabilities         128.75               132.21               128.47               128.63               133.66    
    Asset Quality Ratios:                  
    Non-performing assets to total assets         0.53               0.19               0.30               0.53               0.19    
    Non-performing loans (3) to total loans (4)         0.75               0.24               0.42               0.75               0.24    
    Allowance for credit losses to non-performing loans         115.67               378.67               200.96               115.67               378.67    
    Allowance for credit losses to total loans held-for-investment, net (5)         0.87               0.91               0.85               0.87               0.91    
    (1) Annualized where appropriate.
    (2) The efficiency ratio represents non-interest expense divided by the sum of net interest income and non-interest income.
    (3) Non-performing loans consist of non-accruing loans and loans 90 days or more past due and still accruing (excluding PCD loans), and are included in total loans held-for-investment, net.
    (4) Includes originated loans held-for-investment, PCD loans, acquired loans and loans held-for-sale.
    (5) Includes originated loans held-for-investment, PCD loans, and acquired loans.
     
    NORTHFIELD BANCORP, INC.
    CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
    (Dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts) (unaudited)
     
      September 30, 2024   June 30, 2024   December 31, 2023
    ASSETS:          
    Cash and due from banks $         14,193     $         14,575     $         13,889  
    Interest-bearing deposits in other financial institutions           218,733               138,914               215,617  
    Total cash and cash equivalents           232,926               153,489               229,506  
    Trading securities           13,759               12,939               12,549  
    Debt securities available-for-sale, at estimated fair value           1,063,486               1,119,439               795,464  
    Debt securities held-to-maturity, at amortized cost           9,681               9,749               9,866  
    Equity securities           10,699               13,964               10,629  
    Loans held-for-sale           4,897               —               —  
    Loans held-for-investment, net           4,059,106               4,091,220               4,203,654  
    Allowance for credit losses           (35,197 )             (34,780 )             (37,535 )
    Net loans held-for-investment           4,023,909               4,056,440               4,166,119  
    Accrued interest receivable           19,299               19,343               18,491  
    Bank-owned life insurance           174,482               173,483               171,543  
    Federal Home Loan Bank of New York stock, at cost           37,269               41,785               39,667  
    Operating lease right-of-use assets           28,943               29,305               30,202  
    Premises and equipment, net           22,973               23,628               24,771  
    Goodwill           41,012               41,012               41,012  
    Other assets           47,516               51,785               48,577  
    Total assets $         5,730,851     $         5,746,361     $         5,598,396  
               
    LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY:          
    LIABILITIES:          
    Deposits $         3,875,569     $         3,798,474     $         3,878,435  
    Securities sold under agreements to repurchase           —               —               25,000  
    Federal Home Loan Bank advances and other borrowings           990,871               1,089,727               834,272  
    Subordinated debentures, net of issuance costs           61,386               61,331               61,219  
    Lease liabilities           33,529               34,035               35,205  
    Advance payments by borrowers for taxes and insurance           22,492               26,113               25,102  
    Accrued expenses and other liabilities           47,440               43,657               39,718  
    Total liabilities           5,031,287               5,053,337               4,898,951  
               
    STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY:          
    Total stockholders’ equity           699,564               693,024               699,445  
    Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity $         5,730,851     $         5,746,361     $         5,598,396  
               
    Total shares outstanding           42,904,342               43,466,961               44,524,929  
    Tangible book value per share (1) $         15.35     $         15.00     $         14.78  
    (1) Tangible book value per share is calculated based on total stockholders’ equity, excluding intangible assets (goodwill and core deposit intangibles), divided by total shares outstanding as of the balance sheet date. Core deposit intangibles were $90, $111, and $154 at September 30, 2024, June 30, 2024, and December 31, 2023, respectively, and are included in other assets.
     
    NORTHFIELD BANCORP, INC.
    CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF INCOME
    (Dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts) (unaudited)
     
      For the Three Months Ended   For the Nine Months Ended
      September 30,   June 30,   September 30,
        2024       2023       2024       2024       2023  
    Interest income:                  
    Loans $         46,016     $         46,213     $         45,967     $         138,030     $         135,220  
    Mortgage-backed securities           8,493               3,664               7,355               20,246               11,170  
    Other securities           2,684               1,095               3,506               10,031               3,593  
    Federal Home Loan Bank of New York dividends           914               933               935               2,819               2,125  
    Deposits in other financial institutions           1,211               831               2,457               7,060               2,225  
    Total interest income           59,318               52,736               60,220               178,186               154,333  
    Interest expense:                  
    Deposits           20,304               13,614               20,664               60,241               31,918  
    Borrowings           9,949               8,593               10,041               30,653               24,182  
    Subordinated debt           836               837               828               2,492               2,484  
    Total interest expense           31,089               23,044               31,533               93,386               58,584  
    Net interest income           28,229               29,692               28,687               84,800               95,749  
    Provision/(benefit) for credit losses           2,542               188               (618 )             2,339               1,082  
    Net interest income after (benefit)/provision for credit losses           25,687               29,504               29,305               82,461               94,667  
    Non-interest income:                  
    Fees and service charges for customer services           1,611               1,317               1,570               4,796               4,006  
    Income on bank-owned life insurance           999               920               976               2,939               2,679  
    (Losses)/gains on available-for-sale debt securities, net           (7 )             —               1               (6 )             (17 )
    Gains/(losses) on trading securities, net           710               (295 )             188               1,597               723  
    Gain on sale of loans           —               99               51               51               134  
    Other           265               80               73               441               744  
    Total non-interest income           3,578               2,121               2,859               9,818               8,269  
    Non-interest expense:                  
    Compensation and employee benefits           11,424               10,920               13,388               37,577               34,310  
    Occupancy           3,030               3,416               3,222               9,805               10,032  
    Furniture and equipment           450               479               477               1,411               1,393  
    Data processing           1,780               1,994               2,177               6,104               6,308  
    Professional fees           943               883               681               2,433               2,622  
    Advertising           282               414               482               1,282               1,834  
    Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation insurance           626               591               649               1,863               1,763  
    Credit loss expense/(benefit) for off-balance sheet exposures           151               160               103               337               (390 )
    Other           1,692               1,710               1,814               4,891               4,598  
    Total non-interest expense           20,378               20,567               22,993               65,703               62,470  
    Income before income tax expense           8,887               11,058               9,171               26,576               40,466  
    Income tax expense           2,364               2,877               3,214               7,882               11,019  
    Net income $         6,523     $         8,181     $         5,957     $         18,694     $         29,447  
    Net income per common share:                  
    Basic $         0.16     $         0.19     $         0.14     $         0.45     $         0.67  
    Diluted $         0.16     $         0.19     $         0.14     $         0.45     $         0.67  
    Basic average shares outstanding           41,028,213               42,866,246               41,999,541               41,794,149               43,848,873  
    Diluted average shares outstanding           41,088,637               42,918,174               42,002,650               41,829,230               43,927,350  
     
    NORTHFIELD BANCORP, INC.
    ANALYSIS OF NET INTEREST INCOME
    (Dollars in thousands) (unaudited)
     
      For the Three Months Ended
      September 30, 2024   June 30, 2024   September 30, 2023
      Average Outstanding Balance   Interest   Average Yield/ Rate (1)   Average Outstanding Balance   Interest   Average Yield/ Rate (1)   Average Outstanding Balance   Interest   Average Yield/ Rate (1)
    Interest-earning assets:                                  
    Loans (2) $         4,079,974     $         46,016             4.49   %   $         4,128,105     $         45,967             4.48   %   $         4,252,752     $         46,213             4.31   %
    Mortgage-backed securities (3)           901,042               8,493             3.75                 824,498               7,355             3.59                 660,753               3,664             2.20    
    Other securities (3)           273,312               2,684             3.91                 333,855               3,506             4.22                 209,341               1,095             2.08    
    Federal Home Loan Bank of New York stock           38,044               914             9.56                 38,707               935             9.72                 41,278               933             8.97    
    Interest-earning deposits in financial institutions           99,837               1,211             4.83                 191,470               2,457             5.16                 73,005               831             4.52    
    Total interest-earning assets           5,392,209               59,318             4.38                 5,516,635               60,220             4.39                 5,237,129               52,736             4.00    
    Non-interest-earning assets           275,342                       265,702                       248,315          
    Total assets $         5,667,551             $         5,782,337             $         5,485,444          
                                       
    Interest-bearing liabilities:                                  
    Savings, NOW, and money market accounts $         2,417,725     $         12,717             2.09   %   $         2,490,372     $         13,183             2.13   %   $         2,408,218     $         8,865             1.46   %
    Certificates of deposit           700,763               7,587             4.31                 701,272               7,481             4.29                 551,904               4,749             3.41    
    Total interest-bearing deposits           3,118,488               20,304             2.59                 3,191,644               20,664             2.60                 2,960,122               13,614             1.82    
    Borrowed funds           1,008,338               9,949             3.93                 1,041,035               10,041             3.88                 939,922               8,593             3.63    
    Subordinated debt           61,350               836             5.42                 61,294               828             5.43                 61,127               837             5.43    
    Total interest-bearing liabilities           4,188,176               31,089             2.95                 4,293,973               31,533             2.95                 3,961,171               23,044             2.31    
    Non-interest bearing deposits           683,283                       691,384                       739,266          
    Accrued expenses and other liabilities           102,233                       103,082                       100,103          
    Total liabilities           4,973,692                       5,088,439                       4,800,540          
    Stockholders’ equity           693,859                       693,898                       684,904          
    Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity $         5,667,551             $         5,782,337             $         5,485,444          
                                       
    Net interest income     $         28,229             $         28,687             $         29,692      
    Net interest rate spread (4)                 1.42   %                   1.44   %                   1.69   %
    Net interest-earning assets (5) $         1,204,033             $         1,222,662             $         1,275,958          
    Net interest margin (6)                 2.08   %                   2.09   %                   2.25   %
    Average interest-earning assets to interest-bearing liabilities                 128.75   %                   128.47   %                   132.21   %
    (1) Average yields and rates are annualized.
    (2) Includes non-accruing loans.
    (3) Securities available-for-sale and other securities are reported at amortized cost.
    (4) Net interest rate spread represents the difference between the weighted average yield on interest-earning assets and the weighted average cost of interest-bearing liabilities.
    (5) Net interest-earning assets represent total interest-earning assets less total interest-bearing liabilities.
    (6) Net interest margin represents net interest income divided by average total interest-earning assets.
       
      For the Nine Months Ended
      September 30, 2024   September 30, 2023
      Average Outstanding Balance   Interest   Average Yield/ Rate (1)   Average Outstanding Balance   Interest   Average Yield/ Rate (1)
    Interest-earning assets:                      
    Loans (2) $         4,127,409     $         138,030             4.47   %   $         4,260,827     $         135,220             4.24   %
    Mortgage-backed securities (3)           791,850               20,246             3.42                 703,320               11,170             2.12    
    Other securities (3)           332,831               10,031             4.03                 241,280               3,593             1.99    
    Federal Home Loan Bank of New York stock           38,781               2,819             9.71                 41,093               2,125             6.91    
    Interest-earning deposits in financial institutions           184,420               7,060             5.11                 72,683               2,225             4.09    
    Total interest-earning assets           5,475,291               178,186             4.35                 5,319,203               154,333             3.88    
    Non-interest-earning assets           269,180                       244,319          
    Total assets $         5,744,471             $         5,563,522          
                           
    Interest-bearing liabilities:                      
    Savings, NOW, and money market accounts $         2,457,320     $         38,231             2.08   %   $         2,443,400     $         19,194             1.05   %
    Certificates of deposit           685,510               22,010             4.29                 572,283               12,724             2.97    
    Total interest-bearing deposits           3,142,830               60,241             2.56                 3,015,683               31,918             1.42    
    Borrowed funds           1,052,589               30,653             3.89                 902,802               24,182             3.58    
    Subordinated debt           61,294               2,492             5.43                 61,164               2,484             5.43    
    Total interest-bearing liabilities $         4,256,713               93,386             2.93       $         3,979,649               58,584             1.97    
    Non-interest bearing deposits           691,406                       788,991          
    Accrued expenses and other liabilities           101,639                       102,765          
    Total liabilities           5,049,758                       4,871,405          
    Stockholders’ equity           694,713                       692,117          
    Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity $         5,744,471             $         5,563,522          
                           
    Net interest income     $         84,800             $         95,749      
    Net interest rate spread (4)                 1.42   %                   1.91   %
    Net interest-earning assets (5) $         1,218,578             $         1,339,554          
    Net interest margin (6)                 2.07   %                   2.41   %
    Average interest-earning assets to interest-bearing liabilities                 128.63   %                   133.66   %
    (1) Average yields and rates are annualized. 
    (2) Includes non-accruing loans. 
    (3) Securities available-for-sale and other securities are reported at amortized cost.
    (4) Net interest rate spread represents the difference between the weighted average yield on interest-earning assets and the weighted average cost of interest-bearing liabilities.
    (5) Net interest-earning assets represent total interest-earning assets less total interest-bearing liabilities.
    (6) Net interest margin represents net interest income divided by average total interest-earning assets.

    Company Contact:
    William R. Jacobs
    Chief Financial Officer
    Tel: (732) 499-7200 ext. 2519

    The MIL Network

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Historic visit by UK Prime Minister paves way for closer economic ties for the Commonwealth

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    The Commonwealth has a once in a generation chance to be a driving force for opportunity and growth in an increasingly contested world, the Prime Minister is set to say on a landmark visit to the Pacific this week.

    • Prime Minister to make the case that the Commonwealth has a once in a generation chance to be a driving force for opportunity and growth during visit to Samoa 

    • New UK Trade Centre of Expertise set to bolster economic ties across the grouping and unlock markets for UK businesses  

    • Keir Starmer makes history as first ever sitting UK Prime Minister to visit a Pacific Island country

    The Commonwealth has a once in a generation chance to be a driving force for opportunity and growth in an increasingly contested world, the Prime Minister is set to say on a landmark visit to the Pacific this week.  

    It comes as the government uses its foreign policy agenda to deliver for people at home, working with partners across the globe on issues such as climate change, growth and energy security. 

    Keir Starmer will arrive in Samoa for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting today [Thursday 24 October], joining 55 other Commonwealth delegations to discuss the shared challenges and opportunities faced by its members.  

    In doing so, he will make history as the first UK Prime Minister to ever visit a Pacific Island country.   

    The Prime Minister will use the trip to make the case that Commonwealth countries, no matter where they are in the world, need resilient and thriving economies to face the global challenges of the day.  

    And he will tell delegates that he believes the Commonwealth offers a unique opportunity to be able to build those economies, combining major traditional markets with rapidly growing economies and resilient, innovative communities.  

    By 2027, the Commonwealth is expected be home to six of the world’s ten fastest-growing economies – Guyana, Rwanda, Bangladesh, Uganda, India and Mozambique – and have a combined GDP exceeding $19.5 trillion, while more than 60% of the grouping’s 2.5 billion population will be under 30. 

    The Commonwealth, which includes some of the UK’s biggest trading partners such as India, Canada, Australia, Singapore and South Africa, already accounts for 9% of total UK trade, worth £164 billion in 2023. And its members benefit from a 21% average reduction in bilateral trade costs, as well as higher investment flows between Commonwealth members.  

    As part of the visit, the Prime Minister will announce a new UK Trade Centre of Expertise, operating out of the Foreign Office, to drive export-led growth across the grouping. Trade specialists will provide technical and practical assistance to developing countries to help them access and compete in global markets.  

    In turn, the partnership is expected to help UK businesses tap into some of the fastest growing economies in the world, such as Uganda and Bangladesh through strengthened economic ties. Over the long term, the project will also aim to lift economies out of poverty, reducing pressure on UK Aid and British taxpayers. 

    The Prime Minister is also expected to meet business leaders during CHOGM, as part of his personal campaign to drive investment into every corner of the United Kingdom. 

    The meeting, which will include business leaders such as Brian Moynihan, chairman and CEO of Bank of America, and John Neal, CEO of Lloyd’s of London, comes just 10 days after the UK hosted the International Investment Summit, which drove £63 billion of private investment and 38,000 jobs into the UK. 

    Prime Minister Keir Starmer said: 

    We have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to fix the foundations and change our country’s story to turn around the lives of everyday people in the UK, but we can’t do that with a protectionist approach.

    Under this government’s pragmatic and sensible approach, we must harness the opportunities to work with genuine partners – like our Commonwealth family – across the world to build resilient economies that offer real opportunity for our people, whether that is accessing untapped markets, or collaborating on grassroots innovations.

    The combined GDP of the Commonwealth is expected to exceed $19.5 trillion in the next three years, we cannot let that economic heft go to waste.

    Alongside the Commonwealth Secretary General, the Foreign Secretary is expected to convene Commonwealth foreign ministers to launch a new Commonwealth Investment Plan of Action to mobilise investment across the membership. 

    The plan will focus on small and vulnerable economies, easing barriers to trade and investment. The Foreign Secretary will also launch two new trade hubs to help female entrepreneurs in India and Sri Lanka access global markets.   

    Foreign Secretary David Lammy said: 

    The Commonwealth is a unique forum encompassing 56 countries and a third of the world’s population brought together through shared history and friendship.

    Representing some of the world’s fastest growing economies, forging stronger ties with these markets is crucial for delivering jobs and economic growth.

    This government is reconnecting Britain in the world and building partnerships that will unlock greater prosperity for all.

    During the three-day CHOGM summit, leaders will discuss some of the pressing issues facing Commonwealth nations, including climate change, education and democracy.  

    On Friday, the Prime Minister is expected to attend a lunch, hosted by the King for new heads of government, before attending two Commonwealth executive sessions, and the heads of government dinner.

    Updates to this page

    Published 24 October 2024

    MIL OSI United Kingdom

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Press release: Historic visit by UK Prime Minister paves way for closer economic ties for the Commonwealth

    Source: United Kingdom – Prime Minister’s Office 10 Downing Street

    The Commonwealth has a once in a generation chance to be a driving force for opportunity and growth in an increasingly contested world, the Prime Minister is set to say on a landmark visit to the Pacific this week.

    • Prime Minister to make the case that the Commonwealth has a once in a generation chance to be a driving force for opportunity and growth during visit to Samoa 

    • New UK Trade Centre of Expertise set to bolster economic ties across the grouping and unlock markets for UK businesses  

    • Keir Starmer makes history as first ever sitting UK Prime Minister to visit a Pacific Island country

    The Commonwealth has a once in a generation chance to be a driving force for opportunity and growth in an increasingly contested world, the Prime Minister is set to say on a landmark visit to the Pacific this week.  

    It comes as the government uses its foreign policy agenda to deliver for people at home, working with partners across the globe on issues such as climate change, growth and energy security. 

    Keir Starmer will arrive in Samoa for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting today [Thursday 24 October], joining 55 other Commonwealth delegations to discuss the shared challenges and opportunities faced by its members.  

    In doing so, he will make history as the first UK Prime Minister to ever visit a Pacific Island country.   

    The Prime Minister will use the trip to make the case that Commonwealth countries, no matter where they are in the world, need resilient and thriving economies to face the global challenges of the day.  

    And he will tell delegates that he believes the Commonwealth offers a unique opportunity to be able to build those economies, combining major traditional markets with rapidly growing economies and resilient, innovative communities.  

    By 2027, the Commonwealth is expected be home to six of the world’s ten fastest-growing economies – Guyana, Rwanda, Bangladesh, Uganda, India and Mozambique – and have a combined GDP exceeding $19.5 trillion, while more than 60% of the grouping’s 2.5 billion population will be under 30. 

    The Commonwealth, which includes some of the UK’s biggest trading partners such as India, Canada, Australia, Singapore and South Africa, already accounts for 9% of total UK trade, worth £164 billion in 2023. And its members benefit from a 21% average reduction in bilateral trade costs, as well as higher investment flows between Commonwealth members.  

    As part of the visit, the Prime Minister will announce a new UK Trade Centre of Expertise, operating out of the Foreign Office, to drive export-led growth across the grouping. Trade specialists will provide technical and practical assistance to developing countries to help them access and compete in global markets.  

    In turn, the partnership is expected to help UK businesses tap into some of the fastest growing economies in the world, such as Uganda and Bangladesh through strengthened economic ties. Over the long term, the project will also aim to lift economies out of poverty, reducing pressure on UK Aid and British taxpayers. 

    The Prime Minister is also expected to meet business leaders during CHOGM, as part of his personal campaign to drive investment into every corner of the United Kingdom. 

    The meeting, which will include business leaders such as Brian Moynihan, chairman and CEO of Bank of America, and John Neal, CEO of Lloyd’s of London, comes just 10 days after the UK hosted the International Investment Summit, which drove £63 billion of private investment and 38,000 jobs into the UK. 

    Prime Minister Keir Starmer said: 

    We have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to fix the foundations and change our country’s story to turn around the lives of everyday people in the UK, but we can’t do that with a protectionist approach.

    Under this government’s pragmatic and sensible approach, we must harness the opportunities to work with genuine partners – like our Commonwealth family – across the world to build resilient economies that offer real opportunity for our people, whether that is accessing untapped markets, or collaborating on grassroots innovations.

    The combined GDP of the Commonwealth is expected to exceed $19.5 trillion in the next three years, we cannot let that economic heft go to waste.

    Alongside the Commonwealth Secretary General, the Foreign Secretary is expected to convene Commonwealth foreign ministers to launch a new Commonwealth Investment Plan of Action to mobilise investment across the membership. 

    The plan will focus on small and vulnerable economies, easing barriers to trade and investment. The Foreign Secretary will also launch two new trade hubs to help female entrepreneurs in India and Sri Lanka access global markets.   

    Foreign Secretary David Lammy said: 

    The Commonwealth is a unique forum encompassing 56 countries and a third of the world’s population brought together through shared history and friendship.

    Representing some of the world’s fastest growing economies, forging stronger ties with these markets is crucial for delivering jobs and economic growth.

    This government is reconnecting Britain in the world and building partnerships that will unlock greater prosperity for all.

    During the three-day CHOGM summit, leaders will discuss some of the pressing issues facing Commonwealth nations, including climate change, education and democracy.  

    On Friday, the Prime Minister is expected to attend a lunch, hosted by the King for new heads of government, before attending two Commonwealth executive sessions, and the heads of government dinner.

    Updates to this page

    Published 24 October 2024

    MIL OSI United Kingdom

  • MIL-OSI: Northrim BanCorp Earns $8.8 Million, or $1.57 Per Diluted Share, in Third Quarter 2024

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    ANCHORAGE, Alaska, Oct. 23, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Northrim BanCorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:NRIM) (“Northrim” or the “Company”) today reported net income of $8.8 million, or $1.57 per diluted share, in the third quarter of 2024, compared to $9.0 million, or $1.62 per diluted share, in the second quarter of 2024, and $8.4 million, or $1.48 per diluted share, in the third quarter a year ago. The increase in third quarter 2024 profitability as compared to the third quarter a year ago was primarily the result of an increase in mortgage banking income and higher net interest income, which was only partially offset by higher other operating expenses and a higher provision for credit losses.

    Dividends per share in the third quarter of 2024 increased to $0.62 per share as compared to $0.61 per share in the second quarter of 2024 and $0.60 per share in the third quarter of 2023.

    “We had strong deposit-funded loan growth in the third quarter,” said Mike Huston, Northrim’s President and Chief Executive Officer. “Deposits and loans both increased 7% from the end of the second quarter. Our deposit market share increased by 4% in the past year and by 42% in the past five years as our investments in people, expanded branch network, and differentiated service continue to attract new customers and strengthen existing relationships.”

    Third Quarter 2024 Highlights:

    • Net interest income in the third quarter of 2024 increased 7% to $28.8 million compared to $27.1 million in the second quarter of 2024 and increased 9% compared to $26.4 million in the third quarter of 2023.
    • Net interest margin on a tax equivalent basis (“NIMTE”)* was 4.35% for the third quarter of 2024, up 5-basis points from the second quarter of 2024 and up 14-basis points from the third quarter a year ago.
    • Return on average assets (“ROAA”) was 1.22% and return on average equity (“ROAE”) was 13.69% for the third quarter of 2024.
    • Portfolio loans were $2.01 billion at September 30, 2024, up 7% from the preceding quarter and up 17% from a year ago, primarily due to new customer relationships, expanding market share, and to retaining certain mortgages originated by Residential Mortgage, a subsidiary of Northrim Bank (the “Bank”), in the loan portfolio.
    • Total deposits were $2.63 billion at September 30, 2024, up 7% from the preceding quarter, and up 8% from $2.43 billion a year ago. Non-interest bearing demand deposits increased 8% from the preceding quarter and decreased slightly year-over-year to $763.6 million at September 30, 2024 and represent 29% of total deposits.
    • The average cost of interest-bearing deposits was 2.24% at September 30, 2024, up from 2.21% at June 30, 2024 and 1.75% at September 30, 2023.
    • Mortgage loan originations increased to $248.0 million in the third quarter of 2024, up from $181.5 million in the second quarter of 2024 and $153.4 million in the third quarter a year ago. Mortgage loans funded for sale were $210.0 million in the third quarter of 2024, compared to $152.3 million in the second quarter of 2024 and $131.9 million in the third quarter of 2023.
    Financial Highlights   Three Months Ended 
    (Dollars in thousands, except per share data) September 30,
    2024
    June 30, 2024 March 31, 2024 December 31,
    2023
    September 30,
    2023
    Total assets $2,963,392   $2,821,668 $2,759,560   $2,807,497   $2,790,189  
    Total portfolio loans $2,007,565   $1,875,907 $1,811,135   $1,789,497   $1,720,091  
    Total deposits $2,625,567   $2,463,806 $2,434,083   $2,485,055   $2,427,930  
    Total shareholders’ equity $260,050   $247,200 $239,327   $234,718   $225,259  
    Net income $8,825   $9,020 $8,199   $6,613   $8,374  
    Diluted earnings per share $1.57   $1.62 $1.48   $1.19   $1.48  
    Return on average assets   1.22 %   1.31 %   1.19 %   0.93 %   1.22 %
    Return on average shareholders’ equity   13.69 %   14.84 %   13.84 %   11.36 %   14.67 %
    NIM   4.29 %   4.24 %   4.16 %   4.06 %   4.15 %
    NIMTE*   4.35 %   4.30 %   4.22 %   4.12 %   4.21 %
    Efficiency ratio   66.11 %   68.78 %   68.93 %   72.21 %   66.64 %
    Total shareholders’ equity/total assets   8.78 %   8.76 %   8.67 %   8.36 %   8.07 %
    Tangible common equity/tangible assets*   8.28 %   8.24 %   8.14 %   7.84 %   7.54 %
    Book value per share $47.27   $44.93   $43.52   $42.57   $40.60  
    Tangible book value per share* $44.36   $42.03   $40.61   $39.68   $37.72  
    Dividends per share $0.62   $0.61   $0.61   $0.60   $0.60  
    Common stock outstanding   5,501,943     5,501,562     5,499,578     5,513,459     5,548,436  


    *
    References to NIMTE, tangible book value per share, and tangible common equity to tangible common assets, (all of which exclude intangible assets) represent non-GAAP financial measures. Management has presented these non-GAAP measurements in this earnings release, because it believes these measures are useful to investors. See the end of this release for reconciliations of these non-GAAP financial measures to GAAP financial measures.

    Alaska Economic Update
    (Note: sources for information included in this section are included on page 12.)

    The Alaska Department of Labor (“DOL”) has reported Alaska’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in August of 2024 was 4.6% compared to the U.S. rate of 4.2%. The total number of payroll jobs in Alaska, not including uniformed military, increased 1.8% or 6,400 jobs between August of 2023 and August of 2024.

    According to the DOL, the Construction sector had the largest growth in new jobs through August compared to the prior year. The Construction sector added 2,600 positions for a year over year growth rate of 12.9% between August of 2023 and 2024. The larger Health Care sector grew by 2,000 jobs for an annual growth rate of 4.9% over the same period. The Oil & Gas sector increased by 6.5% or 500 new direct jobs. Professional and Business Services added 1,000 jobs year over year through August of 2024, up 3.4%. The Government sector grew by 700 jobs for 0.9% growth, adding 500 Federal jobs and 200 Local government positions in Alaska. The only sectors to decline between August 2023 and August 2024 were Manufacturing (primarily seafood processing) shrinking 1,300 positions and Information, down 200 jobs.

    Alaska’s Gross State Product (“GSP”) in the second quarter of 2024, was estimated to be $69.8 billion in current dollars, according to the Federal Bureau of Economic Analysis (“BEA”). Alaska’s inflation adjusted “real” GSP increased 6.5% in 2023, placing Alaska fifth best of all 50 states. However, in the second quarter of 2024 Alaska decreased at an annualized rate of 1.1%, compared to the average U.S. growth rate of 3%. Alaska’s real GSP decline in the second quarter of 2024 was primarily caused by a slowdown in the Mining, Oil & Gas; and Transportation and Warehousing sectors.

    The BEA also calculated Alaska’s seasonally adjusted personal income at $55.4 billion in the second quarter of 2024. This was an annualized improvement of 4% for Alaska, compared to the national average of 5.3%.

    The monthly average price of Alaska North Slope (“ANS”) crude oil was at an annual high of $89.05 in April of 2024 and averaged $74.06 in September of this year. The Alaska Department of Revenue (“DOR”) calculated ANS crude oil production was 479 thousand barrels per day (“bpd”) in Alaska’s fiscal year ending June 30, 2023 and declined to 461 thousand bpd in Alaska’s fiscal year 2024. Starting in fiscal year 2025 it is projected to grow to 477 thousand bpd. The DOR projects the number to grow rapidly and reach 640 thousand bpd by fiscal year 2033. This is primarily a result of new production coming on-line in and around the NPR-A region west of Prudhoe Bay.

    According to the Alaska Multiple Listing Services, the average sales price of a single family home in Anchorage rose 5.2% in 2023 to $480,207, following a 7.6% increase in 2022. This was the sixth consecutive year of price increases.   In the first nine months of 2024 the average price continues to increase 6.8% to an average sale of
    $512,815.

    The average sales price for single family homes in the Matanuska Susitna Borough rose 4% in 2023 to $397,589, after increasing 9.9% in 2022. This continues a trend of average price increases for more than a decade in the region. In the first nine months of 2024 the average sales price increased 4.6% in the Matanuska Susitna Borough to $415,709. These two markets represent where the vast majority of the Bank’s residential lending activity occurs.

    The Alaska Multiple Listing Services reported a 1.2% decrease in the number of units sold in Anchorage when comparing January to September of 2023 and 2024. There were 5.4% less homes sold in the Matanuska Susitna Borough for the same nine month time period in 2024 compared to the prior year.

    Northrim Bank sponsors the Alaskanomics blog to provide news, analysis, and commentary on Alaska’s economy. Join the conversation at Alaskanomics.com, or for more information on the Alaska economy, visit: www.northrim.com and click on the “Business Banking” link and then click “Learn.” Information from our website is not incorporated into, and does not form, a part of this earnings release.

    Review of Income Statement

    Consolidated Income Statement

    In the third quarter of 2024, Northrim generated a ROAA of 1.22% and a ROAE of 13.69%, compared to 1.31% and 14.84%, respectively, in the second quarter of 2024 and 1.22% and 14.67%, respectively, in the third quarter a year ago.

    Net Interest Income/Net Interest Margin

    Net interest income increased 7% to $28.8 million in the third quarter of 2024 compared to $27.1 million in the second quarter of 2024 and increased 9% compared to $26.4 million in the third quarter of 2023. Interest expense on deposits increased to $10.1 million in the third quarter of 2024 compared to $9.5 million in the second quarter and $7.1 million in the third quarter of 2023.

    NIMTE* was 4.35% in the third quarter of 2024 up from 4.30% in the preceding quarter and 4.21% in the third quarter a year ago. NIMTE* increased 14 basis points in the third quarter of 2024 compared to the third quarter of 2023 primarily due to a favorable change in the mix of earning-assets towards higher loan balances as a percentage of total earning-assets, higher earning-assets, and higher yields on those assets which were only partially offset by an increase in costs on interest-bearing deposits. The weighted average interest rate for new loans booked in the third quarter of 2024 was 7.24% compared to 7.90% in the second quarter of 2024 and 7.44% in the third quarter a year ago. The yield on the investment portfolio in the third quarter of 2024 decreased slightly to 2.80% from 2.82% in the second quarter of 2024 and increased from 2.43% in the third quarter of 2023. “We continue to see the benefit of new loan volume and repricing outweigh the modest increase in deposit costs in the third quarter of 2024,” said Jed Ballard, Chief Financial Officer. Northrim’s NIMTE* continues to remain above the peer average of 3.13% posted by the S&P U.S. Small Cap Bank Index with total market capitalization between $250 million and $1 billion as of June 30, 2024.

    Provision for Credit Losses

    Northrim recorded a provision for credit losses of $2.1 million in the third quarter of 2024, which was comprised of of a $325,000 provision for credit losses on unfunded commitments and a provision for credit losses on loans of $1.7 million. The provision for unfunded commitments was primarily due to an increase in unfunded commitments, as well as an increase in estimated loss rates due to changes in mix and management’s assessment of economic conditions. The increase to the provision for credit losses on loans was primarily a result of loan growth, as well as an increase in the provision for loans individually evaluated and an increase in estimated loss rates. This compares to a benefit to the provision for credit losses of $120,000 in the second quarter of 2024, and provision for credit losses of $1.2 million in the third quarter a year ago.

    Nonperforming loans, net of government guarantees, increased slightly during the quarter to $5.0 million at September 30, 2024, compared to $4.8 million at June 30, 2024, and decreased from $5.1 million at September 30, 2023.

    The allowance for credit losses on loans was 394% of nonperforming loans, net of government guarantees, at the end of the third quarter of 2024, compared to 365% three months earlier and 326% a year ago.

    Other Operating Income

    In addition to home mortgage lending, Northrim has interests in other businesses that complement its core community banking activities, including purchased receivables financing and wealth management. Other operating income contributed $11.6 million, or 29% of total third quarter 2024 revenues, as compared to $9.6 million, or 26% of revenues in the second quarter of 2024, and $8.0 million, or 23% of revenues in the third quarter of 2023. The increase in other operating income in the third quarter of 2024 as compared to the preceding quarter and the third quarter of 2023 was primarily the result of an increase in mortgage banking income due to a higher volume of mortgage activity. See further discussion regarding mortgage activity during the second quarter contained under “Home Mortgage Lending” below. The fair market value of marketable equity securities increased $576,000 in the third quarter of 2024 compared to a decrease of $60,000 in the prior quarter and an increase of $12,000 in the third quarter of 2023. The increase in other operating income in the third quarter of 2024 as compared to the third quarter a year ago was due primarily to an increase in mortgage banking income as a result of higher volume of mortgage activity due to our expansion in Arizona, Colorado, and the Pacific Northwest markets, as well as an increase in fair value of marketable equity securities.

    Other Operating Expenses

    Operating expenses were $26.7 million in the third quarter of 2024, compared to $25.2 million in the second quarter of 2024, and $22.9 million in the third quarter of 2023. The increase in other operating expenses in the third quarter of 2024 compared to the second quarter of 2024 was primarily due to an increase in salaries and other personnel expense, including $653,000 in mortgage commissions expense due to higher mortgage volume and a $979,000 increase in profit share expense, which was partially offset by a $836,000 decrease in medical claims expense. The increase in other operating expenses in the third quarter of 2024 compared to a year ago was primarily due to an increase in salaries and other personnel expense, as well as an increase in OREO expense due to a gain on sale recorded in the third quarter of 2023 for proceeds received related to a government guarantee on an OREO property sold in December 2022.

    Income Tax Provision

    In the third quarter of 2024, Northrim recorded $2.8 million in state and federal income tax expense for an effective tax rate of 24.2%, compared to $2.5 million, or 21.9% in the second quarter of 2024 and $1.9 million, or 18.4% in the third quarter a year ago. The increase in the tax rate in the third quarter of 2024 as compared to the third quarter of 2023 is primarily the result of a decrease in tax credits and tax exempt interest income as a percentage of pre-tax income in 2024 as compared to 2023.

    Community Banking

    In the most recent deposit market share data from the FDIC, Northrim’s deposit market share in Alaska increased to 15.66% of Alaska’s total deposits as of June 30, 2024 compared to 15.04% of Alaska’s total deposits as of June 30, 2023. This represents 62 basis points of growth in market share percentage for Northrim during that period while, according to the FDIC, the total deposits in Alaska were up 2.3% during the same period. Northrim opened a branch in Kodiak in the first quarter of 2023, a loan production office in Homer in the second quarter of 2023, a permanent branch in Nome in the third quarter of 2023, and a branch in Homer in the first quarter of 2024. See below for further discussion regarding the Company’s deposit movement for the quarter.

    Northrim is committed to meeting the needs of the diverse communities in which it operates. As a testament to that support, the Bank has branches in four regions of Alaska identified by the Federal Reserve as ‘distressed or underserved non-metropolitan middle-income geographies’.

    Net interest income in the Community Banking segment totaled $25.9 million in the third quarter of 2024, compared to $24.3 million in the second quarter of 2024 and $24.1 million in the third quarter of 2023. Net interest income increased 7% in the third quarter of 2024 as compared to the second quarter of 2024 mostly due to higher interest income on loans. This increase was only partially offset by higher interest expense on deposits and borrowings and lower interest income on portfolio investments.

    Other operating expenses in the Community Banking segment totaled $19.1 million in the third quarter of 2024, up $588,000 or 3% from $18.5 million in the second quarter of 2024, and up $2.1 million or 13% from $16.9 million in the third quarter a year ago. The increase in the third quarter of 2024 as compared to the prior quarter was mostly due to an increases in salaries and other personnel expense, marketing expense, and professional fees. The increase in the third quarter of 2024 as compared to the third quarter a year ago was primarily due to an increase in OREO expense due to a gain on sale recorded in the third quarter of 2023 for proceeds received related to a government guarantee on an OREO property sold in December 2022, as well as increases in salaries and other personnel expense and marketing expense.

    The following tables provide highlights of the Community Banking segment of Northrim:

      Three Months Ended
      September   March 31, December September
    (Dollars in thousands, except per share data) 30, 2024 June 30, 2024   2024   31, 2023   30, 2023
    Net interest income $25,901 $24,278 $24,215 $24,456 $24,050
    (Benefit) provision for credit losses 1,492 (184)   197   885   1,190
    Other operating income 4,540 3,693   3,813   4,048   3,597
    Other operating expense 19,085 18,497   17,552   18,516   16,946
    Income before provision for income taxes 9,864 9,658   10,279   9,103   9,511
    Provision for income taxes 2,316 2,004   2,242   1,941   1,709
    Net income $7,548 $7,654 $8,037 $7,162 $7,802
    Weighted average shares outstanding, diluted 5,583,055 5,558,580   5,554,930   5,578,491   5,624,906
    Diluted earnings per share $1.34 $1.37 $1.45 $1.29 $1.39
      Year-to-date
    (Dollars in thousands, except per share data) September
    30, 2024
    September
    30, 2023
    Net interest income $ 74,394 $ 71,502
    Provision for credit losses   1,505   2,957
    Other operating income   12,046   9,564
    Other operating expense   55,134   52,168
    Income before provision for income taxes   29,801   25,941
    Provision for income taxes   6,562   5,216
    Net income Community Banking segment $ 23,239 $ 20,725
    Weighted average shares outstanding, diluted   5,574,135   5,688,687
    Diluted earnings per share $ 4.16 $ 3.64

    Home Mortgage Lending

    During the third quarter of 2024, mortgage loans funded for sale increased to $210.0 million, compared to $152.3 million in the second quarter of 2024, and $131.9 million in the third quarter of 2023.

    During the third quarter of 2024, the Bank purchased Residential Mortgage-originated loans of $38.1 million of which roughly two-thirds were jumbos and one-third were mortgages for second homes, with a weighted average interest rate of 6.59%, up from $29.2 million and 6.82% in the second quarter of 2024, and up from $21.6 million and 6.60% in the third quarter of 2023. The increase in mortgage loans funded for investment has increased net interest income in the Home Mortgage Lending segment. Net interest income contributed $2.9 million to total revenue in the third quarter of 2024, up from $2.8 million in the prior quarter, and up from $2.3 million in the third quarter a year ago.

    The Arizona, Colorado, and the Pacific Northwest mortgage expansion markets were responsible for 20% of Residential Mortgage’s $248 million total production in the third quarter of 2024, 22% of $182 million total production in the second quarter of 2024, and 8% of $153 million total production in the third quarter of 2023.

    The net change in fair value of mortgage servicing rights decreased mortgage banking income by $968,000 during the third quarter of 2024 compared to a decrease of $81,000 for the second quarter of 2024 and a decrease of $310,000 for the third quarter of 2023. Mortgage servicing revenue increased to $2.6 million in the third quarter of 2024 from $2.2 million in the prior quarter and from $2.4 million in the third quarter of 2023 due to an increase in production of Alaska Housing Finance Corporation (AHFC) mortgages, which contribute to servicing revenues at origination. In the third quarter of 2024, the Company’s servicing portfolio increased $64.8 million, which included $87.3 million in new mortgage loans, net of amortization and payoffs of $22.5 million as compared to a net increase of $41.8 million in the second quarter of 2024 and $58.2 million in the third quarter of 2023.

    As of September 30, 2024, Northrim serviced 4,187 loans in its $1.17 billion home-mortgage-servicing portfolio, a 6% increase compared to the $1.10 billion serviced as of the end of the second quarter of 2024, and a 19% increase from the $982.1 million serviced a year ago.

    The following tables provide highlights of the Home Mortgage Lending segment of Northrim:

      Three Months Ended  
        September       March 31,     December     September  
    (Dollars in thousands, except per share data)   30, 2024   June 30, 2024   2024     31, 2023     30, 2023  
    Mortgage commitments $77,591   $88,006   $56,208   $22,926   $50,128  
    Mortgage loans funded for sale $209,960   $152,339   $84,324   $79,742   $131,863  
    Mortgage loans funded for investment   38,087     29,175     17,403     27,114     21,585  
    Total mortgage loans funded $248,047   $181,514   $101,727   $106,856   $153,448  
    Mortgage loan refinances to total fundings   6 %   6 %   4 %   4 %   5 %
    Mortgage loans serviced for others $1,166,585   $1,101,800   $1,060,007   $1,044,516   $982,098  
    Net realized gains on mortgage loans sold $5,079   $3,188   $1,980   $1,462   $2,491  
    Change in fair value of mortgage loan commitments, net   60     391     386     (296 )   (289 )
    Total production revenue   5,139     3,579     2,366     1,166     2,202  
    Mortgage servicing revenue   2,583     2,164     1,561     2,180     2,396  
    Change in fair value of mortgage servicing rights:                              
    Due to changes in model inputs of assumptions1   (566 )   239     289     (707 )    
    Other2   (402 )   (320 )   (314 )   (301 )   (310 )
    Total mortgage servicing revenue, net   1,615     2,083     1,536     1,172     2,086  
    Other mortgage banking revenue   293     222     129     99     117  
    Total mortgage banking income $7,047   $5,884   $4,031   $2,437   $4,405  
               
    Net interest income $2,941   $2,775   $2,232   $2,276   $2,300  
    Provision (benefit) for credit losses   571     64     (48 )        
    Mortgage banking income   7,047     5,884     4,031     2,437     4,405  
    Other operating expense   7,643     6,697     6,086     5,477     5,951  
    Income (loss) before provision for income taxes   1,774     1,898     225     (764 )   754  
    Provision (benefit) for income taxes   497     532     63     (215 )   182  
    Net income (loss) $1,277   $1,366   $162     ($549 ) $572  
    Weighted average shares outstanding, diluted   5,583,055     5,558,580     5,554,930     5,578,491     5,624,906  
    Diluted earnings per share $0.23   $0.25   $0.03     ($0.10 ) $0.09  

    1Principally reflects changes in discount rates and prepayment speed assumptions, which are primarily affected by changes in interest rates.
    2Represents changes due to collection/realization of expected cash flows over time.

      Year-to-date
    (Dollars in thousands, except per share data) September
    30, 2024
    September
    30, 2023
    Mortgage loans funded for sale $446,623   $296,412  
    Mortgage loans funded for investment   84,665     119,144  
    Total mortgage loans funded $531,288   $415,556  
    Mortgage loan refinances to total fundings   6 %   5 %
             
    Net realized gains on mortgage loans sold $10,247   $6,366  
    Change in fair value of mortgage loan commitments, net   837     194  
    Total production revenue   11,084     6,560  
    Mortgage servicing revenue   6,308     5,188  
    Change in fair value of mortgage servicing rights:            
    Due to changes in model inputs of assumptions1   (38 )   (215 )
    Other2   (1,036 )   (1,464 )
    Total mortgage servicing revenue, net   5,234     3,509  
    Other mortgage banking revenue   644     257  
    Total mortgage banking income $16,962   $10,326  
    Net interest income $7,948   $5,022  
    Provision for credit losses   587      
    Mortgage banking income   16,962     10,326  
    Other operating expense   20,426     18,020  
    Income before provision for income taxes   3,897     (2,672 )
    Provision for income taxes   1,092     (728 )
    Net (loss) income Home Mortgage Lending segment $2,805     ($1,944 )
    Weighted average shares outstanding, diluted   5,574,135     5,688,687  
    Diluted (loss) earnings per share $0.51     ($0.34 )


    1
    Principally reflects changes in discount rates and prepayment speed assumptions, which are primarily affected by changes in interest rates.
    2Represents changes due to collection/realization of expected cash flows over time.

    Balance Sheet Review

    Northrim’s total assets were $2.96 billion at September 30, 2024, up 5% from the preceding quarter and up 6% from a year ago. Northrim’s loan-to-deposit ratio was 76% at September 30, 2024, consistent with 76% at June 30, 2024,
    and up from 71% at September 30, 2023.

    At September 30, 2024, our liquid assets, investments, and loans maturing within one year were $1.07 billion and our funds available for borrowing under our existing lines of credit were $641.7 million. Given these sources of liquidity and our expectations for customer demands for cash and for our operating cash needs, we believe our sources of liquidity to be sufficient for the foreseeable future.

    Average interest-earning assets were $2.67 billion in the third quarter of 2024, up 4% from $2.57 billion in the second quarter of 2024 and up 6% from $2.52 billion in the third quarter a year ago. The average yield on interest- earning assets was 5.92% in the third quarter of 2024, up from 5.83% in the preceding quarter and 5.48% in the third quarter a year ago.

    Average investment securities decreased to $619.0 million in the third quarter of 2024, compared to $640.0 million in the second quarter of 2024 and $715.8 million in the third quarter a year ago. The average net tax equivalent yield on the securities portfolio was 2.80% for the third quarter of 2024, down from 2.82% in the preceding quarter

    and up from 2.43% in the year ago quarter. The average estimated duration of the investment portfolio at September 30, 2024, was approximately 2.3 years compared to approximately 2.8 years at September 30, 2023. As of September 30, 2024, $105.1 million of available for sale securities with a weighted average yield of 0.61% are scheduled to mature in the next six months, $73.0 million with a weighted average yield of 2.48% are scheduled to mature in six months to one year, and $177.8 million with a weighted average yield of 1.31% are scheduled to mature in the following year, representing a total of $355.9 million or 13% of earning assets that are scheduled to mature in the next 24 months.

    Total unrealized losses, net of tax, on available for sale securities decreased by $7.6 million in the third quarter of 2024 resulting in total unrealized loss, net of tax, of $7.6 million compared to $15.2 million at June 30, 2024, and $26.5 million a year ago. The average maturity of the available for sale securities with the majority of the unrealized loss is 1.3 years. Total unrealized losses on held to maturity securities were $2.1 million at September 30, 2024, compared to $3.0 million at June 30, 2024, and $4.5 million a year ago.

    Average interest bearing deposits in other banks increased to $28.4 million in the third quarter of 2024 from $17.4 million in the second quarter of 2024 and decreased from $42.3 million in the third quarter of 2023, as deposit balances increased and cash was used to fund the loan growth and provide liquidity.

    Portfolio loans were $2.01 billion at September 30, 2024, up 7% from the preceding quarter and up 17% from a year ago. Portfolio loans, excluding consumer mortgage loans, were $1.76 billion at September 30, 2024, up $105.2 million or 6% from the preceding quarter and up 14% from a year ago. This increase was diversified throughout the loan portfolio including commercial real estate nonowner-occupied and multi-family loans increasing by $33.2 million, construction loans increasing by $31.4 million, and commercial real estate owner-occupied loans increasing $29.0 million from the preceding quarter. Average portfolio loans in the third quarter of 2024 were $1.93 billion, which was up 5% from the preceding quarter and up 14% from a year ago. Yields on average portfolio loans in the third quarter of 2024 increased to 6.91% from 6.87% in the second quarter and from 6.61% in the third quarter of 2023. The increase in the yield on portfolio loans in the third quarter of 2024 compared to the second quarter of 2024 and the third quarter a year ago is primarily due to loan repricing due to the increases in interest rates and new loans booked at higher rates due to changes in the interest rate environment. The yield on new portfolio loans, excluding consumer mortgage loans, was 7.43% in the third quarter of 2024 as compared to 8.26% in the second quarter of 2024 and 7.75% in the third quarter of 2023. The drop in yields on new loan production was largely related to the large volume of new commercial real estate versus commercial loans, as noted above, as well as slightly better credit quality of the loans originated in the third quarter of 2024.

    Alaskans continue to account for substantially all of Northrim’s deposit base. Total deposits were $2.63 billion at September 30, 2024, up 7% from $2.46 billion at June 30, 2024, and up 8% from $2.43 billion a year ago. “The increase in deposits in the third quarter of 2024 were consistent with our customers’ business cycles and a result of continued acquisition of new relationships,” said Ballard. At September 30, 2024, 73% of total deposits were held in business accounts and 27% of deposit balances were held in consumer accounts. Northrim had approximately 34,000 deposit customers with an average balance of $48,000 as of September 30, 2024. Northrim had 22 customers with balances over $10 million as of September 30, 2024, which accounted for $978.4 million, or 38%, of total deposits. Demand deposits increased by 8% from the prior quarter and decreased slightly year-over-year to
    $763.6 million at September 30, 2024. Demand deposits remained consistent at 29% of total deposits at both September 30, 2024 and June 30, 2024 down from 31% of total deposits at September 30, 2023. Average interest- bearing deposits were up 4% to $1.80 billion with an average cost of 2.24% in the third quarter of 2024, compared to $1.73 billion and an average cost of 2.21% in the second quarter of 2024, and up 11% compared to $1.62 billion and an average cost of 1.75% in the third quarter of 2023. Uninsured deposits totaled $1.12 billion or 43% of total deposits as of September 30, 2024 compared to $1.1 billion or 46% of total deposits as of December 31, 2022. Since interest rates began increasing in 2022, Northrim has taken a proactive, targeted approach to increase deposit rates.

    Shareholders’ equity was $260.1 million, or $47.27 book value per share, at September 30, 2024, compared to $247.2 million, or $44.93 book value per share, at June 30, 2024 and $225.3 million, or $40.60 book value per share, a year ago. Tangible book value per share* was $44.36 at September 30, 2024, compared to $42.03 at June

    30, 2024, and $37.72 per share a year ago. The increase in shareholders’ equity in the third quarter of 2024 as compared to the second quarter of 2024 was largely the result of earnings of $8.8 million and an increase in the fair value of the available for sale securities portfolio, which increased $7.6 million, net of tax, which were only partially offset by dividends paid of $3.4 million. The Company did not repurchase any shares of common stock in the third quarter of 2024 and has 110,000 shares remaining under the current share repurchase program as of September 30, 2024. Tangible common equity to tangible assets* was 8.28% as of September 30, 2024, compared to 8.24% as of June 30, 2024 and 7.54% as of September 30, 2023. Northrim continues to maintain capital levels in excess of the requirements to be categorized as “well-capitalized” with Tier 1 Capital to Risk Adjusted Assets of 11.53% at September 30, 2024, compared to 11.68% at June 30, 2024, and 11.67% at September 30, 2023.

    Asset Quality

    Northrim believes it has a consistent lending approach throughout economic cycles, which emphasizes appropriate loan-to-value ratios, adequate debt coverage ratios, and competent management.

    Nonperforming assets (“NPAs”) net of government guarantees were $5.3 million at September 30, 2024, up from $5.1 million at June 30, 2024 and $5.2 million a year ago. Of the NPAs at September 30, 2024, $3.0 million, or 61%, are nonaccrual loans related to three commercial relationships.

    Net adversely classified loans were $6.5 million at September 30, 2024, as compared to $7.1 million at June 30, 2024, and $7.3 million a year ago. Adversely classified loans are loans that Northrim has classified as substandard, doubtful, and loss, net of government guarantees. Net loan recoveries were $96,000 in the third quarter of 2024, compared to net loan recoveries of $26,000 in the second quarter of 2024, and net loan recoveries of $96,000 in the third quarter of 2023. Additionally, Northrim had 11 loan modifications to borrowers experiencing financial difficulty totaling $3.1 million, net of government guarantees in the third quarter of 2024.

    Northrim had $127.4 million, or 6% of portfolio loans, in the Healthcare sector, $110.4 million, or 5% of portfolio loans, in the Tourism sector, $96.6 million, or 5% of portfolio loans, in the Accommodations sector, $83.6 million, or 4% of portfolio loans, in the Fishing sector, $70.6 million, or 3% of portfolio loans, in the Aviation (non-tourism) sector, $67.7 million, or 3% of portfolio loans, in the Retail sector, and $53.1 million, or 3% in the Restaurants and Breweries sector as of September 30, 2024.

    Northrim estimates that $82.0 million, or approximately 4% of portfolio loans, had direct exposure to the oil and gas industry in Alaska, as of September 30, 2024, and $1.6 million of these loans are adversely classified. As of September 30, 2024, Northrim has an additional $29.7 million in unfunded commitments to companies with direct exposure to the oil and gas industry in Alaska, and no unfunded commitments on adversely classified loans. Northrim defines direct exposure to the oil and gas sector as loans to borrowers that provide oilfield services and other companies that have been identified as significantly reliant upon activity in Alaska related to the oil and gas industry, such as lodging, equipment rental, transportation and other logistics services specific to this industry.

    About Northrim BanCorp

    Northrim BanCorp, Inc. is the parent company of Northrim Bank, an Alaska-based community bank with 20 branches in Anchorage, Eagle River, the Matanuska Valley, the Kenai Peninsula, Juneau, Fairbanks, Nome, Kodiak, Ketchikan, and Sitka, serving 90% of Alaska’s population; and an asset-based lending division in Washington; and a wholly-owned mortgage brokerage company, Residential Mortgage Holding Company, LLC. The Bank differentiates itself with its detailed knowledge of Alaska’s economy and its “Customer First Service” philosophy. Pacific Wealth Advisors, LLC is an affiliated company of Northrim BanCorp.

    www.northrim.com

    Forward-Looking Statement

    This release may contain “forward-looking statements” as that term is defined for purposes of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. These statements are, in effect, management’s attempt to predict future events, and thus are subject to various risks and uncertainties. Readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which reflect management’s views only as of the date hereof. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, regarding our financial position, business strategy, management’s plans and objectives for future operations are forward-looking statements. When used in this report, the words “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “expect,” and “intend” and words or phrases of similar meaning, as they relate to Northrim and its management are intended to help identify forward-looking statements. Although we believe that management’s expectations as reflected in forward-looking statements are reasonable, we cannot assure readers that those expectations will prove to be correct. Forward-looking statements, are subject to various risks and uncertainties that may cause our actual results to differ materially and adversely from our expectations as indicated in the forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include: potential further increases in interest rates; the value of securities held in our investment portfolio; the impact of the results of government initiatives on the regulatory landscape, natural resource extraction industries, and capital markets; the impact of declines in the value of commercial and residential real estate markets, high unemployment rates, inflationary pressures and slowdowns in economic growth; changes in banking regulation or actions by bank regulators; inflation, supply-chain constraints, and potential geopolitical instability, including the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East; financial stress on borrowers (consumers and businesses) as a result of higher rates or an uncertain economic environment; the general condition of, and changes in, the Alaska economy; our ability to maintain or expand our market share or net interest margin; the sufficiency of our provision for credit losses and the accuracy of the assumptions or estimates used in preparing our financial statements, including those related to current expected credit losses accounting guidance; our ability to maintain asset quality; our ability to implement our marketing and growth strategies; our ability to identify and address cyber-security risks, including security breaches, “denial of service attacks,” “hacking,” and identity theft; disease outbreaks; and our ability to execute our business plan. Further, actual results may be affected by competition on price and other factors with other financial institutions; customer acceptance of new products and services; the regulatory environment in which we operate; and general trends in the local, regional and national banking industry and economy. In addition, there are risks inherent in the banking industry relating to collectability of loans and changes in interest rates. Many of these risks, as well as other risks that may have a material adverse impact on our operations and business, are identified in the “Risk Factors” section of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023, and from time to time are disclosed in our other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. However, you should be aware that these factors are not an exhaustive list, and you should not assume these are the only factors that may cause our actual results to differ from our expectations. These forward- looking statements are made only as of the date of this release, and Northrim does not undertake any obligation to release revisions to these forward-looking statements to reflect events or conditions after the date of this release.

    References:

    https://www.bea.gov/

    http://almis.labor.state.ak.us/

    http://www.tax.alaska.gov/programs/oil/prevailing/ans.aspx

    http://www.tax.state.ak.us/

    www.mba.org

    https://www.alaskarealestate.com/MLSMember/RealEstateStatistics.aspx

    https://www.capitaliq.spglobal.com/web/client?auth=inherit&overridecdc=1&#markets/indexFinancials


    Income
    Statement

    (Dollars in thousands, except per share data) Three Months Ended Year-t o-date
    (Unaudited) September 30, June 30, September 30, September 30, September 30,
        2024   2024     2023     2024     2023  
    Interest Income:                  
    Interest and fees on loans $34,863 $32,367   $29,097   $97,680   $79,104  
    Interest on portfolio investments   4,164   4,310     4,727     12,994     14,018  
    Interest on deposits in banks   389   232     584     1,459     2,901  
    Total interest income   39,416   36,909     34,408     112,133     96,023  
    Interest Expense:                            
    Interest expense on deposits   10,123   9,476     7,138     28,779     17,835  
    Interest expense on borrowings   451   380     920     1,012     1,664  
    Total interest expense   10,574   9,856     8,058     29,791     19,499  
    Net interest income   28,842   27,053     26,350     82,342     76,524  
    (Benefit) provision for credit losses   2,063   (120 )   1,190     2,092     2,957  
    Net interest income after provision for credit losses   26,779   27,173     25,160     80,250     73,567  
    Other Operating Income:                             
    Mortgage banking income   7,047   5,884     4,405     16,962     10,326  
    Bankcard fees   1,196   1,105     1,022     3,218     2,916  
    Purchased receivable income   1,033   1,242     1,180     3,620     3,175  
    Service charges on deposit accounts   605   572     550     1,726     1,512  
    Unrealized gain (loss) on marketable equity securities   576   (60 )   12     830     (445 )
    Other income   1,130   834     833     2,652     2,406  
    Total other operating income   11,587   9,577     8,002     29,008     19,890  
    Other Operating Expense:                            
    Salaries and other personnel expense   17,549   16,627     15,657     49,593     46,324  
    Data processing expense   2,618   2,601     2,589     7,878     7,321  
    Occupancy expense   1,911   1,843     1,857     5,716     5,611  
    Professional and outside services   903   726     803     2,384     2,326  
    Marketing expense   860   690     499     2,063     1,996  
    Insurance expense   596   692     640     2,067     1,844  
    OREO expense, net rental income and gains on sale   2   2     (784 )   (387 )   (766 )
    Intangible asset amortization expense         4         11  
    Other operating expense   2,289   2,013     1,631     6,246     5,521  
    Total other operating expense   26,728   25,194     22,896     75,560     70,188  
                                 
    Income before provision for income taxes   11,638   11,556     10,266     33,698     23,269  
    Provision for income taxes   2,813   2,536     1,892     7,654     4,488  
    Net income $8,825 $9,020   $8,374   $26,044   $18,781  
    Basic EPS $1.60 $1.64   $1.50   $4.73   $3.34  
    Diluted EPS $1.57 $1.62   $1.48   $4.67   $3.30  
    Weighted average shares outstanding, basic   5,501,943   5,500,588     5,569,238     5,500,703     5,630,948  
    Weighted average shares outstanding, diluted   5,583,055   5,558,580     5,624,906     5,574,135     5,688,687  
    Balance Sheet
    (Dollars in thousands)
    (Unaudited)
    September 30, June 30, September 30,
        2024     2024     2023  
    Assets:            
    Cash and due from banks $42,805   $33,364   $31,276  
    Interest bearing deposits in other banks   60,071     21,058     79,952  
    Investment securities available for sale, at fair value   545,210     584,964     652,150  
    Investment securities held to maturity   36,750     36,750     36,750  
    Marketable equity securities, at fair value   12,957     12,381     10,615  
    Investment in Federal Home Loan Bank stock   4,318     4,929     6,334  
    Loans held for sale   97,937     85,926     63,151  
                       
    Portfolio loans   2,007,565     1,875,907     1,720,091  
    Allowance for credit losses, loans   (19,528 )   (17,694 )   (16,491 )
    Net portfolio loans   1,988,037     1,858,213     1,703,600  
    Purchased receivables, net   23,564     25,722     34,578  
    Mortgage servicing rights, at fair value   21,570     21,077     19,396  
    Other real estate owned, net           150  
    Premises and equipment, net   39,625     40,393     40,920  
    Lease right of use asset   7,616     8,244     9,673  
    Goodwill and intangible assets   15,967     15,967     15,973  
    Other assets   66,965     72,680     85,671  
    Total assets $2,963,392   $2,821,668   $2,790,189  
    Liabilities:            
    Demand deposits $763,595   $704,471   $764,647  
    Interest-bearing demand   979,238     906,010     875,814  
    Savings deposits   245,043     238,156     265,799  
    Money market deposits   201,821     195,159     230,814  
    Time deposits   435,870     420,010     290,856  
    Total deposits   2,625,567     2,463,806     2,427,930  
    Other borrowings   13,354     43,961     63,781  
    Junior subordinated debentures   10,310     10,310     10,310  
    Lease liability   7,635     8,269     9,673  
    Other liabilities   46,476     48,122     53,236  
    Total liabilities   2,703,342     2,574,468     2,564,930  
    Shareholders’ Equity:                  
    Total shareholders’ equity   260,050     247,200     225,259  
    Total liabilities and shareholders’ equity $2,963,392   $2,821,668   $2,790,189  

    Additional Financial Information
    (Dollars in thousands)
    (Unaudited)

    Composition of Portfolio Loans

        September 30,
    2024
    June 30, 2024 March 31, 2024 December 31,
    2023
    September 30,
    2023
      Balance % of
    total
    Balance % of
    total
    Balance % of
    total
    Balance % of
    total
    Balance % of
    total
    Commercial loans $492,414   24 % $495,781   26 % $475,220   26 % $486,057   27 % $492,145   28 %
    Commercial real estate:                    
    Owner occupied properties   412,827   20 %   383,832   20 %   372,507   20 %   368,357   20 %   359,019   21 %
    Nonowner occupied and                    
    multifamily properties   584,302   31 %   551,130   30 %   529,904   30 %   519,115   30 %   509,939   30 %
    Residential real estate:                    
    1-4 family properties                    
    secured by first liens   248,514   12 %   222,026   12 %   218,552   12 %   203,534   11 %   180,719   10 %
    1-4 family properties                    
    secured by junior liens &                    
    revolving secured by first liens   45,262   2 %   41,258   2 %   35,460   2 %   33,783   2 %   27,342   2 %
    1-4 family construction   39,794   2 %   29,510   2 %   27,751   2 %   31,239   2 %   32,374   2 %
    Construction loans   185,362   9 %   154,009   8 %   153,537   8 %   149,788   8 %   120,909   7 %
    Consumer loans   7,836   %   6,679   %   6,444   %   6,180   %   5,930   %
    Subtotal   2,016,311       1,884,225       1,819,375       1,798,053       1,728,377    
    Unearned loan fees, net   (8,746 )     (8,318 )     (8,240 )     (8,556 )     (8,286 )  
    Total portfolio loans $2,007,565     $1,875,907     $1,811,135     $1,789,497     $1,720,091    


    Composition
    of Deposits

      September 30, 2024 June 30, 2024 March 31, 2024 December 31, 2023 September 30, 2023
      Balance % of
    total
    Balance % of
    total
    Balance % of
    total
    Balance % of
    total
    Balance % of
    total
    Demand deposits $763,595 29 % $704,471 29 % $714,244 29 % $749,683 31 % $764,647 31 %
    Interest-bearing demand   979,238 37 %   906,010 36 %   889,581 37 %   927,291 37 %   875,814 36 %
    Savings deposits   245,043 9 %   238,156 10 %   246,902 10 %   255,338 10 %   265,799 11 %
    Money market deposits   201,821 8 %   195,159 8 %   209,785 9 %   221,492 9 %   230,814 10 %
    Time deposits   435,870 17 %   420,010 17 %   373,571 15 %   331,251 13 %   290,856 12 %
    Total deposits $2,625,567   $2,463,806   $2,434,083   $2,485,055   $2,427,930  

    Additional Financial Information
    (Dollars in thousands)
    (Unaudited)

    Asset Quality   

        September 30,
    2024 
      June 30,
    2024
      September 30,
    2023
     
    Nonaccrual loans $4,944   $4,830   $6,492  
    Loans 90 days past due and accruing   17   17   28  
    Total nonperforming loans   4,961   4,847   6,520  
    Nonperforming loans guaranteed by government       (1,455)  
    Net nonperforming loans   4,961   4,847   5,065  
    Other real estate owned     150  
    Repossessed assets 297   297    
    Net nonperforming assets $5,258   $5,144   $5,215  
    Nonperforming loans, net of government guarantees / portfolio loans   0.25 0.26 % 0.29 %
    Nonperforming loans, net of government guarantees / portfolio loans, net of government guarantees   0.26 % 0.28 % 0.31 %
    Nonperforming assets, net of government guarantees / total assets   0.18 % 0.18 0.19 %
    Nonperforming assets, net of government guarantees / total assets net of government guarantees   0.19 % 0.19 0.19 %
    Adversely classified loans, net of government guarantees $6,503   $7,068   $7,250  
    Special mention loans, net of government guarantees $9,641   $8,902   $5,457  
    Loans 30-89 days past due and accruing, net of government guarantees / portfolio loans   0.08 % 0.03 %
    Loans 30-89 days past due and accruing, net of government guarantees / portfolio loans, net of government guarantees   0.09 % 0.04 %
    Allowance for credit losses / portfolio loans   0.97 0.94 % 0.96 %
    Allowance for credit losses / portfolio loans, net of government guarantees   1.04 1.01 1.02 %
    Allowance for credit losses / nonperforming loans, net of government guarantees   394 % 365 326 %
    Gross loan charge-offs for the quarter $15   $—   $91  
    Gross loan recoveries for the quarter   ($111)   ($26)   ($187)  
    Net loan (recoveries) charge-offs for the quarter   ($96)   ($26)   ($96)  
    Net loan charge-offs (recoveries) year-to-date   ($164)   ($68)   ($134)  
    Net loan charge-offs (recoveries) for the quarter / average loans, for the quarter   —  —  (0.01)
    Net loan charge-offs (recoveries) year-to-date / average loans, year-to-date annualized   (0.01) (0.01)  (0.01)
           

    Additional Financial Information
    (Dollars in thousands)
    (Unaudited)

    Average Balances, Yields, and Rates                

      Three Months Ended
      September 30, 2024   June 30, 2024   September 30, 2023  
      Average Balance Average
    Tax
    Equivalent
    Yield/Rate
    Average
    Balance
    Average
    Tax
    Equivalent
    Yield/Rate
    Average
    Balance
    Average
    Tax
    Equivalent
    Yield/Rate
    Assets            
    Interest bearing deposits in other banks $ 28,409   5.28 % $ 17,352   5.27 % $ 42,273   5.39 %
    Portfolio investments   619,012   2.80 %   639,980   2.82 %   715,767   2.43 %
    Loans held for sale   93,689   6.20 %   65,102   6.08 %   62,350   6.34 %
    Portfolio loans   1,933,181   6.91 %   1,845,832   6.87 %   1,695,736   6.61 %
    Total interest-earning assets   2,674,291   5.92 %   2,568,266   5.83 %   2,516,126   5.48 %
    Nonearning assets   196,266       204,509       205,770    
    Total assets $ 2,870,557     $ 2,772,775     $ 2,721,896    

    Liabilities and Shareholders’ Equity

               
    Interest-bearing deposits $ 1,796,107   2.24 % $ 1,725,013   2.21 % $ 1,619,478   1.75 %
    Borrowings   43,555   4.07 %   38,390   3.92 %   76,681   4.73 %
    Total interest-bearing liabilities   1,839,662   2.29 %   1,763,403   2.25 %   1,696,159   1.88 %
    Noninterest-bearing demand deposits   722,000       706,339       747,147    
    Other liabilities   52,387       58,549       52,078    
    Shareholders’ equity   256,508       244,484       226,512    
    Total liabilities and shareholders’ equity $ 2,870,557     $ 2,772,775     $ 2,721,896    
    Net spread   3.63 %   3.58 %   3.60 %
    NIM   4.29 %   4.24 %   4.15 %
    NIMTE*   4.35 %   4.30 %   4.21 %
    Cost of funds   1.64 %   1.60 %   1.31 %
    Average portfolio loans to average            
    interest-earning assets   72.29 %     71.87 %     67.39 %  
    Average portfolio loans to average total deposits   76.77 %     75.92 %     71.65 %  
    Average non-interest deposits to average            
    total deposits   28.67 %     29.05 %     31.57 %  
    Average interest-earning assets to average            
    interest-bearing liabilities   145.37 %     145.64 %     148.34 %  

    Additional Financial Information
    (Dollars in thousands) (Unaudited)

    Average Balances, Yields, and Rates        

      Year-to-date
      September 30, 2024   September 30, 2023
      Average Average
    Tax Equivalent
      Average Average
    Tax Equivalent
    Balance Yield/Rate   Balance Yield/Rate
    Assets          
    Interest bearing deposits in other banks $35,747   5.34 %   $79,362   4.82 %
    Portfolio investments   643,221   2.82 %     723,693   2.41 %
    Loans held for sale   63,917   6.14 %     40,433   6.06 %
    Portfolio loans   1,857,756   6.85 %     1,608,293   6.46 %
    Total interest-earning assets   2,600,641   5.81 %     2,451,781   5.30 %
    Nonearning assets   200,619         192,430    
    Total assets $2,801,260       $2,644,211    

    Liabilities and Shareholders’ Equity

             
    Interest-bearing deposits $1,751,179   2.20 %   $1,577,308   1.51 %
    Borrowings   35,327   3.76 %     52,075   4.23 %
    Total interest-bearing liabilities   1,786,506   2.23 %     1,629,383   1.60 %
    Noninterest-bearing demand deposits   711,197         746,251    
    Other liabilities   57,097         42,596    
    Shareholders’ equity   246,460         225,981    
    Total liabilities and shareholders’ equity $2,801,260       $2,644,211    
    Net spread   3.58 %     3.70 %
    NIM   4.23 %     4.17 %
    NIMTE*   4.29 %     4.24 %
    Cost of funds   1.59 %     1.10 %
    Average portfolio loans to average interest-earning assets   71.43 %       65.60 %  
    Average portfolio loans to average total deposits   75.45 %       69.22 %  
    Average non-interest deposits to average total deposits   28.88 %       32.12 %  
    Average interest-earning assets to average interest-bearing liabilities   145.57 %       150.47 %  

    Additional Financial Information
    (Dollars in thousands, except per share data)
    (Unaudited)

    Capital Data (At quarter end)

         
                September 30, 2024       June 30, 2024   September 30, 2023
    Book value per share           $47.27   $44.93   $40.60  
    Tangible book value per share*           $44.36   $42.03   $37.72  
    Total shareholders’ equity/total assets           8.78 8.76   8.07  %
    Tangible Common Equity/Tangible Assets*           8.28 8.24   7.54  %
    Tier 1 Capital / Risk Adjusted Assets           11.53 11.68   11.67  %
    Total Capital / Risk Adjusted Assets           12.50 12.58   12.58  %
    Tier 1 Capital / Average Assets           9.08 9.17   9.02  %
    Shares outstanding           5,501,943   5,501,562     5,548,436  
    Total unrealized loss on AFS debt securities, net of income taxes           ($7,617)   ($15,197)     ($26,526 )
    Total unrealized gain on derivatives and hedging activities, net of
    income taxes
              $863   $1,212   $1,485  
         
    Profitability Ratios    
        September 30, 
    2024
      June 30,
    2024
      March 31, 
    2024
      December 31, 2023   September 30,
    2023

    For the quarter:

       
    NIM         4.29%   4.24%   4.16%   4.06%     4.15%  
    NIMTE*         4.35%   4.30%   4.22%   4.12%     4.21%  
    Efficiency ratio         66.11%   68.78%   68.93%   72.21%     66.64%  
    Return on average assets         1.22%   1.31%   1.19%   0.93%     1.22%  
    Return on average equity         13.69%   14.84%   13.84%   11.36%     14.67%  
      September 30,   September 30,  
    2024   2023
    Year-to-date:      
    NIM 4.23 % 4.17 %
    NIMTE* 4.29 % 4.24 %
    Efficiency ratio 67.86 % 72.79 %
    Return on average assets 1.24 % 0.95 %
    Return on average equity 14.12 % 11.11 %


    *Non-GAAP
    Financial Measures
    (Dollars and shares in thousands, except per share data) (Unaudited)

    Non-GAAP financial measures have inherent limitations, are not required to be uniformly applied, and are not audited. Although we believe these non-GAAP financial measures are frequently used by stakeholders in the evaluation of the Company, they have limitations as analytical tools and should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for analysis of results as reported under GAAP.

    Net interest margin on a tax equivalent basis

    Net interest margin on a tax equivalent basis (“NIMTE”) is a non-GAAP performance measurement in which interest income on non-taxable investments and loans is presented on a tax equivalent basis using a combined federal and state statutory rate of 28.43% in both 2024 and 2023. The most comparable GAAP measure is net interest margin and the following table sets forth the reconciliation of NIMTE to net interest margin for the periods indicated.

      Three Months Ended
        September 30,       March 31,     December     September 30,  
        2024   June 30, 2024   2024     31, 2023     2023  
    Net interest income $28,842   $27,053   $26,447   $26,732   $26,350  
    Divided by average interest-bearing assets   2,674,291     2,568,266     2,558,558     2,612,297     2,516,126  
    Net interest margin (“NIM”)2   4.29 %   4.24 %   4.16 %   4.06 %   4.15 %
    Net interest income $28,842   $27,053   $26,447   $26,732   $26,350  
    Plus: reduction in tax expense related to
    tax-exempt interest income
      385     378     379     374     373  
        $29,227     $27,431     $26,826     $27,106     $26,723  
    Divided by average interest-bearing assets NIMTE2   2,674,291     2,568,266     2,558,558     2,612,297     2,516,126  
        4.35 %   4.30 %   4.22 %   4.12 %   4.21 %
      Year-to-date
      September 30, September 30,
      2024     2023  
    Net interest income $82,342   $76,524  
    Divided by average interest-bearing assets   2,600,641     2,451,781  
    Net interest margin (“NIM”)3   4.23 %   4.17 %
    Net interest income
    Plus: reduction in tax expense related to
    $82,342   $76,524  
    tax-exempt interest income   1,142     1,202  
      $83,484   $77,726  
    Divided by average interest-bearing assets   2,600,641     2,451,781  
    NIMTE3   4.29 %   4.24 %


    2
    Calculated using actual days in the quarter divided by 366 for the quarters ended in 2024 and 365 for the quarters ended in 2023, respectively.

    3Calculated using actual days in the year divided by 366 for year-to-date period in 2024 and 365 for year-to-date period in 2023, respectively.


    *Non-GAAP Financial Measures

    (Dollars and shares in thousands, except per share data)
    (Unaudited)

    Tangible Book Value Per Share

    Tangible book value per share is a non-GAAP measure defined as shareholders’ equity, less intangible assets, divided by shares outstanding. The most comparable GAAP measure is book value per share and the following table sets forth the reconciliation of tangible book value per share and book value per share for the periods indicated.

        September 30, 
    2024
      June 30, 2024   March 31, 
    2024
      December
    31, 2023
      September 30,
    2023
    Total shareholders’ equity $260,050 $247,200 $239,327 $234,718 $225,259
    Divided by shares outstanding   5,502   5,502   5,500   5,513   5,548
    Book value per share $47.27 $44.93 $43.52 $42.57 $40.60
        September 30, 
    2024
      June 30, 2024   March 31, 
    2024
      December
    31, 2023
      September 30,
    2023
    Total shareholders’ equity $260,050 $247,200 $239,327 $234,718 $225,259
    Less: goodwill and intangible assets   15,967   15,967   15,967   15,967   15,973
      $244,083 $231,233 $223,360 $218,751 $209,286
    Divided by shares outstanding   5,502   5,502   5,500   5,513   5,548
    Tangible book value per share $44.36 $42.03 $40.61 $39.68 $37.72


    Tangible
    Common Equity to Tangible Assets

    Tangible common equity to tangible assets is a non-GAAP ratio that represents total equity less goodwill and intangible assets divided by total assets less goodwill and intangible assets. The most comparable GAAP measure of shareholders’ equity to total assets is calculated by dividing total shareholders’ equity by total assets and the following table sets forth the reconciliation of tangible common equity to tangible assets and shareholders’ equity to total assets.

    Northrim BanCorp, Inc. September 30,     March 31,   December September 30,
      2024 June 30, 2024   2024     31, 2023     2023  
    Total shareholders’ equity $260,050 $247,200 $239,327   $234,718   $225,259  
    Total assets 2,963,392 2,821,668   2,759,560     2,807,497     2,790,189  
    Total shareholders’ equity to total assets 8.78 % 8.76 %   8.67 %   8.36 %   8.07 %
    Northrim BanCorp, Inc. September 30,   March 31, December September 30,
      2024 June 30, 2024   2024     31, 2023     2023  
    Total shareholders’ equity $260,050 $247,200 $239,327   $234,718   $225,259  
    Less: goodwill and other intangible assets, net 15,967 15,967   15,967     15,967     15,973  
    Tangible common shareholders’ equity $244,083 $231,233 $223,360   $218,751   $209,286  
    Total assets $2,963,392 $2,821,668 $2,759,560   $2,807,497   $2,790,189  
    Less: goodwill and other intangible assets, net 15,967 15,967   15,967     15,967     15,973  
    Tangible assets $2,947,425 $2,805,701 $2,743,593   $2,791,530   $2,774,216  
    Tangible common equity ratio 8.28 % 8.24 %   8.14 %   7.84 %   7.54 %

    Note Transmitted on GlobeNewswire on October 23, 2024, at 2:30 pm Alaska Standard Time.

       
    Contact: Mike Huston, President, CEO, and COO
      (907) 261-8750
      Jed Ballard, Chief Financial Officer
      (907) 261-3539

    The MIL Network

  • MIL-OSI Australia: Minister Shorten interview on 3AW Radio Melbourne with Tom Elliott

    Source: Ministers for Social Services

    E&OE TRANSCRIPT

    SUBJECTS: Melbourne Water flood rezoning in Kensington Banks; future of the NDIS

    TOM ELLIOTT, HOST: So, a couple of years ago there were those terrible floods in mainly, well, it was all up and down the Maribyrnong River, but particularly in Kensington. There was a group of, or there was a bit of land that had previously been considered flood prone and then it wasn’t, so people built houses on it. And then during the floods, hundreds of houses got badly flooded. And these people now face a future where if they want to sell their house, well, it’s going to be very difficult because it’s now a declared flood zone. If they say no, it will stay, but we need to insure our house against future floods, well, that would be hideously expensive because we’ve already had a flood. It’s not dissimilar to suddenly having, you know, having a fire, a bushfire, and your house is suddenly declared to be in a bushfire zone when it wasn’t previously in a bushfire zone. Our next guest is a Member for Maribyrnong. He’s also the Minister for the NDIS in the Federal government, Bill Shorten, good morning.

    BILL SHORTEN, MINISTER FOR THE NDIS AND GOVERNMENT SERVICES: Good morning, Tom.

    ELLIOTT: So, I got this right. We’ve got a group of your constituents who are in flood damaged homes and see no way out.

    SHORTEN: Yeah, listen in June of this year, Melbourne Water had been doing some modelling about increased flood risk. And the great irony is sometimes in the west and the northwest of Melbourne, we feel we get things last compared to the Southeast, whether or not that’s true, it’s sometimes how we feel. But Melbourne Water very kindly decided to evaluate the flood risk in the Maribyrnong and before other parts of Melbourne and residents in Kensington, and Freshwater on the other side of the Maribyrnong, who bought in good faith land and houses, put their investment, their single most important investment, discovered on about 17 June, sometimes just through the media reporting, not even, you know, advance notice, that the rules had changed all of a sudden that their houses were in flood risk areas.

    I want to be very clear. We should look after all Australians who are in, you know, bushfires or flood risk areas. But these residents did the due diligence and Kensington Banks did not have the flood rating that it’s now got. Now, the flood ratings, we’ve got to deal with truth. If because of climate change or other reasons, there’s an increased flood rating, that’s a development, the science is the science. But what’s happened since June is that Melbourne Water, in my opinion, has been singularly deficient in the way in which they communicate with the residents whose lives they’ve changed. They’ve got people have got to think about what does it mean for their safety, but I think more practically their house values, the cost of insurance. And I held a public meeting Tuesday night, the local state member for Melbourne was there, Ellen Sandell, Daniel Mulino, who covers some of the federal turf on the other side of the river. We got the head of the Insurance Council of Australia there, we’ve got the Coordinator General, the National Emergency Management Authority. Melbourne Water had said they were coming, but then they thought it was all too political, so they didn’t turn up on the panel. You can’t keep people in the dark, Tom. You’ve got to tell them the truth.

    ELLIOTT: So, okay, so there’s a short and a long-term issue I’m seeing here. So, on one hand you hold a public meeting to try and talk reasonably and responsibly about this changing of the flood rating and Melbourne Water, which has the power to do things about it, doesn’t show up. So, that’s one issue. The second issue, long term, is there something that Melbourne Water could do to try and offset the flood risk? Because, I mean, I look at Flemington and the VRC. I mean, several years ago they built a giant wall, which meant that they’re sort of, they seem to be immune from floods now. Could something like that be done?

    SHORTEN: Yes. The short answer, yes. I was able to get the Water Minister, Harriet Shing, on the phone when I realised Melbourne Water had just pulled the plug at short notice. She made them turn up, but at least they turned up and sat up the back and took some notes. So, there was some poor old Melbourne Water staff there, but they were let down by their leadership. So, the short-term issue is when you give the community a major development, major news, which is like your house values are tanked at the moment until we get mitigation strategies in place, you don’t get to be the only people who call the shots. The community have a say, they have a voice.

    And the point about this is the people, they’re not sort of, this is not some radical issue. This is your own home. A statutory authority said, hello, your own home, the value of it, we’re going to make a decision based on science and it affects your home value. But what’s happened is Melbourne Water think that they’re the only experts on consultation, so they’ve got their processes. I’m not saying they haven’t done anything. They put out a leaflet telling people how to floodproof their kitchens. You know, like, that’s not a strategy.

    To go to the long-term question, you’re asking. I’ve been the Insurance Minister in Australia. I’ve seen what we’re able to do at Roma and where you build levies, mitigate, I’ve seen what’s happened in Launceston with a Tamar, when you build levies, it works. But Melbourne Water’s sort of got their own secret squirrel process on what they’re going to do and their options, and they’re keeping residents in the dark. I don’t think they’re adequately talking to the Federal Government or council and I’m just calling out an arrogant statutory body who thinks that somehow, they’re above talking to people on any other terms other than the rules they set.

    ELLIOTT: So, is it possible that Melbourne Water behind the scenes, will agree to build some sort of a wall or a levee? Or are they just saying, no, no, no, the river, we have to let the river do what the river wants to do or what?

    SHORTEN: No, I think they’ve put out a tender, not that anyone else has seen the terms of reference, to look at mitigation options. The thing is, it’s now been four months. Melbourne Water’s moving to the beat of their own drum, to the beat of their own clock. That’s not satisfactory. The residents, the people who are affected, have been kept in limbo and stressed for four months. When the local elected representatives call a meeting, which the statutory body, Melbourne Water, says they’re coming to, then they pull out at the last minute because they think it’s political, when you – statutory bodies are not above dealing with the rest of us. So, I’m filthy at the way Melbourne Water’s handled the consultation so far. Their leadership need to get their head out of their bottom and start talking to people not just in the way they want to, but in the way that people need to be involved in.

    ELLIOTT: Well, I’ll tell you what, we will get in touch with Melbourne Water and just see if we can perhaps expedite that process a bit. Tell me, I mean, your constituents are affected. It must be, you know, like a man’s house is his castle and all that sort of thing. But to not know the future of hundreds of properties, like, are we going to be permanently flood prone or is a wall going to be built? Or if we sell, do we take a massive loss? I mean, that must be making life very difficult for some people.

    SHORTEN: It is very stressful for people. I actually think the Kensington Banks residents have been remarkably reasonable. I mean, they’re toey, toeier than a Roman sandal. I get that. But they’ve been more reasonable than I think maybe you or I would be in the same circumstances. Melbourne Water just has to change their approach. They can’t – you know, no more control freak behaviour. They’ve got to set up an advisory board, all levels of government, you know, down there, you know, there’s public transport, railway bridges, there’s industry that are affected. You’ve got to get those; you’ve got to get the community there. There’s got to be full transparency on the modelling. What are the terms of reference? I mean, floods are not new in Australia.

    ELLIOTT: No.

    SHORTEN: In Lismore where unfortunately they get a lot of floods, they’ve got this Northern Rivers living laboratory where they have a shop front and the citizens can come in and say, oh, this is what we think is a good idea. They can see what ideas are being done. Melbourne Water, I think, needs to up its, bring its A game to stakeholder consultation in a way which it doesn’t say it controls everything. That’s for the whole Maribyrnong catchment area.

    ELLIOTT: Well, we’ll get in touch with them and see if we can get them on the program and I’ll put your concerns to them. Now, look, you’re retiring in a few months. Are you going to have the NDIS all sorted out before you vacate the office?

    SHORTEN: The NDIS is like painting the harbour bridge. When you get to one end of it, you start again. But do I think that we’re getting on top of some of the rorts? Yes, I’m changing jobs, not retiring. The thing about it is, when I came in at the beginning of the three years, I knew the scheme was changing lives for the better, but there was a complete naivety about how to administer the scheme. What we’ve done in the last two and a half years is we’ve upped the tempo on catching crooks. We’ve now got 500 investigations, we’ve got 55, 56 people in the courts or heading to court. We’ve got people in jail now. We’ve now said what you can spend money on after talking to people, what you can’t spend money on. We’re now sorting out the assessment process. We’ve now got the legal ability to make sure the assessment process is consistent, transparent and equitable. I love the scheme, I’m very proud of it. The rest of the world looks at it. The idea of giving a personal budget to people with profound and severe disabilities and their families is life changing. But we need to register most of the service providers, they weren’t registered. We need a much better back office in the way we – you can’t just put in an invoice with no ABN and no explanation and expect to get paid. All of these matters we’ve now either stopped or got the legal authority to start stamping out. So, I do think the NDIS is on a more sustainable trajectory. So, it’s there for future generations and it’s serving the original purpose of the scheme.

    ELLIOTT: Look, good luck with that and good luck with your future career as I think it’s Vice Chancellor of Canberra University, Bill Shorten there. He’s still the NDIS Minister and the Member for Maribyrnong and, well, very passionate about the shortcomings of Melbourne Water

    MIL OSI News

  • MIL-OSI Australia: Flood affected Kensington residents call for action

    Source: Ministers for Social Services

    The Minister for NDIS and Government Services and local Member for Maribyrnong Bill Shorten called on Melbourne Water to take immediate action to address widespread community concerns following the reclassification of Kensington Banks as a high-risk flood zone.

    The reclassification affects approximately 900 homes and over 2,000 residents in the area.

    About 200 impacted residents attended a community forum at Kensington Town Hall on Tuesday night, and were outraged senior Melbourne Water representatives had not turned up.

    “Melbourne Water was reluctant to join the meeting because they thought this was political. Of course it’s political,” Minister Shorten said.

    “Why Melbourne Water think it’s beneath them to want to send someone senior smacks to me of arrogance and I’m filthy about it. And it’s just not the way I expect people to behave, especially when they’re the ones who sprung a surprise on us.”

    The community is concerned homes will become uninsurable in coming years, despite property owners buying into the area in good faith and on the best advice of the existing flood modelling.

    Minister Shorten reassured the meeting they had his support and was working hard with his political colleagues to put pressure on Melbourne Water.  

    “No one here has done anything wrong at all. You haven’t taken any risks. You went in, eyes open. It’s just the facts have changed in front of you. Now, that’s a problem. But that’s not on you.”

    Federal Member for Fraser Daniel Mulino and State Member for Melbourne Ellen Sandell joined representatives from the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) and the Insurance Council of Australia to hear from concerned residents regarding the lack of transparency with Melbourne Water’s tender process for mitigation planning, and the lack of consistent communication as to what steps can be taken by residents to address their individual changes in circumstance.

    Minister Shorten said if it wasn’t for the Victoria Water Minister Harriet Shing, intervening, Melbourne Water representatives would not have attended at the last minute to take notes at the meeting.

    “Senior Melbourne Water representatives, who had the least distance to travel, couldn’t’ turn up and give an accounting of their actions to a public meeting. It’s really disgraceful,” Minister Shorten said.

    “Getting Melbourne Water to be transparent shouldn’t be a game of hide and seek where they hide what they’re doing and the residents have to seek out that information.”

    “Melbourne Water do themselves no favours. If they’re actually working furiously behind the scenes, then they need to tell us and also the study options need to be transparent. The underpinning, whoever is going to do it, I just want it done. But you need to be able to deconstruct it and see if they’ve considered all the innovations, all the options, and it needs to be very bottom up. People have got to see what’s going on within the Insurance Council engagement as well. But I think it’s reasonable to say, what’s the timeline? Where’s the advisory board?” Minister Shorten told the meeting.

    Initial community consultation began in April of this year, with Melbourne Water indicating that they are currently completing detailed assessments of long-term, sustainable mitigation options. However, Melbourne Water’s failure to provide a clear timeline for the tendering of contracts to develop these strategies has caused growing anxiety among affected community members.

    “I do want Melbourne Water to feel more urgency. If there’s a statutory body in this country who will only meet on their terms, then they’re kidding themselves,” Minister Shorten concluded.

    MIL OSI News

  • MIL-OSI Economics: My Vision for ADB: Strive Together to Attain Sustainable and Inclusive Growth in the Region with Innovative and Tailored Solutions – Masato Kanda

    Source: Asia Development Bank

    ADB has played a vital role in the development of the Asia and Pacific region not only helping it become the engine room of global growth today but ensuring the region is resilient and inclusive. The many crises and challenges currently confronting us, from climate change to digitalization and gender equality, require continually striving for ADB to remain the most trusted partner for all members. Throughout my nearly four decades as a government official, I have had the tremendous opportunity to work with many dedicated professionals in the region committed to a shared vision of economic stability and prosperity, and poverty eradication.

    If I am afforded the immense privilege of being the next President of ADB, I will steadfastly commit to ensuring ADB can achieve its vision of delivering sustainable and inclusive growth to the region with innovative and tailored solutions, in alignment with the updated Strategy 2030. I can only do this by working with each and every member and delivering the New Operating Model so the ADB remains a client-first bank that maximizes its development impact, underpinned by talented and diverse staff.

    1. Background

    Since its inception in 1966, ADB has played a vital role in supporting developing member countries (DMCs) in Asia and the Pacific. Throughout its history, it has worked unflinchingly on the arduous tasks, including, most notably, facilitation of the recovery after the 1997 Asian financial crisis. Each time it faces a crisis, ADB has provided innovative solutions. The launch of the ADF (Asian Development Fund) and the bond issuance to enhance its support to DMCs after the oil shock in 1970s is a case in point. ADB also helped DMCs achieve a solid track record of growth through its financial and non-financial instruments. The real growth rate of Emerging and Developing Asia over the past 10 years was 5.6 percent, 2.5 percentage points higher than global growth.

    However, despite the clear progress toward sustainable and inclusive growth, significant challenges remain. The ongoing climate crisis and the risk of another pandemic as serious as COVID 19, indicate that ADB should be even bolder to address global public goods (GPGs) and regional public goods (RPGs). Moreover, while ADB needs to tackle these emerging tasks at a regional and global scale, it remains responsible for supporting DMCs address country-specific challenges, including not least poverty reduction. It is paramount that ADB remains the most trusted partner in the region.

    Over more than 60 years, Japan has been working with all member countries. As a former official at the Japanese Ministry of Finance, in particular during my time as Vice-Minister of Finance for International Affairs, I have had the privilege to work with inspiring leaders, dedicated professionals, and wonderful friends across Asia and the Pacific. Nothing could make me happier than the opportunity to continue to work with all of them to establish a clear pathway toward the ADB’s vision: to achieve a prosperous, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable Asia and the Pacific, while sustaining its efforts to eradicate extreme poverty.

    The rest of this Vision Statement is organized as follows. In the next section, I describe the challenges and unique opportunities for the region. In section 3, I elaborate on my suggested direction that ADB should head toward. Section 4 concludes with my unwavering commitment to help champion sustainable growth in the region.

    2. Challenges and opportunities

    Climate change. The DMCs, in particular Small Island Developing States (SIDS) in the Pacific, are prone to natural disasters stemming from climate change, such as typhoons, cyclones, and rising sea levels. Moreover, Asia and the Pacific emits almost half of the world’s greenhouse gases, partly reflecting its high energy demand. However, its coal plants are relatively young, and its grid coverage is limited, complicating the transition to net-zero. Against this backdrop, ADB has spearheaded innovative climate change initiatives as the region’s climate bank. Nevertheless, bolder actions are still warranted, both on the mitigation and adaptation fronts.

    Infrastructure gap. Infrastructure lays a fundamental basis to eradicate poverty, boost potential growth and enhance regional connectivity. The region still faces a glaring gap in infrastructure. ADB has estimated that developing Asia will need $1.7 trillion annually to close the gap in infrastructure, and this figure could be larger given the modest growth over the past several years. At the same time, more actions are needed for boosting the quality of infrastructure investment, strengthening climate resilience, achieving high environmental and social standards, preserving biodiversity, and creating jobs. 

    Poverty. The number of people who are below the poverty line rose significantly after the COVID-19 crisis, setting back the fight against poverty in Asia and the Pacific by at least two years. Income poverty is often associated with poor health and lack of education, hampering human capital development and restraining growth. Rapid economic growth and a stable macroeconomic environment in the region would help address poverty across the region but this can only be achieved with certain policy actions such as those outlined below.

    Inequality. Economic growth in the region has come with widening inequality, in particular after the COVID-19 crisis. Inequality could damage social stability and cohesion and undermine economic dynamism. Also, while rapid urbanization has provided an increasing number of citizens with access to better public services (education, water and sanitary services, transportation), it can widen the gap with vulnerable people that do not have access to such basic services and the social safety net.

    Diversity. Asia and the Pacific boasts a wide variety of cultures and ethnicities. This has required, and will continue to require, ADB to tailor its supporting tools to country-specific circumstances, with due regard to size, income distribution, population dynamics, and social norms of each DMC. On procurement, while ADB remains committed to maintaining high environmental and social standards, it also needs to take country systems into account.

    Gender. ADB needs to further pursue gender equality in line with its vision. Our journey is yet to be completed: according to the United Nations, the participation of women in the labor force in Asia and the Pacific is below the global average, as is the promotion of women in leadership positions. ADB should continue to be the thought leader to transform the lives of women, by helping DMCs take decisive steps toward gender equality, while recognizing country-specific cultural and social circumstances.

    Private capital mobilization. One of the ADB’s New Operating Model (NOM)’s priorities is a shift toward the private sector. Yet, the amount of private capital mobilization has been significantly below the aspiration of various development agendas, including the Paris Agreement. Mobilizing private capital is easier said than done. The upcoming discussion on the ADB’s Private Sector Development Action Plan will lay a foundation for the ADB’s medium-term efforts to boost private capital mobilization and enable a stronger private sector in line with the ADB’s vision.

    Domestic resource mobilization. In many DMCs, tax revenues are still short of supporting their own sustainable development. The Asia Pacific Tax Hub, established in May 2021 under President Asakawa’s leadership, has helped DMCs modernize their tax systems through strategic policy dialogues, institutional capacity building, knowledge sharing, and collaboration with development partners. The potential benefits of domestic resource mobilization include more private capital mobilization through blended finance.

    Digitalization. Digital technologies can be an enabler that brings transformational impacts, allowing DMCs to leapfrog the development process that advanced economies took much longer to go through. At the same time, rapid progress in digitalization comes with costs and risks, including a digital divide and cyber threats. With the approval of its Strategy 2030 Midterm Review, ADB is pursuing a more active role on digital transformation as one of the new strategic focus areas.

    3. Ways forward

    I will now elaborate how I would work toward achieving a prosperous, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable Asia and the Pacific if I were elected as President of ADB. I will maintain the “client-first” principle as the organization’s highest priority by tailoring the role of ADB to specific challenges faced by all DMCs. Moreover, ADB should fully utilize its well-established collaboration between the sovereign and non-sovereign sectors, which is one of the ADB’s great strengths. My vision below is also crafted with a clear purpose to augment the updated Strategy 2030 with the organizational vision statement and the new strategic focus areas (climate action; private sector development; regional cooperation and public goods; digital transformation; and resilience and empowerment). For this purpose, I would ensure that the Capital Utilization Plan will be ambitious and fully utilize different financial resources.

    Providing innovative financial climate solutions to DMCs. ADB has established its reputation as an innovator in climate and development finance, exemplified by IF-CAP (Innovative Finance Facility for Climate in Asia and the Pacific), which is expected to be officially launched soon. By focusing squarely on the development-climate nexus under the Climate Change Action Plan, ADB should continue to be the region’s climate bank, in line with climate as the first enhanced focus area. In the context of the ongoing MDB Evolution and the CAF (Capital Adequacy Framework) Review, ADB must be a role-model for other MDBs (Multilateral Development Banks) to foster climate mitigation and adaptation.

    Promoting private capital mobilization. With the new quantitative targets under Strategy 2030, ADB should pursue ambitious goals of mobilizing and enabling private capital, by taking concrete actions under the upcoming Private Sector Development Action Plan. Closer engagement with global and regional market participants and industry experts, as well as deepening of domestic capital markets, would help bring much needed private financial flows for sustainable growth.

    Supporting domestic resource mobilization. ADB should remain committed to helping DMCs strengthen their revenue base, paving the way for the achievement of self-sustained development over time. ADB should also make sure that this effort serves as a key ingredient for policy discussion in the context of policy-based loans (PBLs). The Asia Pacific Tax Hub should continue to play an instrumental role in this regard, by providing comprehensive diagnoses on and solutions to the underlying structural problems of revenue shortfalls.

    Fostering regional cooperation and integration. Trade and investment flows are increasingly interconnected within the region, and hence fostering regional cooperation will help garner needed development financial flows and create a favorable macroeconomic environment in the region. ADB should further promote cross-border connectivity, trade integration, and financial links, all of which are regional public goods. Regional procurement, which is being considered in line with the ADF14 agreement, is of particular importance.

    Striking the balance between GPG/RPG and country-specific demand. ADB must strategically calibrate its resource allocation so that it can help deliver GPGs/RPGs, such as air quality management, biodiversity, food and nutrition security, pandemic prevention, preparedness and response, and pollution prevention, while still paying due regard to country-specific circumstances. Enhanced policy dialogue with DMCs, along with in-house analyses on externalities in the region, should be made a priority. Staff incentive structures could be also fine-tuned in line with such an organization-wide ambition.

    Prioritizing digital transformation in a cross-cutting manner. ADB should be responsive to high client demand for digital solutions, including digital connectivity and digital literacy, among others. ADB should actively pursue policies to bring the maximum benefits from digitalization across all different sectors and pursue synergies with other development priorities, such as private capital mobilization, infrastructure development, and regional connectivity. Strengthening its support to social start-up companies with cutting-edge digital technologies could complement these efforts.

    Mainstreaming gender in overall ADB operations. A pathway to gender equality is not uniform, differing from one country to another. The new commitment following the Midterm Review of Strategy 2030 must be attained with all possible measures. ADB should continue to be a champion of gender equality in its operations to empower women in DMCs. To lead by example, ADB should also continue to promote gender equality across the organization.

    Maximizing development impact by tailoring ADB solutions to country-specific development and climate needs. The ADB’s clients widely differ in their size, level of development, development needs, and risks of vulnerabilities and fragility. ADB should fully employ its diagnosis provided by regional VPs/Departments, while ensuring that Country Partnership Strategies benefit from various analytical works by the Sector Group, Governance Thematic Group, Economic Research and Development Impact Department, and other departments. Also, outcome orientation remains a necessary condition to better achieve the organizational vision. The new window to address fragility under ADF14 could be a successful example to address immense challenges faced by fragile and conflict-affected situations (FCAS), as well as SIDS.

    Utilizing knowledge products for operations on the ground. As a regional knowledge bank, ADB has produced a wealth of analytical and knowledge products. While they are undoubtedly used by research institutes in the regions, ADB needs to be more aggressive in disseminating its analytical expertise to country and sector operations on the ground, including lending activities and policy dialogue.

    Fully operationalizing the NOM. Implementing the NOM requires continuous efforts on a multi-year basis. ADB needs to accelerate the transition to a more climate-focused and private sector-oriented business model, particularly to address global and regional challenges at scale. Staff incentive structures should be designed to establish a critical link with organization-wide priorities, such as GPGs/PRGs as well as decentralization. Also, diversity of the staff should remain one of the ADB’s core values.

    Enhancing partnerships with MDBs and DFIs. The development challenges in front of us cannot be solved by ADB alone. ADB should enhance its collaboration with other MDBs and venture into new types of cooperation, such as exposure exchange, beyond traditional co-financing and knowledge sharing. ADB could also strengthen ties with bilateral DFIs (Development Finance Institutions) in the region to create synergies and improve administrative efficiencies while maintaining high environmental and social standards.

    4. Closing remarks

    The socio-economic environment surrounding Asia and the Pacific has drastically changed since the ADB’s inception: now, the region is suffering from chronic natural disasters more often, with severer magnitude; inequality is widening despite increased national income per capita; and uncertainty is looming in the global economy and financial markets. Worse, all these complex problems are inter-connected. ADB is the only organization in the region that helps tackle these challenges, with its unparalleled financial firepower, highly motivated and dedicated staff, and regional convening power.

    More recently, ADB performed immensely in the context of the MDB Evolution over the past two years. The international community is striving hard to redefine the roles of MDBs and update their financial and operational models. Undoubtedly, ADB is, and will continue to be, a frontrunner in this global goal: it has created lending headroom of US$100 billion over the next ten years through its rigorous CAF review, launched innovative financial instruments, and aligned its tools and environmental and social standards with its peers. I am confident that the ADB’s support to DMCs in the region can be a role-model for other MDBs.

    I would also like to emphasize that throughout its history, ADB has built trust among all stakeholders inside and outside the region, including DMCs, donors, civil society, development partners, staff, and management. It is this trust that has enabled ADB to shine as a long-standing home doctor, provide the highest value-add to its clients, and connect leaders and professionals in the region.

    With these strengths, ADB has positioned itself as the most trusted and dedicated organization in Asia and the Pacific. I would like to devote all my expertise and knowledge to this great organization and work toward its vision, together with colleagues and friends from the region and beyond. I am more than ready to serve to all members.

    MIL OSI Economics

  • MIL-OSI USA: Remarks by APNSA Jake Sullivan at the Brookings  Institution

    US Senate News:

    Source: The White House
    Brookings InstitutionWashington, D.C.
    Good morning, everyone.  And thank you so much, David, for that introduction and for having me here today.  It’s great to be back at Brookings.
    As many of you know, I was here last year to lay out President Biden’s vision for renewing American economic leadership, a vision that responded to several converging challenges our country faced: the return of intense geopolitical competition; a rise in inequality and a squeeze on the middle class; a less vibrant American industrial base; an accelerating climate crisis; vulnerable supply chains; and rapid technological change.
    For the preceding three decades, the U.S. economy had enjoyed stronger topline aggregate growth than other advanced democracies, and had generated genuine innovation and technological progress, but our economic policies had not been adapted to deal effectively with these challenges.  That’s why President Biden implemented a modern industrial strategy, one premised on investing at home in ourselves and our national strength, and on shifting the energies of U.S. foreign policy to help our partners around the world do the same.
    In practice, that’s meant mobilizing public investment to unlock private sector investment to deliver on big challenges like the clean energy transition and artificial intelligence, revitalizing our capacity to innovate and to build, creating diversified and resilient global supply chains, setting high standards for everything from labor to the environment to technology.  Because on that level playing field, our logic goes, America can compete and win.  Preserving open markets and also protecting our national security and doing all of these things together with allies and partners.
    Since I laid this vision out in my speech at Brookings last year, I’ve listened with great interest to many thoughtful responses, because these are early days.  Meaningful shifts in policy require constant iteration and reflection.  That’s what will make our policy stronger and more sustainable. 
    So, today, I’m glad to be back here at Brookings to reengage in this conversation, because I really believe that the ideas I’m here to discuss and the policies that flow from them are among the most consequential elements of the administration’s foreign as well as domestic policy, and I believe they will constitute an important legacy of Joe Biden’s presidency. 
    I want to start by reflecting on some of the questions I’ve heard and then propose a few ways to consolidate our progress.
    One overarching question is at the core of many others: Does our new approach mean that we’re walking away from a positive-sum view of the world, that America is just in it for itself at the expense of everyone else? 
    In a word, no, it doesn’t.  In fact, we’re returning to a tradition that made American international leadership such a durable force, what Alexis de Tocqueville called “interest rightly understood.”  The notion that it’s in our own self-interest to strengthen our partners and sustain a fair economic system that helps all of us prosper.
    After World War Two, we built an international economic order in the context of a divided world, an order that helped free nations recover and avoid a return to the protectionist and nationalist mistakes of the 1930s, an order that also advanced American economic and geopolitical power.
    In the 1990s, after the collapse of the Soviet Union, we took that order global, embracing the old Eastern bloc, China, India, and many developing countries.  Suddenly, the major powers were no longer adversaries or competitors.  Capital flowed freely across borders.  Global supply chains became “just in time,” without anyone contemplating potential strategic risk.
    Each of these approaches was positive-sum, and each reflected the world as it was.
    Now, the world of the 1990s is over, and it’s not coming back, and it’s not a coherent plan or critique just to wish it so.
    We’re seeing the return of great power competition.  But unlike the Cold War era, our economies are closely intertwined.  We’re on the verge of revolutionary technological change with AI, with economic and geopolitical implications.  The pandemic laid bare the fragilities in global supply chains that have been growing for decades.  The climate crisis grows more urgent with every hurricane and heat wave. 
    So we need to articulate, once again, de Tocqueville’s notion of interest rightly understood.  To us, that means pursuing a strategy that is fundamentally positive-sum, calibrated to the geopolitical realities of today and rooted in what is good for America — for American workers, American communities, American businesses, and American national security and economic strength.
    We continue to believe deeply in the mutual benefits of international trade and investment, enhanced and enabled by bold public investment in key sectors; bounded in rare but essential cases by principled controls on key national security technologies; protected against harmful non-market practices, labor and environment abuses, and economic coercion; and critically coordinated with a broad range of partners. 
    The challenges we face are not uniquely our own and nor can we solve them alone.  We want and need our partners to join us.  And given the demand signal we hear back from them, we think that in the next decade, American leadership will be measured by our ability to help our partners pull off similar approaches and build alignment and complementarity across our policies and our investments. 
    If we get that right, we can show that international economic integration is compatible with democracy and national sovereignty.  And that is how we get out of Dani Rodrik’s trilemma.
    Now, what does that mean in practice?  What does this kind of positive-sum approach mean for trade policy?  Are we walking away from trade as a core pillar of international economic policy? 
    U.S. exports and imports have recovered from their dip during the pandemic, with the real value of U.S. trade well above 2019 levels in each of the last two years.  We’re also the largest outbound source of FDI in the world. 
    So, we are not walking away from international trade and investment.  What we are doing is moving away from specific policies that, frankly, didn’t contemplate the urgent challenges we face: The climate crisis.  Vulnerable, concentrated, critical mineral and semiconductor supply chains.  Persistent attacks on workers’ rights.  And not just more global competition, but more competition with a country that uses pervasive non-market policies and practices to distort and dominate global markets. 
    Ignoring or downplaying these realities will not help us chart a viable path forward.  Our approach to trade responds to these challenges. 
    Climate is a good example.  American manufacturers are global leaders in clean steel production, yet they’ve had to compete against companies that produce steel more cheaply but with higher emissions intensity.  That’s why, earlier this year, the White House stood up a Climate and Trade Task Force, and the task force has been developing the right tools to promote decarbonization and ensure our workers and businesses engaged in cleaner production aren’t disadvantaged by firms overseas engaged in dirtier, exploitative production.
    Critical minerals are another example.  That sector is marked by extreme price volatility, widespread corruption, weak labor and environmental protections, and heavy concentration in the PRC, which artificially drops prices to keep competitors out of the marketplace. 
    If we and our partners fail to invest, the PRC’s domination of these and other supply chains will only grow, and that will leave us increasingly dependent on a country that has demonstrated its willingness to weaponize such dependencies.  We can’t accept that, and neither can our partners. 
    That’s why we are working with them to create a high-standard, critical minerals marketplace, one that diversifies our supply chains, creates a level playing field for our producers, and promotes strong workers’ rights and environmental protections.  And we’re driving towards tangible progress on that idea in just the next few weeks.
    In multiple sectors that are important to our future, not just critical minerals, but solar cells, lithium-ion batteries, electric vehicles, we see a broad pattern emerging.  The PRC is producing far more than domestic demand, dumping excess onto global markets at artificially low prices, driving manufacturers around the world out of business, and creating a chokehold on supply chains.
    To prevent a second China shock, we’ve had to act. 
    That’s what drove the decisions about our 301 tariffs earlier this year.
    Now, we know that indiscriminate, broad-based tariffs will harm workers, consumers, and businesses, both in the United States and our partners.  The evidence on that is clear.  That’s why we chose, instead, to target tariffs at unfair practices in strategic sectors where we and our allies are investing hundreds of billions of dollars to rebuild our manufacturing and our resilience. 
    And crucially, we’re seeing partners in both advanced and emerging economies reach similar conclusions regarding overcapacity and take similar steps to ward off damage to their own industries, from the EU to Canada to Brazil to Thailand to Mexico to Türkiye and beyond.  That’s a big deal.
    And it brings me back to my earlier point: We’re pursuing this new trade approach in concert with our partners.  They also recognize we need modern trade tools to achieve our objectives.  That means considering sector-specific trade agreements.  It means creating markets based on standards when that’s more effective.  And it also means revitalizing international institutions to address today’s challenges, including genuinely reforming the WTO to deal with the challenges I’ve outlined. 
    And it means thinking more comprehensively about our economic partnerships.  That’s why we created the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework and the Americas Partnership for Economic Prosperity.  That’s why we also gave them such catchy names. 
    Within IPEF, we finalized three agreements with 13 partners to accelerate the clean energy transition, to promote high labor standards, to fight corruption, and to shore up supply chain vulnerabilities before they become widespread disruptions.  And within APEP, we’re working to make the Western Hemisphere a globally competitive supply chain hub for semiconductors, clean energy, and more. 
    And that leads to the next question I’ve often been asked in the last year and a half: Where does domestic investment fit into all of this?  How does our positive-sum approach square with our modern industrial strategy?
    The truth is that smart, targeted government investment has always been a crucial part of the American formula.  It’s essential to catalyzing private investment and growth in sectors where market failures or other barriers would lead to under-investment.
    Somehow, we forgot that along the way, or at least we stopped talking about it.  But there was no plausible version of answers on decarbonization or supply chain resilience without recovering this tradition.  And so we have.
    We’ve made the largest investment ever to diversify and accelerate clean energy deployment through the Inflation Reduction Act.  And investments are generating hundreds of billions of dollars in private investment all across the country; rapid growth in emerging climate technologies like sustainable aviation fuels, carbon management, clean hydrogen, with investments increasing 6- to 15-fold from pre-IRA levels. 
    This will help us meet our climate commitments.  This will advance our national security.  And this will ensure that American workers and communities can seize the vast economic opportunities of the clean energy transition and that those opportunities are broadly shared.  And that last part is crucial. 
    The fact is that many communities hard hit in decades past still haven’t bounced back, and the two-thirds of American adults who don’t have college degrees have seen unacceptably poor outcomes in terms of real wages, health, and other outcomes over the last four decades.
    For many years, people assumed that these distributional issues would be solved after the fact by domestic policies.  That has not worked. 
    Advancing fairness, creating high-quality jobs, and revitalizing American communities can’t be an afterthought, which is why we’ve made them central to our approach. 
    In fact, as a result of the incentives in the IRA to build in traditional energy communities, investment in those communities has doubled under President Joe Biden.
    Now, initially, when we rolled this all out, our foreign partners worried that it was designed to undercut them, that we were attempting to shift all the clean energy investment and production around the world to the United States.
    But that wasn’t the case, and it isn’t the case. 
    We know that our partners need to invest.  In fact, we want them to invest.  The whole world benefits from the spillover effects of advances in clean energy that these investments bring. 
    And we are nowhere near the saturation point of investment required to meet our clean energy deployment goals, nor will markets alone generate the resources necessary either. 
    So, we’ve encouraged our partners to invest in their own industrial strength.  We’ve steered U.S. foreign policy towards being a more helpful partner in this endeavor.  And our partners have begun to join us.  Look at Japan’s green transformation policy, India’s production-linked incentives, Canada’s clean energy tax credit, the European Union’s Green Deal.
    As more and more countries adopt this approach, we will continue to build out the cooperative mechanisms that we know will be necessary to ensure that we’re acting together to scale up total global investment, not competing with each other over where a fixed set of investments is located.
    The same goes for investing in our high-tech manufacturing strength.  We believe that a nation that loses the capacity to build, risks losing the capacity to innovate.  So, we’re building again.
    As a result of the CHIPS and Science Act, America is on track to have five leading-edge logic and memory chip manufacturers operating at scale.  No other economy has more than two.  And we’re continuing to nurture American leadership in artificial intelligence, including through actions we’re finalizing, as I speak, to ensure that the physical infrastructure needed to train the next generation of AI models is built right here in the United States. 
    But all of this high-tech investment and development hasn’t come at the expense of our partners.  We’ve done it alongside them. 
    We’re leveraging CHIPS Act funding to make complementary investments in the full semiconductor supply chain, from Costa Rica to Vietnam. 
    We’re building a network of AI safety institutes around the world, from Canada to Singapore to Japan, to harness the power of AI responsibly. 
    And we’ve launched a new Quantum Development Group to deepen cooperation in a field that will be pivotal in the decades ahead.
    Simply put, we’re thinking about how to manage this in concert with our allies and partners, and that will make all of us more competitive.
    Now, all this leads to another question that is frequently asked:  What about your technology protection policies?  How does that fit into a positive-sum approach?
    The United States and our allies and partners have long limited the export of dual-use technologies.  This is logical and uncontroversial.  It doesn’t make sense to allow companies to sell advanced technology to countries that could use them to gain military advantage over the United States and our friends. 
    Now, it would be a mistake to attempt to return to the Cold War paradigm of almost no trade, including technological trade, among geopolitical rivals.  But as I’ve noted, we’re in a fundamentally different geopolitical context, so we’ve got to meet somewhere in the middle. 
    That means being targeted in what we restrict, controlling only the most sensitive technologies that will define national security and strategic competition.  This is part of what we mean when we say: de-risking, not decoupling.
    To strike the right balance, to ensure we’re not imposing controls in an arbitrary or reflexive manner, we have a framework that informs our decision-making.  We ask ourselves at least four questions:
    One, which sensitive technologies are or will likely become foundational to U.S. national security? 
    Two, across those sensitive technologies, where do we have distinct advantages and are likely to see maximal effort by our competitors to close the gap?  Conversely, where are we behind and, therefore, most vulnerable to coercion?
    Three, to what extent do our competitors have immediate substitutes for U.S.-sensitive technology, either through indigenous development or from third countries, that would undercut the controls?
    Four, what is the breadth and depth of the coalition we could plausibly build and sustain around a given control?
    When it comes to a narrow set of sensitive technologies, yes, the fence is high, as it should be. 
    And in the context of broader commerce, the yard is small, and we’re not looking to expand it needlessly.
    Now, beyond the realm of export controls and investment screening, we will also take action to protect sensitive data and our critical infrastructure, such as our recent action on connected vehicles from countries of concern.
    I suspect almost no one here would argue that we should build out our telecommunications architecture or our data center infrastructure with Huawei. 
    Millions of cars on the road with technology from the PRC, getting daily software updates from the PRC, sending reams of information back to the PRC, similarly doesn’t make sense, especially when we’ve already seen evidence of a PRC cyber threat to our critical infrastructure.
    We have to anticipate systemic cyber and data risks in ways that, frankly, we didn’t in the past, including what that means for the future Internet of Things, and we have to take the thoughtful, targeted steps necessary in response.
    This leads to a final, kind of fundamental question: Does this approach reflect some kind of pessimism about the United States and our inherent interests? 
    Quite the contrary.  It reflects an abiding and ambitious optimism.  We believe deeply that we can act smartly and boldly, that we can compete and win, that we can meet the great challenges of our time, and that we can deliver for all of our people here in the United States. 
    And while it’s still very early, we have some evidence of that.  This includes the strongest post-pandemic recovery of any advanced economy in the world.  There’s more work to do, but inflation has come down.  And contrary to the predictions that the PRC would overtake the U.S. in GDP either in this decade or the next, since President Biden took office, the United States has more than doubled our lead.  And last year, the United States attracted more than five times more inbound foreign direct investment than the next highest country. 
    We are once again demonstrating our capacity for resilience and reinvention, and others are noticing.  The EU’s Draghi report, published last month, mirrors key aspects of our strategy. 
    Now, as we continue to implement this vision, we will need to stay rigorous.  We will need, for example, to be bold enough to make the needed investments without veering into unproductive subsidies that crowd-out the private sector or unduly compete with our partners.
    We’re clear-eyed that our policies will involve choices and trade-offs.  That’s the nature of policy.  But to paraphrase Sartre, not to choose is also a choice, and the trade-offs only get worse the longer we leave our challenges unchecked.
    Pointing out that it’s challenging to strike the right balance is not an argument to be satisfied with the status quo.
    We have tried to start making real a new positive-sum vision, and we have tried to start proving out its value.  But we still have our work cut out for us. 
    So I’d actually like to end today with a few questions of my own, where our answers will determine our shared success: 
    First, will we sustain the political will here at home to make the investments in our own national strength that will be required of us in the years ahead? 
    Strategic investments like these need to be a bipartisan priority, and I have to believe that we’ll rise to the occasion, that we won’t needlessly give up America’s position of economic and technological leadership because we can no longer generate the political consensus to invest in ourselves.
    There is more we can do now on a bipartisan basis. 
    For example, Congress still hasn’t appropriated the science part of CHIPS and Science, even while the PRC is increasing its science and technology budget by 10 percent year on year.
    Now, whether we’re talking about investments in fundamental research, or grants and loans for firms developing critical technologies, we also have to update our approach to risk.  Some research paths are dead ends.  Some startups won’t survive.  Our innovation base and our private sector are the envy of the world because they take risks.  The art of managing risk for the sake of innovation is critical to successful geostrategic competition. 
    So, we need to nurture a national comfort with, to paraphrase FDR, bold and persistent experimentation.  And when an investment falls short, as it will, we need to maintain our bipartisan will, dust ourselves off, and keep moving forward.  To put it bluntly, our competitors hope we’re not capable of that.  We need to prove them wrong.  We need to make patient, strategic investments in our capacity to compete, and we need to ensure fiscal sustainability in order to keep making those investments over the long term.
    The second question: Will we allocate sufficient resources for investments that are needed globally? 
    Last year, here at Brookings, I talked about the need to go from billions to trillions in investment to help emerging and developing countries tackle modern challenges, including massively accelerating the speed and scale of the clean energy transition. 
    We need a Marshall Plan-style effort, investing in partners around the world and supporting homegrown U.S. innovation in growing markets like storage, nuclear, and geothermal energy. 
    Now, trillions may sound lofty and unachievable, but there is a very clear path to get there without requiring anywhere near that level of taxpayer dollars, and that path is renewed American leadership and investment in international institutions. 
    For example, at the G20 this fall, we’re spearheading an effort that calls for the international financial institutions, the major creditors in the private sector, to step up their relief for countries facing high debt service burdens so they too can invest in their future. 
    Or consider the World Bank and the IMF.  We’ve been leading the charge to make these institutions bigger and more effective, to fully utilize their balance sheets and be more responsive to the developing and emerging economies they serve.  That has already unlocked hundreds of billions of dollars in new lending capacity, at no cost to the United States.  And we can generate further investment on the scale required with very modest U.S. public investments and legislative fixes.  That depends on Congress taking action. 
    For example, our administration requested $750 million — million — from Congress to boost the World Bank’s lending capacity by over $36 billion, which, if matched by our partners, could generate over $100 billion in new resources.  This would allow the World Bank to deploy $200 for every $1 the taxpayers provide.
    We’ve asked Congress to approve investments in a new trust fund at the IMF to help developing countries build resilience and sustainability.  Through a U.S. investment in the tens of millions, we could enable tens of billions in new IMF lending.
    And outside the World Bank and the IMF, we’re asking Congress to increase funding for the Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment, which we launched at the G7 a couple of years ago. 
    This partnership catalyzes and concentrates investment in key corridors, including Africa and Asia, to close the infrastructure gap in developing countries.  It strengthens countries’ economic growth.  It strengthens America’s supply chains and global trusted technology vendors.  And it strengthens our partnerships in critical regions. 
    The private sector has been enthusiastic.  Together with them and our G7 partners, we’ve already mobilized tens of billions of dollars, and we can lever that up and scale that up in the years ahead with help on a bipartisan basis from the Congress.
    We need to focus on the big picture.  Holding back small sums of money has the effect of pulling back large sums from the developing world — which also, by the way, effectively cedes the field to other countries like the PRC.  There are low-cost, commonsense solutions on the table, steps that should not be the ceiling of our ambitions, but the floor.  And we need Congress to provide us the authorities and the seed funding to take those steps now.
    Finally, will we empower our agencies and develop new muscle to meet this moment? 
    Simply put, we need to ensure that we have the resources and the capabilities in the U.S. government to implement this economic vision over the long haul.  This starts by significantly strengthening our bilateral tools, answering a critique that China has a checkbook and the U.S. has a checklist. 
    Next year, the United States is going to face a critical test of whether our country is up to the task.  The DFC, the Ex-Im Bank, and AGOA, the African Growth and Opportunity Act, are all up for renewal by Congress.  This provides a once-in-a-decade chance for America to strengthen some of its most important tools of economic statecraft. 
    And think about how they can work better with the high-leverage multilateral institutions I just mentioned.  The DFC, for example, is one of our most effective instruments to mobilize private sector investments in developing countries.
    But the DFC is too small compared to the scope of investment needed, and it lacks tools our partners want, like the ability to deploy more equity as well as debt, and it’s often unable to capitalize on fast-moving investment opportunities.  So, we put forward a proposal to expand the DFC’s toolkit and make it bigger, faster, nimbler. 
    Another gap we need to bridge is to make sure we attract, retain, and empower top-tier talent with expertise in priority areas.
    We’re asking Congress to approve the resources we’ve requested for the Commerce’s Bureau of Industry Security, Treasury’s Office of Investment Security, the Department of Justice’s National Security Division. 
    If Congress is serious about America competing and winning, we need to be able to draw on America’s very best.
    Let me close with this:
    Since the end of World War Two, the United States has stood for a fair and open international economy; for the power of global connection to fuel innovation; for the power of trade and investment done right to create good jobs; for the power, as Tocqueville put it, of interest rightly understood.
    Our task ahead is to harness that power to take on the realities of today’s geopolitical moment in a way that will not only preserve America’s enduring strengths, but extend them for generations to come.  It will take more conversations like this one and iteration after iteration to forge a new consensus and perfect a new set of policies and capabilities to match the moment. 
    I hope it’s a project we can all work on together.  We can’t afford not to. 
    So, thank you.  And I look forward to continuing the conversation, including hearing some of your questions this morning. 

    MIL OSI USA News

  • MIL-OSI China: Dubai Chambers sees opportunities for mutual Sino-Middle Eastern growth

    Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

    Chinese companies have made significant economic contributions to the Middle East region’s economy across a variety of sectors and are believed to continue to play an essential role in the region’s future development, said Mohammad Ali Rashed Lootah, president and CEO of Dubai Chambers.

    “The increasing two-way investments between the two markets reflect the synergies created by China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative and the Dubai Economic Agenda (D33), which unlock significant opportunities for mutual growth,” said Lootah in an interview with China Daily.

    Lootah added that both markets emphasize building a knowledge-based economy and that key areas such as technology, renewable energy, logistics, healthcare and infrastructure are poised for steady growth and will serve as important areas for mutual development and cooperation.

    According to Dubai Chambers’ data, China has emerged as Dubai’s biggest trading partner, with non-oil trade between the two sides reaching $67.8 billion in 2023.

    In addition, the total number of Chinese companies registered as active members of the Dubai Chamber of Commerce stood at 5,480 at the end of August, which increased 41 percent between 2022 and 2023, the chamber’s data said.

    “These companies have played a significant role in industries such as technology, real estate, manufacturing, and logistics, driving local job creation and economic diversification,” Lootah said.

    He made the remarks during the just-concluded SuperBridge Summit 2024 in Dubai this month, which taps the increasingly important Middle East market to emerge as a new economic powerhouse.

    “China and the Middle East, both as developing economies, have a deep understanding of each other’s economic development situations and have accumulated extensive experience across various industries, which can be mutually beneficial and help businesses to grow more effectively on both sides,” said Vanessa Xu, co-founder of SuperBridge Council, the event’s organizer.

    “The rapid development and substantial demand in the Middle East for emerging sectors, such as the digital economy, e-commerce, new energy, aerospace and biomedicine, also present broad opportunities for Chinese companies,” Xu said.

    Lootah also said he believes one of the most important cooperation sectors for Dubai and China is digital transformation.

    “China has emerged as a leader in advanced technologies, and we share its strong commitment to innovation. We are keen to deepen cooperation in sectors including artificial intelligence, the internet of things and blockchain,” he said.

    Lootah added that collaboration between the two sides will create opportunities for partnerships in digital infrastructure and smart city projects, as well as bring Dubai closer to achieving the D33 agenda target of generating an annual economic contribution of 100 billion UAE dirhams ($27.2 billion) from digital transformation projects.

    The Middle East market also boasts other advantages such as its geographic position linking global markets, and the six Gulf Cooperation Council countries have some of the highest per capita GDPs in the world, reflecting a high level of economic development and a promising consumer market, Xu said.

    For example, with its Saudi Vision 2030 initiative, Saudi Arabia presents significant market potential, but entering the market comes with high barriers, favoring companies that have already established business models and strong localization capabilities, Xu said.

    “While the economy is largely driven by oil, the private sector remains relatively underdeveloped, so the landscape especially provides opportunities for foreign companies to engage in partnerships with local governments, state-owned enterprises and banks,” she added.

    In contrast, the UAE has made greater strides in terms of business environment and openness, Xu said. According to the World Bank’s 2024 business environment report, the UAE ranks third in the Arab world and 25th globally, underscoring the country’s ongoing regulatory improvements and the ease of starting and operating businesses there.

    “When considering which market to enter, Chinese companies should assess the different regional development priorities alongside their own core strengths and strategic needs,” Xu said.

    MIL OSI China News

  • MIL-OSI USA: DeSoto County Now Eligible for FEMA Assistance After Hurricane Helene

    Source: US Federal Emergency Management Agency

    Headline: DeSoto County Now Eligible for FEMA Assistance After Hurricane Helene

    DeSoto County Now Eligible for FEMA Assistance After Hurricane Helene

    TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Homeowners and renters in DeSoto County who had uninsured or underinsured damage or loss caused by Hurricane Helene can apply for FEMA disaster assistance.FEMA may be able to help with serious needs, displacement, temporary lodging, basic home repair costs, essential personal property loss or other disaster-caused needs. DeSoto County along with Alachua, Baker, Bradford, Charlotte, Citrus, Collier, Columbia, Dixie, Duval, Franklin, Gilchrist, Gulf, Hamilton, Hernando, Hillsborough, Jefferson, Lafayette, Lee, Leon, Levy, Madison, Manatee, Pasco, Pinellas, Putnam, Sarasota, Suwannee, Taylor, Union and Wakulla counties are authorized for FEMA Individual Assistance.Homeowners and renters are encouraged to apply online at DisasterAssistance.gov or by using the FEMA App. You may also apply by phone at 800-621-3362. If you choose to apply by phone, please understand wait times may be longer because of increased volume for multiple recent disasters. Lines are open every day and help is available in most languages. If you use a relay service, captioned telephone or other service, give FEMA your number for that service. For an accessible video on how to apply for assistance go to FEMA Accessible: Applying for Individual Assistance – YouTube.What You’ll Need When You ApplyA current phone number where you can be contacted.Your address at the time of the disaster and the address where you are now staying.Your Social Security number.A general list of damage and losses.Banking information if you choose direct deposit.If insured, the policy number or the agent and/or the company name.If you have homeowners, renters or flood insurance, you should file a claim as soon as possible. FEMA cannot duplicate benefits for losses covered by insurance. If your policy does not cover all your disaster expenses, you may be eligible for federal assistance.If you had damage from Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Milton, you will need to apply separately for both disasters and provide the dates of your damage for each.
    brindisi.chan
    Thu, 10/24/2024 – 01:20

    MIL OSI USA News

  • MIL-OSI Economics: Money Market Operations as on October 23, 2024

    Source: Reserve Bank of India


    (Amount in ₹ crore, Rate in Per cent)

      Volume
    (One Leg)
    Weighted
    Average Rate
    Range
    A. Overnight Segment (I+II+III+IV) 578,427.56 6.69 5.10-6.95
         I. Call Money 11,484.88 6.75 5.10-6.90
         II. Triparty Repo 424,741.25 6.69 6.55-6.80
         III. Market Repo 141,021.43 6.67 6.25-6.90
         IV. Repo in Corporate Bond 1,180.00 6.86 6.85-6.95
    B. Term Segment      
         I. Notice Money** 130.90 6.45 6.30-6.72
         II. Term Money@@ 572.90 6.45-7.02
         III. Triparty Repo 315.00 6.70 6.70-6.70
         IV. Market Repo 109.43 6.80 6.80-6.80
         V. Repo in Corporate Bond 0.00
      Auction Date Tenor (Days) Maturity Date Amount Current Rate /
    Cut off Rate
    C. Liquidity Adjustment Facility (LAF), Marginal Standing Facility (MSF) & Standing Deposit Facility (SDF)
    I. Today’s Operations
    1. Fixed Rate          
    2. Variable Rate&          
      (I) Main Operation          
         (a) Repo          
         (b) Reverse Repo          
      (II) Fine Tuning Operations          
         (a) Repo          
         (b) Reverse Repo          
    3. MSF# Wed, 23/10/2024 1 Thu, 24/10/2024 4,620.00 6.75
    4. SDFΔ# Wed, 23/10/2024 1 Thu, 24/10/2024 54,112.00 6.25
    5. Net liquidity injected from today’s operations [injection (+)/absorption (-)]*       -49,492.00  
    II. Outstanding Operations
    1. Fixed Rate          
    2. Variable Rate&          
      (I) Main Operation          
         (a) Repo          
         (b) Reverse Repo Fri, 18/10/2024 13 Thu, 31/10/2024 20,073.00 6.49
      (II) Fine Tuning Operations          
         (a) Repo          
         (b) Reverse Repo          
    3. MSF#          
    4. SDFΔ#          
    5. On Tap Targeted Long Term Repo Operations Mon, 15/11/2021 1095 Thu, 14/11/2024 250.00 4.00
    Mon, 27/12/2021 1095 Thu, 26/12/2024 2,275.00 4.00
    6. Special Long-Term Repo Operations (SLTRO) for Small Finance Banks (SFBs)£ Mon, 15/11/2021 1095 Thu, 14/11/2024 105.00 4.00
    Mon, 22/11/2021 1095 Thu, 21/11/2024 100.00 4.00
    Mon, 29/11/2021 1095 Thu, 28/11/2024 305.00 4.00
    Mon, 13/12/2021 1095 Thu, 12/12/2024 150.00 4.00
    Mon, 20/12/2021 1095 Thu, 19/12/2024 100.00 4.00
    Mon, 27/12/2021 1095 Thu, 26/12/2024 255.00 4.00
    D. Standing Liquidity Facility (SLF) Availed from RBI$       8,596.70  
    E. Net liquidity injected from outstanding operations [injection (+)/absorption (-)]*     -7,936.30  
    F. Net liquidity injected (outstanding including today’s operations) [injection (+)/absorption (-)]*     -57,428.30  
    G. Cash Reserves Position of Scheduled Commercial Banks
         (i) Cash balances with RBI as on October 23, 2024 1,018,119.33  
         (ii) Average daily cash reserve requirement for the fortnight ending November 01, 2024 1,016,726.00  
    H. Government of India Surplus Cash Balance Reckoned for Auction as on¥ October 23, 2024 0.00  
    I. Net durable liquidity [surplus (+)/deficit (-)] as on October 04, 2024 488,495.00  
    @ Based on Reserve Bank of India (RBI) / Clearing Corporation of India Limited (CCIL).
    – Not Applicable / No Transaction.
    ** Relates to uncollateralized transactions of 2 to 14 days tenor.
    @@ Relates to uncollateralized transactions of 15 days to one year tenor.
    $ Includes refinance facilities extended by RBI.
    & As per the Press Release No. 2019-2020/1900 dated February 06, 2020.
    Δ As per the Press Release No. 2022-2023/41 dated April 08, 2022.
    * Net liquidity is calculated as Repo+MSF+SLF-Reverse Repo-SDF.
    As per the Press Release No. 2020-2021/520 dated October 21, 2020, Press Release No. 2020-2021/763 dated December 11, 2020, Press Release No. 2020-2021/1057 dated February 05, 2021 and Press Release No. 2021-2022/695 dated August 13, 2021.
    ¥ As per the Press Release No. 2014-2015/1971 dated March 19, 2015.
    £ As per the Press Release No. 2021-2022/181 dated May 07, 2021 and Press Release No. 2021-2022/1023 dated October 11, 2021.
    # As per the Press Release No. 2023-2024/1548 dated December 27, 2023.
    Ajit Prasad          
    Deputy General Manager
    (Communications)    
    Press Release: 2024-2025/1361

    MIL OSI Economics

  • MIL-OSI New Zealand: Ombudsman – Banking disputes scheme gets high mark in independent review

    Source: Banking Ombudsman

    25 October 2024 – The Banking Ombudsman Scheme has scored highly in an independent evaluation of its operations, a report by the reviewer released today shows.

    Consultant Deborah Hart, who conducted the five-yearly review, found the dispute resolution scheme met its terms of reference, strategic objectives and legislative requirements, the last of which concern its accessibility, independence, fairness, accountability, efficiency and effectiveness.

    “Overall, this is very positive report card,“ said Banking Ombudsman Nicola Sladden. “It confirms that we are make a valued and credible contribution to a fair banking sector.”

    The review rated the scheme highly for its dispute resolution work and ability to pinpoint the causes of complaints and share insights with banks and others to improve the overall banking experience.

    It also acknowledged the scheme’s rigorous and credible approach to reaching decisions, noting that the scheme had satisfactorily implemented the recommendations of the last review, which Ms Hart also conducted.

    Ms Sladden said the review made 11 recommendations, all of which the scheme agreed with and was either already implementing or considering how to implement.

    She said the scheme was committed to continuously improving how it worked, and the report would help in that effort.

    “We know there are areas where we can improve as we grow in size and face increasingly complex cases, especially those relating to fraud and scams, which continue to make up a large share of our workload.

    “We will continue to work with government agencies, regulators, banks and consumer groups to ensure fair outcomes in a cost-effective and transparent way.”

    A copy of the review is available here: 

    MIL OSI New Zealand News

  • MIL-OSI Economics: Voting Set to Open for Next ADB President

    Source: Asia Development Bank

    News Release | 24 October 2024
    Read time: 1 min

    SHARE THIS PAGE

    MANILA, PHILIPPINES (24 October 2024) — The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has officially closed the nomination period for its next President, with voting by ADB’s Board of Governors set to begin on 28 October 2024.

    ADB Presidents are nominated from among its regional members and elected by the Board of Governors. Nominations for this election were accepted from 24 September to 23 October 2024.

    Mr. Masato Kanda, currently Special Advisor to Japan’s Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, is the sole candidate for the position. Read his vision statement.

    Governors will be invited to cast their votes on Mr. Kanda’s candidacy by 27 November 2024. The outcome will be announced on 28 November 2024.

    Read more about the election process.

    ADB is committed to achieving a prosperous, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable Asia and the Pacific, while sustaining its efforts to eradicate extreme poverty. Established in 1966, it is owned by 69 members—49 from the region.

    Media Contact

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    MIL OSI Economics

  • MIL-OSI Economics: JP Morgan and Rothschild & Co top M&A financial advisers in retail sector during Q1-Q3 2024, reveals GlobalData

    Source: GlobalData

    JP Morgan and Rothschild & Co top M&A financial advisers in retail sector during Q1-Q3 2024, reveals GlobalData

    Posted in Business Fundamentals

    JP Morgan and Rothschild & Co were the top mergers and acquisitions (M&A) financial advisers in the retail sector during Q1-Q3 2024 by value and volume, respectively, according to the latest financial advisers league table by GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.

    An analysis of GlobalData’s Deals Database reveals that JP Morgan achieved the leading position in terms of value by advising on $4.7 billion worth of deals. Meanwhile, Rothschild & Co led in terms of volume by advising on a total of 10 deals.

    Aurojyoti Bose, Lead Analyst at GlobalData, comments: “Rothschild & Co was the top adviser by volume during Q1-Q3 2023 and despite witnessing a YoY decline in number of deals advised, it managed to retain the leadership position by this metric during Q1-Q3 2024. Apart from leading by volume, Rothschild & Co was also featured at fifth position in terms of value.

    “Meanwhile, JP Morgan witnessed YoY improvement in the total value of deals advised by it during Q1-Q3 2024 compared to Q1-Q3 2023. Resultantly, its ranking by value improved from sixth position during Q1-Q3 2023 to the top position during Q1-Q3 2024. Apart from leading by value, JP Morgan also occupied the sixth position by volume during the review period.”

    Solomon Partners occupied the second position in terms of value, by advising on $3.8 billion worth of deals, followed by Bank of America with $3.3 billion, Lazard with $3.2 billion and Rothschild & Co with $2.8 billion.

    Meanwhile, Performance Brokerage Services occupied the second position in terms of volume with 10 deals, followed by PwC with nine deals, Houlihan Lokey with eight deals and KPMG with seven deals.

    MIL OSI Economics

  • MIL-OSI: Equinor third quarter 2024 results

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    Equinor (OSE: EQNR, NYSE: EQNR) delivered adjusted operating income* of USD 6.89 billion and USD 2.04 billion after tax in the third quarter of 2024. Equinor reported net operating income of USD 6.91 billion and net income at USD 2.29 billion. Adjusted net income* was USD 2.19 billion, leading to adjusted earnings per share* of USD 0.79.

    Financial and operational performance

    • Solid financial results
    • Effective execution of extensive turnaround programme
    • Strong cash flow from operations

    Strategic progress

    • All-time high production from the Troll field in the gas year
    • Northern Lights facility completed and ready to receive CO2
    • Acquired a 9.8 percent stake in Ørsted in October

    Capital distribution

    • Third quarter ordinary cash dividend of USD 0.35 per share, extraordinary cash dividend of USD 0.35 per share and fourth tranche of share buy-back of up to USD 1.6 billion
    • Total capital distribution for 2024 in line with announced level of around USD 14 billion

    Anders Opedal, President and CEO of Equinor ASA:

    “With solid operational performance and results, we are well on track to deliver strong cashflow from operations in line with what we said at the capital markets update in February.”

    “Over time, we have upgraded the capacity in the gas value chain. This has contributed to an all-time high production from the Troll field in the gas year. In the quarter, the Johan Sverdrup field delivered a production record of more than 756 000 barrels of oil in one day and reached the milestone of one billion barrels produced since the start-up five years ago. This strengthens our position to deliver safe and reliable energy to Europe.”

    “We continue to invest in renewables and develop low carbon value chains. In the quarter, the world’s first commercial storage facility, Northern Lights, was completed and is now ready to receive CO2 from customers.”

    Operational performance

    Equinor delivered a total equity production of 1,984 mboe per day in the third quarter, down from 2,007 mboe in the same quarter last year.

    On the Norwegian continental shelf (NCS), production increased by 2 percent compared to the third quarter 2023. This was due to high gas production from the Troll field and positive contributions from Aasta Hansteen and Oseberg. The increase was partially offset by extensive turnarounds, natural decline and reduced ownership in the Statfjord area.

    Internationally, new wells contributed positively to the production. However, the international production was negatively impacted by offshore turnarounds and hurricanes in the United States.

    In the quarter, Equinor completed nine offshore exploration wells with one commercial discovery. Four wells were ongoing at the quarter end. Two wells were expensed.

    Equinor produced 677 GWh from renewable assets in the third quarter, up 82 percent from the same quarter last year. The increase was driven by the addition of onshore power plants in 2024. The offshore wind parks Dudgeon, Sheringham Shoal and Arkona also contributed positively to the production.

    The progress at Dogger Bank A is slower than expected. Based on this, the expected growth in power production from renewable assets in 2024 is adjusted to around 50 percent.

    Strategic progress

    Equinor continued to optimise the portfolio through projects and strategic business development in the quarter.

    On the NCS, the Johan Castberg production vessel was securely anchored at the field in the Barents Sea and hook-up is on track for production start before year-end. In the quarter, Troll B and C became partly powered from shore, contributing to the company’s efforts to strengthen competitiveness and halve operated emissions by 2030.

    The recent acquisition of a 9.8 percent stake in Ørsted, gives Equinor exposure to premium offshore wind assets in operation and a solid project pipeline. In the quarter, Equinor also won an offshore wind lease in the U.S. Atlantic Ocean at an attractive price, adding optionality of around 2 gigawatt capacity to its existing portfolio. Furthermore, the company started recalibrating its portfolio of early phase renewable projects to reduce cost and focus business development toward core markets.

    Equinor continues to progress its low carbon solutions portfolio. The Northern Lights facility was completed on estimated time and budget. In the UK, two key partner-operated low-carbon solution projects secured funding from the government.

    Solid financial results

    Equinor delivered adjusted operating income* of USD 6.89 billion. USD 5.88 billion come from Exploration and Production Norway, USD 407 million from E&P International and USD 207 million from E&P USA. Marketing, Midstream & Processing delivered adjusted operating income* of USD 545 million, driven by LNG, power trading and geographical arbitrage for LPG. Adjusted operating income* from Renewables was negative USD 115 million, as the costs of project development exceeded the earnings from assets in operation.

    Cash flow from operating activities before taxes paid and working capital items amounted to USD 9.23 billion for the third quarter. Cash flow from operations after taxes paid* was USD 6.25 billion for the quarter, and USD 14.0 billion year to date.

    Equinor paid one NCS tax instalment of USD 2.87 billion in the quarter and total capital expenditures were USD 3.14 billion. Organic capital expenditure* was USD 3.08 billion for the quarter and USD 8.73 billion year to date. The organic capital expenditure* guiding for the year is adjusted to USD 12-13 billion. After taxes, capital distribution to shareholders and investments, net cash flow* ended at negative USD 3.42 billion in the third quarter. The Norwegian state’s share of the share buy-back programme of USD 4.02 billion in July impacted the net cash flow*.

    Adjusted net debt to capital employed ratio* was negative 2.0 percent at the end of the third quarter, compared to negative 3.4 percent at the end of the second quarter of 2024.

    Capital distribution

    The board of directors has decided an ordinary cash dividend of USD 0.35 per share and an extraordinary cash dividend of USD 0.35 per share for the third quarter of 2024. This is in line with communication at the capital markets update in February.

    The board has decided to initiate a fourth and final tranche of share buy-back for 2024 of up to USD 1.6 billion. The fourth tranche will commence on 25 October and end no later than 31 January 2025. This fourth tranche will complete the announced share buy-back programme of up to USD 6 billion for 2024. It will also conclude total capital distribution for 2024 of around USD 14 billion.

    The third tranche of the share buy-back programme was completed on 16 October 2024 with a total value of USD 1.6 billion.

    All share buy-back amounts include shares to be redeemed by the Norwegian state.


    * For items marked with an asterisk throughout this report, see Use and reconciliation of non-GAAP financial measures in the Supplementary disclosures.

    Further information from:

    Investor relations
    Bård Glad Pedersen, senior vice president Investor relations,
    +47 918 01 791 (mobile)

    Press
    Sissel Rinde, vice president Media relations,
    +47 412 60 584 (mobile)

    This information is subject to the disclosure requirements pursuant to Section 5-12 of the Norwegian Securities Trading Act

    Attachments

    The MIL Network

  • MIL-OSI: Central Bank of Savings Banks Finland Plc, Sp Mortgage Bank Plc & Savings Banks Group: Release of Financial Statements for 2024 will be published on 13th of February 2025

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    Central Bank of Savings Banks Finland Plc, Sp Mortgage Bank Plc & Savings Banks Group

    Stock Exchange Release
    24th of October 2024 at 8 am (CET +1)

    Central Bank of Savings Banks Finland Plc and Sp Mortgage Bank Plc will publish their Board of Directors Report and IFRS Financial Statements 2024 on 13th of February 2025. Savings Banks Group will publish their Releases of Financial Statements for 2025 at the same time on 13th of February 2025. All will be published as a stock exchange release and can be also found at www.saastopankki.fi.

    CENTRAL BANK OF SAVINGS BANKS FINLAND PLC, SP MORTGAGE BANK PLC & SAVINGS BANKS GROUP

    Further information:

    Kai Koskela
    acting CEO
    Säästöpankkiliitto osk
    +358 40 549 0430  
    kai.koskela@saastopankki.fi

    Sp Mortgage Bank Plc is part of the Savings Banks Group and the Savings Banks Amalgamation. The role of Sp Mortgage Bank is, together with Central Bank of Savings Banks Finland Plc, to be responsible for obtaining funding for the Savings Banks Group from money and capital markets. Sp Mortgage Bank is responsible for the Savings Banks Group’s mortgage-secured funding by issuing covered bonds. 

    The MIL Network

  • MIL-OSI Economics: Underwriting Auction for sale of Government Securities for ₹32,000 crore on October 25, 2024

    Source: Reserve Bank of India

    Government of India has announced the sale (re-issue) of Government Securities, as detailed below, through auctions to be held on October 25, 2024.

    As per the extant scheme of underwriting notified on November 14, 2007, the amounts of Minimum Underwriting Commitment (MUC) and the minimum bidding commitment under Additional Competitive Underwriting (ACU) for the underwriting auction, applicable to each Primary Dealer (PD), are as under:

    (₹ crore)
    Security Notified Amount Minimum Underwriting Commitment (MUC) amount per PD Minimum bidding commitment per PD under ACU auction
    6.79% GS 2034 22,000 524 524
    7.46% GS 2073 10,000 239 239

    The underwriting auction will be conducted through multiple price-based method on October 25, 2024 (Friday). PDs may submit their bids for ACU auction electronically through Core Banking Solution (E-Kuber) System between 09:00 A.M. and 09:30 A.M. on the day of underwriting auction.

    The underwriting commission will be credited to the current account of the respective PDs with RBI on the day of issue of securities.

    Ajit Prasad          
    Deputy General Manager
    (Communications)    

    Press Release: 2024-2025/1362

    MIL OSI Economics

  • MIL-OSI Banking: Rosneft Competence Centre Opens at Far Eastern Federal University

    Source: Rosneft

    Headline: Rosneft Competence Centre Opens at Far Eastern Federal University

    As part of the IX Eastern Economic Forum, Rosneft’s Competence Centre was inaugurated at the Far Eastern Federal University (FEFU).

    Rosneft is an important partner of the FEFU. In September 2022, the Company and the University signed an agreement to establish a Competence Centre. Its main tasks include training of highly qualified engineering personnel for Rosneft enterprises, including design engineers and shipbuilding technologists, as well as advanced training of employees of shipbuilding enterprises, primarily Zvezda Shipyard.

    Boris Korobets, Rector of the Far Eastern Federal University, Sergey Dubovitsky, Minister of Vocational Education and Employment of the Primorsky Territory, Irina Bushmanova, First Deputy Minister of Education of the Primorsky Territory, representatives of PJSC Rosneft Oil Company, and Zvezda Shipyard, as well as teachers and students attended the opening ceremony of the Centre.

    The structure of the Competence Centre envisages four thematic modules: Engineering Development (commissioned in 2023), Engineering Rosneft-Classes, Hull Structures and Materials, Ship Engineering Systems. Each module includes subject-specific laboratories, classrooms and departments equipped with the necessary teaching equipment and demonstration models.

    The opening of the centre was marked by the presentation of a module for Rosneft’s shipbuilding engineering classes. Participants in the ceremony were shown the laser optics, marine robotics and ship modelling laboratories, as well as computer modelling and design. Classes for students of the Rosneft classes of the FEFU University School and other Rosneft classes in the Primorsky Territory are already being held here. In the future, career guidance groups will also be organised for grades 5-9.

    In 2025, the Centre plans to open the Hull Structures and Materials and Ship Engineering Systems modules. The Centre’s infrastructure will include 18 classrooms, 3 co-working areas, 12 laboratories and 2 specail departments.

    In 2025, when the Centre reaches full capacity, the number of Rosneft students will be 3,500 a year. This year, about 1,700 people are studying in various training programmes.

    The Centre’s educational environment uses various modern learning formats, including networking between FEFU and other partner universities, including St Petersburg State Marine Technical University and Admiral G.I. Nevelsky Maritime State University, among others.

    Reference:

    The Zvezda Shipyard specialises in building large civilian vessels – the backbone of Russia’s Arctic fleet. The shipyard is being created on the instructions of Russian President Vladimir Putin, with Rosneft acting as the project operator. The shipyard now employs more than 7,500 highly skilled workers. A new Parkoviy district is being built for them in the city of Bolshoy Kamen.

    Rosneft
    Information Division
    September 5, 2024

    MIL OSI Global Banks

  • MIL-OSI Submissions: Results – Equinor third quarter 2024 results

    Source: Equinor

    24 OCTOBER 2024 – Equinor delivered adjusted operating income* of USD 6.89 billion and USD 2.04 billion after tax in the third quarter of 2024. Equinor reported net operating income of USD 6.91 billion and net income at USD 2.29 billion. Adjusted net income* was USD 2.19 billion, leading to adjusted earnings per share* of USD 0.79.

    Financial and operational performance

    Solid financial results
    Effective execution of extensive turnaround programme
    Strong cash flow from operations

    Strategic progress

    All-time high production from the Troll field in the gas year
    Northern Lights facility completed and ready to receive CO2
    Acquired a 9.8 percent stake in Ørsted in October

    Capital distribution

    Third quarter ordinary cash dividend of USD 0.35 per share, extraordinary cash dividend of USD 0.35 per share and fourth tranche of share buy-back of up to USD 1.6 billion
    Total capital distribution for 2024 in line with announced level of around USD 14 billion

    Anders Opedal, President and CEO of Equinor ASA:
    “With solid operational performance and results, we are well on track to deliver strong cashflow from operations in line with what we said at the capital markets update in February.”

    “Over time, we have upgraded the capacity in the gas value chain. This has contributed to an all-time high production from the Troll field in the gas year. In the quarter, the Johan Sverdrup field delivered a production record of more than 756 000 barrels of oil in one day and reached the milestone of one billion barrels produced since the start-up five years ago. This strengthens our position to deliver safe and reliable energy to Europe.”

    “We continue to invest in renewables and develop low carbon value chains. In the quarter, the world’s first commercial storage facility, Northern Lights, was completed and is now ready to receive CO2 from customers.”

    Operational performance

    Equinor delivered a total equity production of 1,984 mboe per day in the third quarter, down from 2,007 mboe in the same quarter last year.

    On the Norwegian continental shelf (NCS), production increased by 2 percent compared to the third quarter 2023. This was due to high gas production from the Troll field and positive contributions from Aasta Hansteen and Oseberg. The increase was partially offset by extensive turnarounds, natural decline and reduced ownership in the Statfjord area.

    Internationally, new wells contributed positively to the production. However, the international production was negatively impacted by offshore turnarounds and hurricanes in the United States.

    In the quarter, Equinor completed nine offshore exploration wells with one commercial discovery. Four wells were ongoing at the quarter end. Two wells were expensed.

    Equinor produced 677 GWh from renewable assets in the third quarter, up 82 percent from the same quarter last year. The increase was driven by the addition of onshore power plants in 2024. The offshore wind parks Dudgeon, Sheringham Shoal and Arkona also contributed positively to the production.

    The progress at Dogger Bank A is slower than expected. Based on this, the expected growth in power production from renewable assets in 2024 is adjusted to around 50 percent.

    Strategic progress

    Equinor continued to optimise the portfolio through projects and strategic business development in the quarter.

    On the NCS, the Johan Castberg production vessel was securely anchored at the field in the Barents Sea and hook-up is on track for production start before year-end. In the quarter, Troll B and C became partly powered from shore, contributing to the company’s efforts to strengthen competitiveness and halve operated emissions by 2030.

    The recent acquisition of a 9.8 percent stake in Ørsted, gives Equinor exposure to premium offshore wind assets in operation and a solid project pipeline. In the quarter, Equinor also won an offshore wind lease in the U.S. Atlantic Ocean at an attractive price, adding optionality of around 2 gigawatt capacity to its existing portfolio. Furthermore, the company started recalibrating its portfolio of early phase renewable projects to reduce cost and focus business development toward core markets.

    Equinor continues to progress its low carbon solutions portfolio. The Northern Lights facility was completed on estimated time and budget. In the UK, two key partner-operated low-carbon solution projects secured funding from the government.

    Solid financial results

    Equinor delivered adjusted operating income* of USD 6.89 billion. USD 5.88 billion come from Exploration and Production Norway, USD 407 million from E&P International and USD 207 million from E&P USA. Marketing, Midstream & Processing delivered adjusted operating income* of USD 545 million, driven by LNG, power trading and geographical arbitrage for LPG. Adjusted operating income* from Renewables was negative USD 115 million, as the costs of project development exceeded the earnings from assets in operation.

    Cash flow from operating activities before taxes paid and working capital items amounted to USD 9.23 billion for the third quarter. Cash flow from operations after taxes paid* was USD 6.25 billion for the quarter, and USD 14.0 billion year to date.

    Equinor paid one NCS tax instalment of USD 2.87 billion in the quarter and total capital expenditures were USD 3.14 billion. Organic capital expenditure* was USD 3.08 billion for the quarter and USD 8.73 billion year to date. The organic capital expenditure* guiding for the year is adjusted to USD 12-13 billion. After taxes, capital distribution to shareholders and investments, net cash flow* ended at negative USD 3.42 billion in the third quarter. The Norwegian state’s share of the share buy-back programme of USD 4.02 billion in July impacted the net cash flow*.

    Adjusted net debt to capital employed ratio* was negative 2.0 percent at the end of the third quarter, compared to negative 3.4 percent at the end of the second quarter of 2024.

    Capital distribution

    The board of directors has decided an ordinary cash dividend of USD 0.35 per share and an extraordinary cash dividend of USD 0.35 per share for the third quarter of 2024. This is in line with communication at the capital markets update in February.

    The board has decided to initiate a fourth and final tranche of share buy-back for 2024 of up to USD 1.6 billion. The fourth tranche will commence on 25 October and end no later than 31 January 2025. This fourth tranche will complete the announced share buy-back programme of up to USD 6 billion for 2024. It will also conclude total capital distribution for 2024 of around USD 14 billion.

    The third tranche of the share buy-back programme was completed on 16 October 2024 with a total value of USD 1.6 billion.

    All share buy-back amounts include shares to be redeemed by the Norwegian state.

    *For items marked with an asterisk throughout this report, see Use and reconciliation of non-GAAP financial measures in the Supplementary disclosures.

    MIL OSI – Submitted News

  • MIL-OSI China: Beijing leverages finance to fuel tech innovation

    Source: China State Council Information Office 2

    Beijing has made significant strides in developing a robust financial ecosystem that supports technological innovation. The capital city has channeled substantial financial resources into scientific advancement by focusing on technology, green initiatives, inclusive finance, pension systems and digital transformation.
    The central government’s emphasis on technology finance during the 2023 Central Financial Work Conference has strengthened Beijing’s commitment to innovation. The city has directed more financial resources toward tech enterprises, with total loans to technology firms now surpassing 1 trillion yuan ($140 billion).
    Beijing has introduced innovative financial policies to facilitate the growth of tech startups. For instance, the establishment of the Zhongguancun Sci-Tech Innovation Financial Service Center provides a centralized hub for financial products and services to meet tech companies’ needs.
    Another key development is the pilot program for merger and acquisition (M&A) loans. Beijing has encouraged business expansion by increasing the loan-to-value ratio for M&A transactions from 60% to 80%, enabling more companies to pursue strategic acquisitions.
    Beijing has also introduced specialized financial products to meet tech firms’ financing needs. Banks now offer credit-based loans that evaluate a company’s technological capabilities, patents and intellectual property as key lending criteria.
    The city has expanded financial access for small- and medium-sized enterprises focused on specialized technologies and unique products. Through bank partnerships and financing events, Beijing has ensured that nearly 60% of these specialized firms secure credit access.
    The capital market plays a crucial role in supporting tech company growth. Beijing has helped numerous tech firms list on the Beijing Stock Exchange and other trading venues, securing billions of yuan in funding. The city has also created government investment funds targeting promising tech companies, especially those in emerging industries.

    MIL OSI China News

  • MIL-OSI Security: Principal Associate Deputy Attorney General Marshall Miller Delivers Remarks at the New York City Bar Association Compliance Institute

    Source: United States Attorneys General 7

    Remarks as Prepared for Delivery

    Thank you for that generous introduction. It’s great to be home in New York.

    The leaves are changing. The Yankees are in the World Series. And we’re here to talk about corporate criminal enforcement.

    It doesn’t get any better than this.

    Today, I’m honored to be here to take stock of the Department’s programmatic overhaul of corporate criminal enforcement in recent years, to discuss how that overhaul is designed to empower compliance programs and professionals, and to take a look around the corner to what’s ahead.

    There’s an old adage, laced with irony and sometimes attributed to an ancient Chinese curse: “May you live in interesting times.” Over the past few years, we at the Justice Department — indeed, all of us in America — have been on the receiving end of that adage. We all, truly, are living in interesting times.

    The volatility and rate of change in the geopolitical landscape and the world economy can be head-spinning: here a regional armed conflict, there a natural disaster, and everywhere transformative leaps in technology.

    Perhaps the opportunities seem greater than ever — but so, certainly, do the risks.

    And one key area where risks have spread and morphed is in the field of corporate crime.

    Corporate crime, of course, is not new. But it’s constantly evolving. So, we must skate to where the puck is going, not to where it’s been.

    To meet the moment, over the past few years, the Department has engaged in an overhaul of our corporate criminal enforcement program by modernizing and adapting.

    We’ve done that by emphasizing clarity, consistency, and transparency in our policies.

    We’ve done that by increasing the consequences for bad actors — whether individual or corporate — and by providing new incentives for good corporate citizenship and investments in compliance.

    And we’ve done that by recalibrating and surging resources to address today’s corporate crime threats — and tomorrow’s.

    In doing so, we’ve created a clear roadmap of the Department’s expectations for every CEO, General Counsel, Board Member, and Chief Compliance Officer who’s navigating a fast-changing world and must mitigate risk and stay on the right side of the law.

    *                                  *                                  *

    Let me start with the balance of consequences and incentives — where we’ve increased punishment for bad actors and enhanced incentives for ethical corporate behavior.

    To be clear, when it comes to corporate criminal enforcement, Job #1 is individual accountability.

    Corporate crime hurts real people — and corporate crimes are committed by real people.

    So the Department’s top priority in corporate criminal enforcement is holding individuals accountable.

    Accountability not only promotes fairness, it also drives deterrence.

    We’ve empowered our prosecutors to focus on the worst offenders committing the biggest crimes, no matter how high they rank on the corporate org chart — no matter how challenging and time-consuming the case.

    This approach is resource intensive. Prosecuting the most important cases against the most sophisticated wrongdoers requires breaking down complex criminal schemes, understanding cutting-edge markets and technology, and analyzing terabytes of data.

    So we’ve adapted enforcement policies to promote swift individual prosecutions.

    We’ve given good actors more avenues to help us go after the bad guys — through innovative whistleblower programs and consistent, transparent, and predictable voluntary self-disclosure policies.

    And we’ve made clearer than ever before what we expect from companies cooperating with government investigations to accelerate investigations of wrongdoers.

    This updated approach has generated real returns, with timely convictions of: the CEOs of the world’s two largest cryptocurrency platforms — FTX and Binance; the CEO and the COO of Theranos;

    Prosecuting the most culpable individuals is not only the right thing to do, it has the greatest deterrent impact by changing behavior and preventing misconduct.

    To increase accountability and deterrence, we’ve also clarified the rules of the road for corporate enforcement.

    In prior years, a disjointed, patchwork Department approach to key tools like whistleblowing, voluntary self-disclosure, and monitor selection limited their effectiveness.

    When corporate misconduct was detected, the benefits of whistleblowing or self-reporting to the Justice Department were often opaque and unpredictable.

    The Department’s response seemed to depend on which office or even which prosecutor was assigned to the case.

    Without written, public policies across most of the Department, self-reporting seemed like a roll of the dice without even a sense for the odds.

    It was time for change.

    Over the past few years, we’ve moved methodically to establish a very different paradigm –— one with consistent, transparent, and predictable rules of the road.

    For the first time, every Justice Department component has a published Voluntary Self-Disclosure policy that sets forth exactly what a company needs to do to self-report misconduct — and what a company can expect if they do so.

    For the first time, incentive compensation systems are assessed and upgraded as part of every Criminal Division resolution, because compensation systems can either promote compliance or reward risky — sometimes criminal — behavior.

    And companies that claw back compensation from executives involved in wrongdoing can reduce penalties by the amount of those clawbacks, providing new incentives to make wrongdoers — not innocent shareholders — pay the price.

    For the first time, all independent compliance monitors across the Department must be chosen under consistent, published selection processes and based on the application of public and transparent factors.

    And for the first time, the Justice Department instituted a Department-led whistleblower program with clear incentives for dropping a dime on corporate crime.

    Today, individuals and companies know when, where, and how to “do the right thing,” to borrow a phrase from my fellow Brooklynite Spike Lee.

    We’ve also broadened the gap between the benefits an ethical company can access and the penalties a compliance-flouting company faces.

    Investing in compliance and practicing good corporate citizenship should be the clear product of basic arithmetic — not some complex calculus problem with too many unknown variables to solve.

    We aim to empower General Counsels and Chief Compliance Officers to make a simple and powerful business case to boards and C-suites: the case for investing in compliance programs, for calibrating compensation plans to promote compliance and deter wrongdoing, and for swiftly reporting detected misconduct to Justice Department.

    As Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco put it in connection with the ground-breaking prosecution of TD Bank earlier this month: “If the business case for compliance wasn’t clear before — it should be now.”

    *                                  *                                  *

    Let me take a few minutes to delve deeper into the Department’s new whistleblowing and voluntary self-disclosure paradigm.

    First, whistleblowing. We know it works. Whistleblower reports to the government lead to prosecutions and civil enforcement actions. Internal reports help companies address misconduct before it gets out of hand.

    But gaps in whistleblower reporting opportunities left whole areas of corporate criminal misconduct unaddressed, with potential whistleblowers lacking a clear reporting path and a clear reason to blow the whistle.

    So this year, the Justice Department launched a two-part whistleblower program — with different rules and incentives for whistleblowers not involved in the criminal activity they’re reporting and for those who were.

    For whistleblowers not involved in the reported misconduct, Deputy Attorney General Monaco launched the first-ever Department whistleblower awards program — aimed at building on successful programs at the Securities and Exchange Commission and Commodity Futures Trading Commission.

    The awards program is based on a simple premise: if an individual helps the Department discover corporate misconduct — otherwise unknown to us — then that person would qualify to receive a percentage of the resulting forfeiture.

    This program not only incentivizes individuals to step forward, it puts pressure on companies to do the same – because a company can still qualify for voluntary self-disclosure credit if it reports the conduct within 120 days of the whistleblower report to the Department.

    Now, by its very terms, this awards program doesn’t apply to individuals who were meaningfully involved in the criminal conduct itself. For that, we’ve launched whistleblower non-prosecution pilots in the Criminal Division and many of our most active U.S. Attorneys’ Offices.

    Those offices are offering non-prosecution agreements to certain individuals involved in misconduct who report previously undiscovered wrongdoing.

    In the same way a company could receive a declination, individuals with knowledge of misconduct can do the same — by stepping up, owning up, and helping us prosecute the most serious wrongdoers.

    All this fits seamlessly with the newly clear, transparent, and cross-Department approach to voluntary self-disclosures by companies, instituted at Deputy Attorney General Monaco’s direction.

    Voluntary self-disclosures drive successful criminal prosecutions of culpable individuals. They speed money back to victims and disgorge ill-gotten gains. They bring misconduct to a halt and tighten compliance programs with added government oversight.

    So, where a company voluntarily self-discloses misconduct previously unknown to the Department — absent aggravating circumstances and after remediation, disgorgement, and victim compensation — it can avoid a guilty plea or indictment.

    And such a voluntary self-disclosure to the Criminal Division can also qualify a company for the presumption of a declination of prosecution.

    Early signs indicate these newly consistent and transparent programs are working.

    Corporate voluntary self-disclosures to the Criminal Division are increasing every year, with more than twice as many last year as compared to 2021.

    In the first few months of the Justice Department’s whistleblower awards program, we’ve already received more than 200 tips.

    And U.S. Attorneys’ Offices report that individual voluntary self-disclosures have resulted in promising ongoing investigations.

    Notably, the programs complement each other, setting up a virtuous cycle.

    As the Deputy Attorney General has said, “when everybody wants to be first in the door, no one wants to be second” — regardless of whether you’re an innocent whistleblower, a potential defendant looking to minimize criminal exposure, or an audit committee chair at a company where the misconduct took place.

    Our approach also involves increasing punishment for companies that are repeat bad actors or who flout compliance.

    Calibrating a successful program of incentives and consequences requires increasing the penalties for corporate entities that aren’t getting the message.

    And we’ve moved out on that as well.

    Egregious corporate conduct demands a stiff punitive response.

    So multinational companies like LaFarge, TD Bank, and Binance have pleaded guilty to egregious crimes involving material support for terrorism, money laundering conspiracy, and sanctions violations, respectively — with combined penalties of almost $7 billion.

    Penalties also are levied to deter future misconduct. So, when a company breaks the law a second time or violates the terms of a prior resolution, we’ve made sure they pay a far steeper price.

    Powerful companies like Boeing and Ericsson have experienced that approach in action — pleading guilty to charges that stemmed from recidivist conduct or violations of deferred prosecution agreements.

    Corporate criminal charges and guilty pleas are no longer “specials” for certain customers —they’re now on the main, everyday menu.

    Today’s overhauled corporate enforcement program at the Justice Department means clearer and more transparent policies; predictable benefits for whistleblowers and incentives for companies that voluntarily self-disclose; and a far bigger gulf between the criminal outcomes for good and bad actors.

    All of it adds up to a clear business case for investing early and often in compliance.

    *                                  *                                  *

    I also want to highlight our surge of resources to address the dramatic expansion of corporate crime risks related to national security and emerging technology.

    In returning to government some two and a half years ago, I was struck by how often our corporate criminal investigations now implicate the country’s national security interests.

    The crimes vary — from sanctions violations to money laundering to material support for terrorism.

    The corporate defendants range across industry – from construction and shipping to agriculture and telecommunications.

    And the national security risks run the gamut – from money laundering for Russian interests to trafficking in Iranian crude oil to sanctions evasion to support the North Korean nuclear program.

    To meet the moment, the Department has surged resources to address the challenge.

    We’ve surged prosecutors into the Criminal Division’s Bank Integrity Unit, which prosecutes violations of the Bank Secrecy Act — including the recent, groundbreaking conviction of TD Bank.

    We’ve added more than 25 white collar prosecutors and a Chief Counsel for Corporate Criminal Enforcement to our National Security Division to inject energy and expertise in corporate enforcement.

    We’ve launched extraordinarily successful enforcement initiatives, involving Main Justice components, U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, and partner law enforcement agencies, to address particularly dangerous national security threats: initiatives like Task Force KleptoCapture, which has brought criminal charges against 100 individuals and entities who violated Russia-related sanctions or export controls — and seized, restrained, or obtained forfeiture orders against more than $650 million in assets. And initiatives like the Disruptive Technology Strike Force, which is laser focused on keeping the most sensitive technologies out of the world’s most dangerous hands, charging two dozen complex and high-impact cases since its launch last year.

    Every company’s legal and compliance functions should sit up and take note: national security risks are not only here — they’re accelerating.

    And they’re being supercharged by emerging technologies like artificial intelligence.

    *                                  *                                  *

    Now you might ask: what should compliance professionals be doing today to prepare for tomorrow?

    As you may know, we recently updated the Criminal Division’s guidance on evaluating corporate compliance programs — known as the ECCP — in part to ensure that companies are focused on mitigating risks associated with the use and misuse of AI and other emerging technologies.

    Now, the ECCP doesn’t tell companies how to design and implement their compliance programs. Instead, the guidance poses questions that companies should be asking themselves throughout the compliance program life cycle — from design to execution.

    The Justice Department’s overhauled corporate criminal enforcement program places a particular premium on certain questions that executives and board members need to be asking:

    • Have we empowered our compliance leaders and invested sufficiently in our compliance program, given our risk profile and today’s geopolitical landscape?
    • Do we have effective internal detection and reporting systems and robust internal investigative capabilities — so we can avail ourselves of voluntary self-disclosure opportunities?
    • Have we designed compensation systems that promote compliance and enable clawbacks or escrowing of incentive comp?
    • Have we assessed risks associated with national security and emerging technologies and taken appropriate steps to mitigate them?
    • If a company finds itself on the wrong side of a Department investigation tomorrow, the company’s posture may well depend on how its leadership answers those questions today.

    I want to close by speaking directly to the compliance leaders here today.

    Thank you for the work you do every day to promote compliance in companies across America and around the globe.

    It’s not always easy to be the voice of compliance in the room.

    But when you do your jobs effectively, you not only serve your clients well, you protect our nation.

    At the Justice Department, our overhaul of corporate enforcement should empower you — along with other compliance-promoting corporate leaders — with stronger tools and greater sway to advocate for investment in compliance; to advance ethical behavior; to detect, deter, and report corporate misconduct; to defend against emerging national security and AI-related threats; and ultimately to promote good corporate citizenship.

    We look forward to continuing our work with all of you on this important effort.

    Thank you, once again, for being here today.

    MIL Security OSI

  • MIL-OSI Germany: Results of the 2024 LSI stress test

    Source: Deutsche Bundesbank in English

    The profitability of Germany’s small and medium-sized banks and Sparkassen (less significant institutions, or LSIs) improved significantly in 2023. The institutions achieved stronger earnings during the period of higher interest rates; they have further expanded their capital resources and appear to be prepared even for serious adverse scenarios. These were among the findings of the sixth LSI stress test and accompanying survey, which were conducted this year by the Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) and the Deutsche Bundesbank.
    “The banks are on more solid ground. Most institutions have good capital ratios and are capable of handling the very demanding challenges posed in this year’s stress test,” said Raimund Röseler, BaFin’s Chief Executive Director of Banking Supervision, while presenting the stress test results in Frankfurt. The scenario assumed in this year’s test was far more challenging than in the last exercise two years ago. In total, the shock caused the Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1) ratio to decrease by 3.7 percentage points to 14.5 percent. The stress effect was mainly driven by credit and market risks.
    Under the scenario presented in the stress test, the number of institutions that experience difficulties lies in the medium double digits. These institutions would not meet the supervisory capital requirements in the case of a major economic downturn. The number of impacted institutions is twice as high as in the 2022 LSI stress test – mainly due to the tougher scenario specifications.
    “Institutions should continue to expand their capital resources and not erode their solid baseline unless absolutely necessary. The economic situation remains uncertain. We will closely monitor the outlier institutions. If necessary, we will take supervisory countermeasures at an early stage,” Röseler declared.
    Results of the survey on the current and future earnings and risk situation show that institutions are anticipating an increase in loss allowances. Banks and Sparkassen are still willing to take on additional risks on their books and increase their lending. However, their plans foresee a greater increase in CET1 capital than in risk-weighted assets, which leads to a moderate rise in the CET1 ratio and takes more than sufficient account of the additional risks they plan to assume.
    “Our analysis shows that the majority of banks and Sparkassen are less optimistic with regard to commercial real estate. Supervisors will continue to closely monitor this segment,” said Michael Theurer, the member of the Executive Board responsible for banking supervision at the Deutsche Bundesbank. The outlook is more positive for residential properties, but lower market values are expected for buildings in need of renovation to meet energy efficiency standards. The banks and Sparkassen consider the greatest challenges to be recruitment, increased competition for deposits and the slowdown in economic activity. “In particular, challenges arising from demographic change will have a longterm impact on the banking sector. Institutions need to begin adapting to this development early and take a forward-looking approach,” Theurer advised.
    1,200 small and medium-sized German credit institutions took part in the stress test conducted by the Deutsche Bundesbank and BaFin. The participating institutions represent approximately 91 percent of all credit institutions in Germany and approximately 40 percent of the aggregate total assets. The results of the stress test are incorporated into the supervisory activities of the Deutsche Bundesbank and BaFin.
    Annex
    Earnings
    BaFin and the Deutsche Bundesbank collected the institutions’ own planned and forecast figures in the survey. The institutions were also asked to simulate their earnings for the period from 2024 to 2028 in five interest rate scenarios predefined by the supervisors. The institutions performed these calculations assuming a static balance sheet, meaning they were not able to adjust their portfolios.

     

    Scenario
    Yield curve
    Balance sheet assumption

    1

    Planned scenario
    Institution-specific assumptions
    dynamic

    2

    Steady interest rate level
    +/-0 bp as at 01.01.2024
    static

    3

    Positive interest rate shock
    + 200 bp as at 01.01.2024
    static

    4

    Negative interest rate shock
    − 100 bp as at 01.01.2024
    static

    5

    Gradual interest rate increase
    + 40 bp annually as at 01.01.
    static

    6

    Inverse turn
    + 200 bp to − 60 bp as at 01.01.2024
    static
    Table 1: Methodological rules and interest rate scenarios in the survey (2024–2028); “bp” stands for “basis points”
    On the basis of their own planned and forecast figures, the surveyed credit institutions reported in the second quarter of 2024 that they expect their return on assets to increase by 45% over the next five years (2022: + 18%). Return on assets is defined as the profit for the year before tax in relation to total assets. However, this highly positive projection is based on the optimistic assumption that interest rates will remain steady or even slightly increase in the medium to long term.
    Resilience
    On average, the institutions surveyed expect to increase their CET1 ratio from a level of 18.2% to 19.4% by 2028. They plan to do so despite the larger increase in risk-weighted assets, which can be traced to an upturn in the volume of business and increased risk-taking.
    Stress test used for determining Pillar 2 guidance
    Stress testing examines the resilience of institutions under adverse economic conditions and estimates the consequences for their capital resources. To this end, the banks and Sparkassen simulated their earnings and resilience for the years 2024 to 2026 according to baseline and stress scenarios predefined by the supervisors. The stress scenario for this year’s test entails a dramatic economic downturn resulting in interest rate risks, credit risks and market risks, among others. Other components of the banks’ profit and loss accounts were extrapolated based on historical data, partially with discounts.
    The supervisory authorities aimed to determine whether the capital resources of the credit institutions were still adequate over a three-year period in a stress scenario. After a capital depletion of 3.7 percentage points (the largest decrease in the CET1 ratio over the three-year scenario horizon), the small and medium-sized institutions in Germany still had a CET1 ratio of 14.5% on aggregate, which represents a sound capital basis.
    The stress test identifies the vulnerabilities of each individual institution. The risks revealed in the stress test also factor into the calculation of Pillar 2 guidance. An institution’s failure to comply with this recommendation acts as an important early warning threshold for supervisors. Institutions that are particularly vulnerable can be subjected to even closer supervision at an early stage. This helps further strengthen the stability of the German banking market.

    MIL OSI

    MIL OSI German News

  • MIL-OSI: Bank of Åland Plc: Financial information and Annual General Meeting, 2025

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    Bank of Åland Plc
    Financial Calendar
    October 24, 2024, 8.30 EET


    Financial information and Annual General Meeting, 2025

    The Bank of Åland Plc (Ålandsbanken Abp) will publish financial information in 2025 as follows:

    Year-end Report and Annual Report for 2024

    • Year-end Report for 2024: Wednesday, February 5, 2025
    • Annual Report and Capital and Risk Management Report for 2024, will be published during week 9, 2025 (February 24 – March 2)

    Interim Reports, 2025

    • Interim Report for January-March: Tuesday, April 29, 2025 
    • Half-Year Financial Report for January-June: Friday, July 18, 2025
    • Interim Report for January-September:  Friday, October 24, 2025

    Annual General Meeting, 2025

    • The Annual General Meeting: Tuesday, March 25, 2025

    Further information is available from Peter Wiklöf, Managing Director and Chief Executive, tel. +358 40 512 7505.

    The MIL Network

  • MIL-OSI: Bank of Åland Plc: Interim Report for the period January – September 2024

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    Bank of Åland Plc
    Interim Report
    October 24, 2024 9.00 EET

    Interim Report for the period January – September 2024

    “We are reporting our best nine-month operating profit ever, at EUR 49.8 million (41.5), which generated a return on equity after taxes of 18.4 per cent (15.7).

    “It has been nearly a year since market interest rates reached their highest levels, and we can see that declining market interest rates are negatively impacting net interest income. However, because of rising activity levels within our financial investment operations and our IT operations, net commission income and IT income during the quarter together rose more than the decline in net interest income. Our core income in the form of net interest income, net commission income and IT income thus increased by EUR 0.6 M or 1 per cent compared to the same quarter of 2023, reaching EUR 52.7 M (52.1).

    “Hopefully, falling market interest rates will lead to a continued surge in activity levels in our society.”

    Peter Wiklöf, Managing Director and Chief Executive

    January-September 2024 compared to January-September 2023

    • Net operating profit increased by 20 per cent to EUR 49.8 M (41.5).
    • Core income in the form of net interest income, net commission income and IT income increased by 10 per cent to EUR 161.1 M (146.4).
    • Other income increased to EUR 1.1 M (0.3). • Total expenses increased by 7 per cent to EUR 110.0 M (103.1).
    • Net impairment losses on financial assets (including recoveries) totalled EUR 2.5 M (2.0), equivalent to a loan loss level of 0.08 per cent (0.06).
    • Return on equity after taxes (ROE) increased to 18.4 per cent (15.7).
    • Earnings per share increased by 22 per cent to EUR 2.60 (2.13).
    • The common equity Tier 1 capital ratio increased to 14.0 per cent (13.7 on December 31, 2023).
    • Unchanged future outlook: The Bank of Åland expects its net operating profit in 2024 to be about the same as in 2023.

    The third quarter of 2024 compared to third quarter of 2023

    • Net operating profit decreased by 9 per cent to EUR 17.3 M (19.1).
    • Core income in the form of net interest income, net commission income and IT income increased by 1 per cent to EUR 52.7 M (52.1).
    • Other income increased to EUR 0.4 M (−0.9).
    • Total expenses increased by 11 per cent to EUR 35.1 M (31.5).
    • Net impairment losses on financial assets (including recoveries) totalled EUR 0.8 M (0.7), equivalent to a loan loss level of 0.08 per cent (0.06).
    • Return on equity after taxes (ROE) decreased to 19.0 per cent (21.5).
    • Earnings per share decreased by 9 per cent to EUR 0.89 (0.99).

    Financial summary

    Group Q3
    2024
    Q2
    2024
     % Q3
    2023
     % Jan-Sep
    2024
    Jan-Sep
    2023
    %
    EUR M                
    Income                 
    Net interest income 26.2 26.4 -1 27.9 -6 78.9 71.8 10
    Net commission income 18.9 19.4 -3 17.8 6 56.5 54.3 4
    IT income 7.6 9,7 -22 6.4 18 25.6 202 27
    Other income 0,4 -0,1   -0,9   1,1 0,3  
    Total income 53.1 55.3 -4 51.2 4 162.2 146.6 11
                     
    Staff costs -21.3 -22.8 -6 -19.4 10 -65.7 -60.4 9
    Other expenses -10.8 -12.5 -14 -8.9 20 -34.8 -30.4 14
    Statutory fees             -3,2 -100
    Depreciation/amortisation -3.0 -3.3 -8 -3.1 -3 -9.5 -9.0 5
    Total expenses -35.1 -38.5 -9 -31.5 11 -110.0 -103.1 7
                     
    Profit before impairment losses 18.0 16.8 7 19.8 -9 52.2 43.5 20
                     
    Impairment losses on financial assets, net -0.8 -1.2 -36 -0.7 8 -2.5 -2.0 23
    Net operating profit 17.3 15.6 11 19.1 -9 49.8 41.5 20
                     
    Income taxes -3.5 -3.1 16 -4.0 -10 -9.9 -8.9 11
    Profit for the period 13.7 12.6 9 15.1 -9 39.9 32.6 22
                     
    Attributable to:                
    Shareholders in Bank of Åland Plc 13.7 12.6 9 15.1 -9 39.9 32.6 22
                     
    Volume                
    Lending to the public 3,514 3,530 0 3,777 -7      
    Deposits from the public 3,396 3,475 -2 3,553 -4      
    Actively managed assets 10,654 10,343 3 8,982 19      
    Managed mortage loans 3,060 2,952 4 2,600 18      
    Equity capital 325 311 5 318 2      
    Balance sheet total 4,789 4,782 0 5,197 -8      
    Risk exposure amount 1,693 1,681 1 1,741 -3      

    The Bank of Åland (Ålandsbanken) follows the disclosure procedure stipulated in “Disclosure obligation of the issuer (7/2013)”, published by the Finnish Financial Supervisory Authority and hereby publishes its Interim Report for the period January – September 2024, which is enclosed with this stock exchange release.

    The Bank`s Interim Report for the period January – September 2024 is attached to this release in PDF format and is also available on the company’s web site at

    https://www.alandsbanken.com/uploads/pdf/result/en_resultat_jan-sep_24.pdf

    Mariehamn, October 24, 2024

    THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

    For more information please contact:

    Peter Wiklöf, Managing Director and Chief Executive, Bank of Åland, tel. + 358 (0)40 512 7505

    Attachment

    The MIL Network

  • MIL-OSI: eQ Community Properties Fund renewed loans in excess of EUR 400 million – Deutsche Bank as a new lender

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    Press release
    24 October 2024 10:30 am

    eQ Community Properties Fund (AIF) has entered into a EUR 154 million senior secured loan arrangement with Deutsche Bank AG. The collateral portfolio consists of community and healthcare assets in the Helsinki Metropolitan Area and Tampere.

    In June, the fund also extended a EUR 253 million senior secured loan facility with its current lenders Nordea Bank, Danske Bank, Swedbank and Aktia.

    Through the recent successful arrangements, the Fund has broadened and strengthened its lender base, secured a long-term financing as well as extended its loan maturities and fixed interest periods.

    Head of Real Estate Investments at eQ, Tero Estovirta says: “We are very pleased to have an international and prominent financier, Deutsche Bank, as a new lender in eQ Community Properties Fund. We have worked for a long time and systematically to obtain international debt financing and Deutsche Bank has been one of the most interesting ones already for a while. It is great to have now initiated our cooperation. Generally, financiers have shown strong interest and trust towards Finnish real estate and open-ended funds. Access to debt has clearly improved as interest rate levels decrease. It is possible to reach cost-effective and sustainable financing solutions. All the lenders of eQ Community Properties Fund are leading players in the market and together with our latest addition, Deutsche Bank, they facilitate a strong financing platform for the future. We thank all our lenders for pragmatic and solution-orientated processes.”

    eQ Community Properties Fund (AIF) was established in 2012. The market value of the fund’s property portfolio is EUR 1.75 billion as per September 2024. The fund is the largest community properties investor and developer in Finland. The assets are located in the Helsinki Metropolitan Area and selected growth centres in Finland.

    Helsinki 24 October 2024

    eQ Asset Management Ltd

    Further information:
    Tero Estovirta, Head of Real Estate Investments, eQ Asset Management Ltd
    +358 50 593 6194 / tero.estovirta@eQ.fi

    eQ Group is a group of companies that concentrates on asset management and corporate finance business. eQ Asset Management offers a wide range of asset management services (including private equity funds and real estate asset management) for institutions and private individuals. The assets managed by the Group total approximately EUR 13.3 billion. Advium Corporate Finance, which is part of the Group, offers services related to mergers and acquisitions, real estate transactions and equity capital markets.

    More information about the Group is available on our website www.eQ.fi.

    The MIL Network

  • MIL-OSI China: Hezbollah confirms attack on Israeli military company

    Source: China State Council Information Office 3

    Hezbollah said it attacked on Wednesday night the Israel Military Industries Ltd., also referred to as Ta’a, in the suburbs of Tel Aviv with missiles.

    Hezbollah, in a statement, said the strike “hit its targets accurately.”

    The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said earlier in the day that four projectiles were launched on Wednesday evening from Lebanon towards central Israel, adding two of them were intercepted and two others fell, with no casualties reported.

    Meanwhile, Israel’s state-owned Kan TV news, citing Palestinian sources, reported that one projectile fell near Qalqilya city in the West Bank, slightly injuring a man and damaging a car.

    Since Sept. 23, the Israeli army has been launching intensive airstrikes on Lebanon in a dangerous escalation with Hezbollah. In early October, Israel also launched a ground operation near the southern Lebanese border, allegedly to further cripple Hezbollah’s capabilities.

    MIL OSI China News

  • MIL-OSI China: BRICS leaders adopt joint declaration

    Source: China State Council Information Office 3

    Leaders of BRICS countries pose for a group photo during the 16th BRICS Summit in Kazan, Russia, Oct. 23, 2024. The summit was hosted by Russian President Vladimir Putin, and attended by Chinese President Xi Jinping, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva (via video conference), Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi, Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and President of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. [Photo/Xinhua]

    BRICS leaders have issued a joint declaration covering a wide range of issues from the reform of the United Nations (UN) to ongoing global conflicts, following the association’s summit that took place on Wednesday in Kazan.

    The declaration included 134 provisions in total, one of which addressed the reform of the UN.

    “We reaffirm our support for a comprehensive reform of the UN, including its Security Council, with a view to making it more democratic, representative, effective and efficient,” the document read. This involves expanding the representation of developing countries to better respond to global challenges.

    In addition, leaders reiterated their absolute condemnation of terrorism in all its forms and called for the prompt adoption of the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism within the UN.

    Alongside essential reforms, BRICS members called for the UN to play an important role in the global governance of artificial intelligence.

    The declaration also focused on global conflicts including those in the Middle East and Ukraine.

    “We remain concerned about at the rise of violence and continuing armed conflicts in different parts of the world,” the declaration read. BRICS leaders reaffirmed their commitment to resolving dispute peacefully through diplomacy.

    Leaders expressed deep concern about the ongoing tensions in the Gaza Strip and called for an immediate ceasefire and a cessation of all hostilities.

    The leaders noted the importance of the establishment of a sovereign and independent State of Palestine within the internationally recognized borders of June 1967, and expressed support for Palestine’s full membership in the UN.

    Member states also recalled national positions on the Ukrainian crisis, and “noted with appreciation relevant proposals” aimed at a peaceful settlement of the conflict through diplomacy.

    The BRICS leaders further expressed grave concern over the harmful impact of illegal unilateral sanctions on the global economy, noting that they negatively affect economic growth, energy, food security, and exacerbate poverty.

    BRICS members stressed the need to prevent an arms race in space and called for the creation of a document ensuring space security.

    The provisions included various economic initiatives designed to strengthen the role of developing countries in the global economy and promote equitable conditions for all.

    BRICS members called for the reform of the Bretton Woods institutions to increase the contribution of the developing countries to the global economy.

    They welcomed the establishment of a new BRICS investment platform, which will use the existing institutional infrastructure of the New Development Bank to boost investment flows into BRICS countries and countries of the Global South.

    They called for the reform of the current international financial architecture so it can “meet the global financial challenges” and become more inclusive and just.

    Member countries also supported Russia’s proposal on the creation of a BRICS grain exchange, adding that the trading platform could later be expanded to include other agricultural sectors.

    MIL OSI China News

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Appointments to Process Review Panel for Securities and Futures Commission

    Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

         The Government announced today (October 24) that the Financial Secretary, under the authority delegated by the Chief Executive, has appointed the new Chairman and eight new members, and reappointed four incumbent members to the Process Review Panel (PRP) for the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) for a term of two years from November 1, 2024.
     
         The new Chairman of the PRP is Ms Miranda Kwok Pui-fong. The eight new members are Dr Chordio Chan Siu-ping, Ms Lorna Chen Xin, Mr Kenneth Chen Yung-ngai, Dr Bankee Kwan Pak-hoo, Mr David Lau Pak-wai, Ms Jasmine Lee Shun-yi, Ms Lian Shaodong and Ms Karen So Kwok-yan. Professor Chan Ka-lok, Ms Kerry Ching Kim-wai, Mr Charles Lin Xiaodong and Dr Levin Wang Lei have been reappointed.
     
         A spokesman for the Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau said, “We are grateful to the PRP for the time and efforts devoted to conducting reviews. The valuable advice and suggestions provided to the SFC have helped enhance its internal procedures and operational guidelines. We are confident that, under the leadership of Ms Miranda Kwok as the new Chairman, the PRP will continue to play a vital role in assisting the SFC to exercise its regulatory power in a fair and efficient manner.
     
         “We extend our heartfelt gratitude to the outgoing Chairman, Mr Lawrence Lee Kam-hung, for his exemplary leadership over the past six years. We would also like to thank Mr Jeffrey Chan Lap-tak, Ms Dilys Chau Suet-fung, Ms Ivy Chua Suk-lin, Mr Vincent Chui Yik-chiu, Ms Margaret Kwan Wing-han, Mr Henry Lai Hin-wing and Mr Brian David Li Man-bun, who will be completing their tenure, for their dedication and contribution.”
     
         The PRP is an independent non-statutory panel established in November 2000 to review the operational procedures of the SFC and determine whether the SFC has followed its procedures in carrying out its work. This helps ensure that the SFC exercises its regulatory power in a fair and consistent manner.
     
         The membership of the PRP with effect from November 1, 2024, is as follows:

    Chairman
    ———–
    Ms Miranda Kwok Pui-fong
     
    Members
    ———-
    Professor Chan Ka-lok
    Dr Chordio Chan Siu-ping
    Ms Lorna Chen Xin
    Mr Kenneth Chen Yung-ngai
    Ms Kerry Ching Kim-wai
    Dr Bankee Kwan Pak-hoo
    Mr David Lau Pak-wai
    Ms Jasmine Lee Shun-yi
    Ms Lian Shaodong
    Mr Charles Lin Xiaodong
    Ms Karen So Kwok-yan
    Dr Levin Wang Lei
     
    Ex-officio Members
    ———————
    The Chairman of the SFC
    The Secretary for Justice or his representative

    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News

  • MIL-OSI Economics: Phil Mnisi: Banking Supervision Application Version 5.0 Launch

    Source: Bank for International Settlements

    • Programme Director 
    • Honourable Guests
    • Representatives from the Bank Supervision Office in Mozambique
    • Distinguished Members of the Banking Industry
    • Regulatory Authorities present here
    • Mobile Money Operators
    • Ladies and Gentlemen
    • Good Evening!

    Introduction

    It is both a privilege and an honour to stand before you today, as we gather for the official launch of a significant advancement in our financial regulatory landscape. The launch of the Banking Supervision Application (BSA) Version 5.0 today marks a milestone in our collective efforts to enhance the regulatory framework of our financial sector, strengthening the very foundation of data integrity, financial stability, and consumer protection.

    Our journey with the Banking Supervision Application began in 1997, in partnership with various Central Banks across Africa. Since the launch of Version 1 in 2003, the BSA has continuously evolved, with significant improvements culminating in the release of Version 4.0 in 2018. Today, we are proud to unveil Version 5.0, a remarkable milestone for a system that now serves 21-member Central Banksacross Africa, Asia, and America, each actively contributing to the system’s continued growth and enhancement.

    This upgraded version is not only more advanced than previousversions but also more agile, designed to meet the emerging complexities of modern banking. It reflects the dynamic nature of the financial landscape and our proactive approach to addressing and supporting innovation as well as the challenges faced by financial institutions.

    Why This Upgrade Matters

    As we all know, the banking sector is the backbone of our economy, and its soundness directly impacts our nation’s prosperity. As the world evolves, so too must our regulatory tools. We are living in an erawhere technology is reshaping the way banking services are delivered, and the need for data-driven supervisory oversighthas never been more critical. Thus, it is imperative that our regulatory tools remain robust, efficient, and adaptable to the continuously shifting financial landscape.

    Version 5.0 is a testament to our dedication to technological innovationand regulatory excellence, in line with our vision “to be a centre of excellence and central bank of reference”. This Financial Regulatory Technology is equipped with several key features that enhance our supervisory capabilities, which include:

    a. Responsive Design: The new version is compatible with various devices, allowing seamless access whether on a computer, tablet, or smartphone. Thisflexibility is essential for regulators and financial institutions operating in today’s fast-paced environment.

    b. Postback Effects Elimination: The system has been designed to avoid postback effects when selecting elements within a screen, ensuring a smoother and more efficient user experience.

    c. Customizable Dashboards: Users can now define their own dashboard layouts, allowing them to access the most relevant information at a glance. This feature enhances user experience and efficiency by tailoring theinterface to individual needs.

    d. Enhanced User and Role Management: The new version allows for more granular management of users and roles, ensuring that the right people have access to the right information, enhancing security and operational efficiency.

    e. Automated Programming Interface (API): The BSA now integrates with other financial applications, enabling near real-time data access, streamlining compliance, and automating reporting processes.

    f. Consumer Protection Module (CPS): One of the standoutfeatures of Version 5.0 is the introduction of a Consumer Protection System that includes tools for managing complaints, monitoring compliance, analysing consumer data, and providing virtual assistance for frequently asked questions. This will significantly bolster our efforts to safeguard the interests of consumers, ensuring fair treatment across the financial sector.

    Benefits to the Financial Sector

    This upgrade will benefit not only the Central Bank but also the broader financial sector, which plays a critical role in our financial ecosystem. By providing more streamlined compliance processes and faster data retrieval, the system will empower the financial institutions to make data-driven decisions, improving both the accuracy and efficiency of regulatory reporting.

    Gratitude and Acknowledgments

    This achievement would not have been possible without the dedication and hard work of many individuals. I will request that we give them a round of applause.

    I would also like to extend my deepestgratitude to the CBE Team comprising of Financial Regulation and IT departmentsfor having worked tirelessly to ensure a seamless deployment process. My sincere gratitude to the entire project management team for your exceptional efforts in ensuring the successful delivery of this project.

    In addition, I would like to acknowledge the cooperation and support of our external stakeholders, particularly the Bank Supervision Office in Mozambique and the member countries currently using BSA. Their feedback and collaboration have been instrumental in the successful rollout of Version 5.0.

    Looking Ahead

    The financial sector is dynamic, and while BSA Version 5.0 equips us with the tools to address current challenges, it is crucial that we continue to innovate and adapt our approaches, remaining vigilant and responsive to emerging trends. Our goal remains clear, to promote the safety and soundness of the financial sector while ensuring its stability, an environment where financial institutions can remain competitive and thrive.

    In closing, let me reaffirm our commitment to excellence in regulation and supervision. The launch of Version 5.0 is a significant milestone in this journey. I am confident that this system will enhance our capabilities and guarantee that we continue to uphold the highest standards of financial oversight.

    As we move forward, let us continue to work together to build a resilient and dynamic financial system that supports the economic growth and development of our beloved Kingdom of Eswatini.

    To celebrate our achievement, I am excited to present avideo that summarizes the significant milestones we have accomplishedin the development and deployment of BSA Version 5.0. It reflects the hard work, collaborative efforts and innovation that have fueled this project’s success.

    With those words, I thank you all Ladies and Gentlemen!

    MIL OSI Economics

  • MIL-OSI Economics: Alwyn Jordan: Monitoring and assessing risks to financial stability in the Caribbean

    Source: Bank for International Settlements

    On behalf of the Central Bank of Barbados, it is my great pleasure to welcome you to this peer-to-peer exchange seminar. I’d like to extend a special welcome to Dr. Petr Jakubik from CARTAC, whose initiative has brought us together for this important event.

    This is not just another training seminar – it is a dynamic platform for the exchange of ideas, the sharing of expertise and the building of frameworks for future collaboration. In today’s rapidly evolving global landscape, where financial stability and economic resilience are increasingly intertwined with central bank regulation, peer exchanges like this are vital. They help us remain agile, informed and equip us with the latest knowledge and best practices to meet the challenges we face as central bankers and regulators.

    It is therefore a pleasure to be here today to discuss this issue with you, which is at the heart of economic development in the Caribbean. We all know that at first glance, financial stability may seem like a dry, technical topic, but for us in the Caribbean, it is central to safeguarding our economic well-being. As the global financial system becomes more interconnected, our economies are exposed to a variety of risks – both natural and man-made. Today, I want to highlight why financial stability is crucial for our region, with particular emphasis on challenges such as climate change, external shocks, and the evolving financial landscape. I will also shed some light on the difficulties faced by Caribbean central banks and other regulators in preparing comprehensive Financial Stability Reports.

    We all know that financial stability is about ensuring that various entities such as banks, insurance companies, financial markets, and payment systems operate smoothly without triggering major disruptions. When financial stability is maintained, businesses can secure credit, households can borrow and save, and governments can finance development. It is therefore the backbone of economic resilience.

    For the Caribbean, the stakes are particularly high. We are a region of small, open economies that are highly dependent on external trade, tourism, and foreign investment. Our economic structure makes us extremely vulnerable to external shocks, whether they are related to global financial conditions, natural disasters, or geopolitical events. Any significant disruption to the financial system, whether from internal weaknesses or external shocks can therefore quickly lead to a financial crisis. The resulting economic hardship can take years, or even decades, from which to recover. A very good example of this phenomenon was seen during and after the Global Financial Crisis. 

    Vulnerability to Climate Change

    But let me start by addressing one of the major external risks to Caribbean economies, namely the climate crisis. Our region is one of the most vulnerable to the impact of climate change. Indeed, when we refer to climate vulnerable economies, Caribbean countries are always the highest ranked by any measure. Rising sea levels, more intense storms such as hurricane Beryl, which caused significant damage to a number of Caribbean islands in late June, prolonged droughts, and flooding have become our unfortunate reality. These climate-related risks have a direct bearing on financial stability, as these systems don’t just devastate homes and infrastructure, they can also have adverse effects on the financial system.

    For example, the destruction of infrastructure can lead to loans becoming non-performing, as businesses and households may default on their debt. Banks and other large financial entities in turn, may face liquidity problems, which can trigger a systemic crisis. Furthermore, as governments attempt to rebuild after the event, this often leads to an increase in public debt, which puts further strain on their ability to finance essential services and infrastructure. Imagine the strain on our resources that would have occurred had any of our islands been hit by the back-to-back hurricanes that recently devastated Florida and other states along the US South coast. 

    Climate-related risks are particularly challenging to manage because of their unpredictable nature and the difficulty in quantifying their economic impact. Caribbean regulators must therefore continuously monitor these risks and implement forward-looking policies to mitigate their effects on the financial system.

    The Impact of Global Economic Shocks

    In addition to climate change, external economic shocks pose another serious risk to financial stability in the Caribbean. Our economies are heavily reliant on global trade, tourism, and remittances. Any disturbance in the global economy such as a recessions in our major trading partners or sudden changes in commodity prices can ripple through our financial systems. Take, for instance, the fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic, which brought the world to a standstill in 2020. It was an economic shock of unprecedented proportions for the Caribbean. Indeed, our tourism sector, a lifeline for many economies, came to a grinding halt, leaving governments and businesses scrambling to stay afloat.

    Central banks in the region had to take swift action to ensure liquidity in the financial system, lower interest rates, and support government stimulus efforts. But the pandemic highlighted an ongoing challenge: our financial systems are vulnerable to global crises, and the lack of diversified economies in the region makes recovery more difficult. Regulators must therefore constantly balance the need to maintain stability, while responding to these shocks in an agile and effective manner.

    Navigating the New Financial Landscape

    But this is not the only challenge facing us as regulators, as the financial landscape is also evolving rapidly. The rise of fintech, digital currencies, and shadow banking, has created new opportunities for financial inclusion and innovation. However, it also presents new risks. Digital currencies, while offering the potential for greater financial inclusion, bring concerns about regulatory oversight, cybersecurity, and monetary policy transmission. Caribbean countries have been the pioneers in developing digital currency frameworks, but it still requires careful consideration of the impact on financial stability.

    Shadow banks – non-bank financial intermediaries that provide similar services as traditional banks – such as payday lenders or firms offering “buy now, pay later” options for buyers, are another concern. Given that these entities generally operate outside the regular regulatory framework, they are often opaque, and central banks may lack the tools to properly oversee their activities. They can, therefore, pose systemic risks without the safeguards that apply to the formal financial sector. If these institutions fail, the resulting financial contagion could spread quickly throughout the economy. Developing effective regulatory frameworks for shadow banks is therefore critical to ensuring financial stability in our region. 

    The Value of Financial Stability Reports

    It is against this backdrop that Caribbean central banks face the herculean task of monitoring, assessing, and mitigating these risks. One of the key tools at their disposal is macroprudential policy, which is still in its initial stage of implementation in most Caribbean economies. However, central banks have made significant improvements in communicating the risks to the public via their Financial Stability Reports (FSR). These FSRs, as you all know, provide a comprehensive assessment of the financial system’s health and highlight any emerging vulnerabilities. However, preparing a comprehensive FSR is a very challenging exercise, especially in the Caribbean context.

    One of the most significant challenges is the lack of comprehensive and timely data. Many countries in the region struggle with collecting and analysing the necessary data to fully assess financial risks. Without high-quality data, it is difficult for central banks to make accurate forecasts or take pre-emptive action. Improving data collection and our analytical capabilities must therefore be a priority for the region, if we are to produce meaningful and effective reports.

    Moreover, we know that preparing a high-quality FSR requires specialised knowledge in areas such as macroprudential policy, risk modelling, and scenario analysis. Given the complexity of financial systems and the fast-paced evolution of risks, Caribbean regulators must therefore invest in training and development, to ensure that they have the expertise required to produce comprehensive reports. 

    In our context, the Financial Stability Report of Barbados has evolved over the years, reflecting the growing complexity of the financial landscape in the country. I’d like to highlight some of the key milestones that have shaped this journey, all of which have been implemented as a result of our partnership with our sister regulator, the Financial Services Commission (FSC) and our collaboration with CARTAC (Caribbean Regional Technical Assistance Centre).

    A major accomplishment was the introduction of stress testing in 2016, as this allowed us to simulate how our banking sector would perform under adverse shocks. This tool gave the Bank, as a policymaker and regulator, a clearer understanding of the vulnerabilities that might emerge during a financial crisis, helping us better prepare for potential disruptions. This was a crucial step in ensuring that our banks and financial institutions remain resilient, even in the face of global uncertainties.

    As our financial system grew more diverse, it became essential to extend our focus beyond traditional banks. In 2018, the FSR began to include a detailed analysis of non-bank financial institutions (NBFIs) such as insurance companies, pension funds, and credit unions, though our collaboration with the FSC. This was a key milestone because non-bank financial institutions are integral to our economy, and their health is equally as important as that of the banking sector. By broadening the scope of the FSR, we now have a more comprehensive picture of the overall financial system.

    The next significant development occurred four years later in 2020, when we made an important breakthrough in acknowledging the significant risk that climate change poses to our financial system. With the inclusion of climate-related financial risk analysis, the Central Bank aligned Barbados with the global efforts to manage climate-related financial risks, underscoring our commitment to resilience.

    The results of this work, led by Dr. Saida Teleu and her team, were incorporated in Barbados’ 2023 FSR. With the invaluable assistance of the Coastal Zone Management Unit, we’ve implemented a climate stress test, focusing on projecting damage to the accommodation sector, which is deeply intertwined with our tourism industry. This collaboration has allowed us to assess the potential impacts of climate-related risks on financial stability in a more data-driven and precise manner.

    In the most recent FSR, the Bank has also successfully undertaken a significant revamp of its publication, with improvements that underscore our commitment to both innovation and comprehensive risk management. One of the key upgrades has been the introduction of a dynamic balance sheet approach to stress testing. Unlike traditional methods, this approach allows us to incorporate explicit macroeconomic scenarios and extend our stress testing over a longer horizon. This dynamic perspective offers us deeper insights into how our financial system would respond to shocks in a changing economic environment. Additionally, we’ve developed a non-performing loan satellite model, giving us a more accurate assessment of credit risk in our financial system. 

    We also recognised the growing importance of the real estate sector, and so we’ve enhanced our analysis of this sector. Real estate is not only a critical component of household wealth, but also a significant driver of lending and investment activity, making it essential to the stability of our financial system. 

    As the financial landscape changes, so too must our approach to assessing risks. In this regard, the 2023 FSR also incorporated the risks posed by digital financial services, fintech, and cybersecurity and issued a survey to the industry to gather vital data. This addition was particularly important given the rapid rise of cyber-crime and the increasing use of online financial services, and the recent publicised cyber-related breaches at the Barbados Revenue Authority and one of our credit unions give testament to this fact. As a country, we are keen to embrace innovation, but it is equally important that we understand and manage the risks that come with these technological advancements.

    These most recent advancements significantly upgraded our report. Indeed, the Bank’s FSR has now become, in our humble opinion, the regional benchmark for integrating climate change into financial stability assessments. However, we are keen to share our insights with our regional colleagues and we thank CARTAC for sponsoring two peer-to-peer missions, including this one, which serve to further strengthen financial stability efforts throughout the Caribbean. 

    Each of these milestones reflects our Bank’s commitment to ensuring a resilient financial system. From stress testing and climate risk analysis to the inclusion of cyber risks and more robust data analytics, we are continuously improving the tools and strategies we use to safeguard financial stability.

    But our work doesn’t end here. The financial system is always evolving, and we must stay ahead of the curve. By building on these achievements and addressing new challenges, we will continue to protect the financial well-being of Barbados, ensuring that we are resilient in the face of both local and global uncertainties.

    I am honoured to also explore some of the significant milestones achieved by two of our regional counterparts – the Financial Services Commission of Turks and Caicos and the Central Bank of Aruba – in their efforts to enhance their financial stability reporting. 

    Let me begin with Turks and Caicos. Your financial system plays a vital role in your country’s economy, particularly in your banking and offshore sectors. In collaboration with CARTAC, the FSC made great strides in developing its stress testing framework, which is very similar to the one we recently implemented, as a multi-factor and multi-period macroeconomic-stress test that can account for both domestic economic shocks such as a downturn in tourism and external shocks like global financial market volatility. By extending the horizon and refining the scenarios, the FSC is now better equipped to gauge the potential vulnerabilities within its financial system.

    We know that the Central Bank of Aruba does not currently publish a Financial Stability Report. However, the Bank does perform stress tests on its banking sector, the results of which are usually discussed with the banks individually via bilateral meetings. In 2023, the Bank conducted a stress test on the banking sector, with a key focus on concentration risk. This scenario analysis was driven by the developments in the US banking system that took place that year. 

    We will hear directly from these two institutions about their journey to enhance and assess financial stability in their respective jurisdictions. Over the next few days, you will participate in a diverse and robust line-up of sessions that promise to deepen our understanding and sharpen our capabilities. 

    I encourage all of you to actively participate in these discussions, as the true power of peer-to-peer learning lies in the collective wisdom and shared experiences of those in this room. Each of us brings a wealth of knowledge and experience, and together, we have the opportunity to generate innovative solutions that can strengthen the financial stability of our institutions and economies.

    I commend CARTAC, and Petr specifically, for hosting these peer-to-peer exchanges, which provide unique value to our professional growth. While we are all experts in our respective areas, there is tremendous strength in collaboration. This seminar is therefore a perfect opportunity to foster connections, engage in thought-provoking discussions, and together, to drive the innovation and progress that our institutions and economies need to thrive.

    I would like to take a moment to recognise and thank the organising team, especially the Financial Stability Unit led by Saida, who have worked tirelessly to put together this exceptional event, as well as Karen, who has done an excellent job in coordinating this event. Your dedication and efforts are deeply appreciated.

    I would also like to extend a special thank you to our speakers, including those from our sister regulator, the FSC, and our colleagues from the Turks & Caicos and Aruba, who have prepared valuable content for us. We look forward to the knowledge and insights you will bring to the table.

    In closing, I urge each of you to take full advantage of the opportunities this seminar provides. Whether through the formal sessions or during informal conversations during the coffee breaks, I encourage you to use this time to build stronger networks, exchange ideas, and learn from one another. Once again, thank you all for being here. I look forward to the meaningful discussions and practical takeaways that will undoubtedly emerge over the next few days and I wish everyone a productive and successful seminar.

    Thank you.

    MIL OSI Economics