BERKSHIRE HILLS BANCORP INC - Annual Report: 2011 (Form 10-K)

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 10-K

For the fiscal year ended: December 31, 2011

For the transition period from _________ to __________

BERKSHIRE HILLS BANCORP, INC.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: (413) 443-5601

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act: None

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. Yes ¨ No x

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act. Yes ¨ No x

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes x No ¨

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically and posted on its corporate Web site, if any, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit and post such files). Yes x No ¨

Indicate by check mark if disclosure of delinquent filers pursuant to Item 405 of Regulation S-K is not contained herein, and will not be contained, to the best of the registrant’s knowledge, in definitive proxy or information statements incorporated by reference in Part III of the Form 10-K or any amendment to this Form 10-K. x

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, or a smaller reporting company. See the definition of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer” and “smaller reporting company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act. (Check one)

Large Accelerated Filer ¨ Accelerated Filer x Non-Accelerated Filer ¨ Smaller Reporting Company ¨

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Act). Yes ¨ No x

The aggregate market value of the voting and non-voting common equity held by non-affiliates was approximately $365 million, based upon the closing price of $22.39 as quoted on the NASDAQ Global Select Market as of the last business day of the registrant’s most recently completed second fiscal quarter.

The number of shares outstanding of the registrant’s common stock as of March 7, 2012 was 21,193,105.

DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE: Portions of the Proxy Statement for the 2012 Annual Meeting of Stockholders are incorporated by reference in Part III of this Form 10-K.

PART I

ITEM 1. BUSINESS 

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements contained in this document that are not historical facts may constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (referred to as the Securities Act), and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (referred to as the Securities Exchange Act), and are intended to be covered by the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. You can identify these statements from the use of the words “may,” “will,” “should,” “could,” “would,” “plan,” “potential,” “estimate,” “project,” “believe,” “intend,” “anticipate,” “expect,” “target” and similar expressions. These forward-looking statements are subject to significant risks, assumptions and uncertainties, including among other things, changes in general economic and business conditions.

Additional factors that could cause results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements can be found in the definitive Proxy Statement/Prospectus filed by Berkshire Hills Bancorp with the SEC on February 27, 2012 for the acquisition of The Connecticut Bank and Trust Company (“CBT”). This document contains forward-looking statements about the proposed merger of Berkshire Hills Bancorp and CBT. Certain factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from expected results include delays in completing the merger, difficulties in achieving cost savings from the merger or in achieving such cost savings within the expected time frame, difficulties in integrating Berkshire Hills Bancorp and CBT, increased competitive pressures, changes in the interest rate environment, changes in general economic conditions, legislative and regulatory changes that adversely affect the business in which Berkshire Hills Bancorp and CBT are engaged, changes in the securities markets and other risks and uncertainties disclosed from time to time in documents that Berkshire Hills Bancorp files with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which reflect our expectations only as of the date of this report. We do not assume any obligation to revise forward-looking statements except as may be required by law.

General

Berkshire Hills Bancorp (“Berkshire” or “the Company”) is headquartered in Pittsfield, Massachusetts. Berkshire Hills Bancorp, Inc. is a Delaware corporation and the holding company for the Berkshire Bank (“the Bank”) and Berkshire Insurance Group (“BIG”). Established in 1846, the Bank is one of Massachusetts' oldest and largest independent banks and is the largest banking institution based in Western Massachusetts.

At year-end 2011, the Bank had $4.0 billion in assets and its wealth management division managed under $1.0 billion in assets invested for clients. Additionally, Berkshire Insurance Group’s revenues place it among the largest independent insurance agencies in Western Massachusetts. Berkshire’s common shares are traded on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the symbol “BHLB”. At year-end 2011, Berkshire's closing stock price was $22.19 and 21.1 million common shares were outstanding. Berkshire is a regional bank and financial services company providing the service capabilities of a larger institution and the local focus and responsiveness as a local partner to its communities. The Company seeks to distinguish itself based on the following attributes:

The Company profiles its growing regional franchise as follows:

The Bank operates under the brand America’s Most Exciting Bank^SM and portrays its brand and culture as follows:

The Bank has 60 full-service banking offices serving communities throughout Western Massachusetts, Northeastern New York and in Southern Vermont. The Bank operates in four regions:

These four regions are viewed as having favorable demographics and provide an attractive regional niche for the Bank to distinguish itself from larger super-regional banks and smaller community banks while serving its three state market area. The Company’s markets have experienced less exposure to speculative development, real estate inflation, and subprime lending activities compared to many other regions of the country. The Company believes it has attractive long term growth prospects because of the Bank's positioning as the largest locally headquartered regional bank which can serve the retail and commercial markets with a strong product set and responsive local management. The Company also has a goal to deepen its wallet share as a result of its focused cross sales program across its various business lines including insurance and wealth management.

In addition to the above regions, Berkshire has expanded into commercial banking operations into Central and Eastern Massachusetts. In 2010, it recruited a leading New England middle market asset based lending team which is located in Woburn, Massachusetts and which serves businesses throughout New England and the New York region. In the fourth quarter of 2011, Berkshire recruited an experienced Central/Eastern Massachusetts commercial banking team which has been located in a new commercial office in Westborough. At year-end 2011, Berkshire had approximately $0.2 billion in loans under the management of these teams.

The Company is pursuing expansion through organic growth, de novo branching, product development, recruitment of banking teams, and through acquisitions. The Bank promotes itself as America’s Most Exciting Bank^SM. It has set out to change the financial service experience. Its vision is to excel as a high performing market leader with the right people, attitude, and energy providing an engaging and exciting customer and team member experience. This brand and culture statement is expected to drive customer engagement, loyalty, market share and profitability. Similarly, this focus on performance underlies Berkshire’s strong growth, improved efficiency, investment in infrastructure, and solid execution of acquisition due diligence and integration.

The Company offers a wide range of deposit, lending, insurance, and wealth management products to retail, commercial, not-for-profit, and municipal customers in its market areas. The Company’s product offerings also include retail and commercial electronic banking, commercial cash management, and commercial interest rate swaps. The Company’s traditional commercial banking products are offered within its regions and to commercial relationships in Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island. The Company stresses a culture of teamwork and performance excellence to produce customer satisfaction to support its strategic growth and profitability. The Company utilizes Six Sigma tools to improve operational effectiveness and efficiency.

The Company has recruited executives with experience in regional bank management and has augmented its management team as it has expanded into a three state diversified regional financial services provider. The Company has invested in its infrastructure in order to position itself for further growth as a regional consolidator with an objective of filling in and expanding its footprint in its New England and New York markets. Its acquisitions of banks, insurance agencies, and wealth management companies have resulted in initial dilution to book value and tangible book value per share for the Company to achieve the scale and momentum to support future beneficial growth. In 2011, with the benefit of this strategy, the Company completed two bank acquisitions which were accretive to earnings per share while overall tangible book value per share also increased during the year.

The Company has continued to seek opportunities to participate in regional consolidation in its markets. In the fourth quarter of 2011, Berkshire announced an agreement to acquire CBT – The Connecticut Bank and Trust Company. Based in Hartford, CBT has approximately $0.3 billion in total assets and serves the Greater Hartford area with eight branches. This acquisition provides Berkshire with a long-targeted expansion into Northern Connecticut and combines with its initiatives in Springfield and Central Massachusetts to build its presence in this larger region, which is the second largest economic area in New England. This is anticipated to further enhance the Company’s positioning as a major regional provider.

Company Website and Availability of Securities and Exchange Commission Filings

The Company’s Internet website is in the Investor Relations section at www.berkshirebank.com. At this site, the Company makes available free of charge, its annual reports on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, current reports on Form 8-K, and any amendments to those reports filed pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 as soon as reasonably practicable after the Company electronically files such material with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Information on the website is not incorporated by reference and is not a part of this annual report on Form 10-K.

Competition

The Company is subject to strong competition from banks and other financial institutions and financial service providers. Its competition includes national and super-regional banks such as Bank of America, TD Bank, Citizens Bank, Sovereign Bank, and Key Bank which have substantially greater resources and lending limits. Non-bank competitors include credit unions, brokerage firms, insurance providers, financial planners, and the mutual fund industry. New technology is reshaping customer interaction with financial service providers and the increase of Internet-accessible financial institutions increases competition for the Company’s customers. The Company generally competes on the basis of customer service, relationship management, and the fair pricing of loan and deposit products and wealth management and insurance services. The location and convenience of branch offices is also a significant competitive factor, particularly regarding new offices. The Company does not rely on any individual, group, or entity for a material portion of its deposits. Recent economic and financial events have significantly impacted the competitive environment. The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (“the Federal Reserve”) reduced short-term interest rates to close to zero and numerous financial companies converted to bank charters and began accepting deposits insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (“FDIC”). A number of nonbank sources of competition have withdrawn from the market, and national competitors have reduced their commitment to some activities in the region.

Lending Activities

General. The Bank originates loans in the four basic portfolio categories discussed below. Lending activities are limited by federal and state laws and regulations. Loan interest rates and other key loan terms are affected principally by the Bank’s asset/liability strategy, loan demand, competition, and the supply of money available for lending purposes. These factors, in turn, are affected by general and economic conditions, monetary policies of the federal government, including the Federal Reserve, legislative tax policies and governmental budgetary matters. Most of the Bank’s loans are made in its market areas and are secured by real estate located in its market areas. Lending activities are therefore affected by activity in these real estate markets. The Bank does not engage in subprime lending activities targeted towards borrowers in high risk categories. The Bank monitors and manages the amount of long-term fixed-rate lending volume. Adjustable-rate loan products generally reduce interest rate risk but may produce higher loan losses in the event of sustained rate increases. The Bank retains most of the loans it originates, although the Bank generally sells its longer-term, fixed-rate, one to four-family residential loans and sometimes buys and sells participations in some commercial loans.

Loan Portfolio Analysis. The following table sets forth the year-end composition of the Bank’s loan portfolio in dollar amounts and as a percentage of the portfolio at the dates indicated. Further information about the composition of the loan portfolio is contained in the Loans footnote in the consolidated financial statements.

Residential Mortgages. The Bank offers fixed-rate and adjustable-rate residential mortgage loans with maturities of up to 30 years that are fully amortizing with monthly loan payments. Residential mortgages are generally underwritten according to the Federal National Mortgage Association (“Fannie Mae”) or the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Association (“Freddie Mac”) guidelines for loans they designate as “A” or “A-” (these are referred to as “conforming loans”). Private mortgage insurance is generally required for loans with loan-to-value ratios in excess of 80%. The Bank also originates loans above conforming loan amount limits, referred to as “jumbo loans,” which are generally conforming to secondary market guidelines for these loans. The Bank does not offer subprime mortgage lending programs.

The Bank normally sells a portion of its newly originated fixed rate mortgages. It also monitors its interest rate risk position and sometimes may decide to sell existing mortgage loans in the secondary mortgage market. The Bank is approved as a direct seller to Fannie Mae, retaining the servicing rights. The Bank may also sell loans to other secondary market investors, either on a servicing retained or servicing released basis. The Bank is also an approved originator of loans for sale to the Federal Housing Administration (“FHA”), U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs (“VA”), and state housing agency programs.

The Bank offers adjustable rate (“ARM”) mortgages which do not contain interest-only or negative amortization features. After an initial term of six months to ten years, the rates on these loans generally reset every year based upon a contractual spread or margin above the average yield on U.S. Treasury securities. ARM loan interest rates may rise as interest rates rise, thereby increasing the potential for default. At year-end 2011, the Bank’s adjustable rate mortgage portfolio totaled $386 million. The Bank also originates loans to individuals for the construction and acquisition of personal residences. These loans generally provide fifteen-month construction periods followed by a permanent mortgage loan, and follow the Bank’s normal mortgage underwriting guidelines.

Commercial Mortgages. The Bank originates commercial mortgages on properties used for business purposes such as small office buildings, industrial, healthcare, lodging, recreation, or retail facilities. This portfolio also includes commercial 1-4 family and multifamily properties. Loans may generally be made with amortizations of up to 25 years and with interest rates that adjust periodically (primarily from short-term to five years). Most commercial mortgages are originated with final maturities of ten years or less. The Bank generally requires that borrowers have debt service coverage ratios (the ratio of available cash flows before debt service to debt service) of at least 1.25 times. Loans at origination may be made up to 80% of appraised value. Generally, commercial mortgages require personal guarantees by the principals. Credit enhancements in the form of additional collateral or guarantees are normally considered for start-up businesses without a qualifying cash flow history.

Commercial mortgages generally involve larger principal amounts and a greater degree of risk than residential mortgages. They also often provide higher lending spreads. Because repayment is often dependent on the successful operation or management of the properties, repayment of such loans may be affected by adverse conditions in the real estate market or the economy. The Bank seeks to minimize these risks through strict adherence to its underwriting standards and portfolio management processes.

The Bank offers interest rate swaps to certain larger commercial mortgage borrowers. These swaps allow the Bank to originate a mortgage based on short-term LIBOR rates and allow the borrower to swap into a longer term fixed rate. The Bank simultaneously sells an offsetting back-to-back swap to an investment grade national bank so that it does not retain this fixed-rate risk. The Bank also records fee income on these interest rate swaps based on the terms of the offsetting swaps with the bank counterparties.

The Bank originates construction loans to builders and commercial borrowers in and around its markets. Construction loans finance the acquisition and/or improvement of commercial and residential properties. The maximum loan to value limits for construction loans follow FDIC supervisory limits, up to a maximum of 80%. The Bank commits to provide the permanent mortgage financing on most of our construction loans on income-producing property. Advances on construction loans are made in accordance with a schedule reflecting the cost of the improvements. Construction loans include land acquisition loans up to a maximum 65% loan to value on raw land. Construction loans may have greater credit risk than permanent loans. In many cases, the loan’s repayment is dependent on the completion of construction and other real estate improvements, which entails risk that construction permits may be delayed or may not be received, or that there may be delays or cost overruns during construction. Repayment is also often dependent on the sale or rental of the improved property, which depends on market conditions and the availability of permanent financing. Developers and contractors may also encounter liquidity risks or other risks related to other projects which are not being financed.

Commercial Business Loans. The Bank offers secured commercial term loans with repayment terms which are normally limited to the expected useful life of the asset being financed, generally not exceeding seven years. The Bank also offers revolving loans, lines of credit, letters of credit, time notes and Small Business Administration guaranteed loans. Business lines of credit have adjustable rates of interest and are payable on demand, subject to annual review and renewal. Commercial business loans are generally secured by a variety of collateral such as accounts receivable, inventory and equipment, and are generally supported by personal guarantees. Loan to value ratios depend on the collateral type and generally do not exceed 95% of the liquidation value of the collateral. Some commercial loans may also be secured by liens on real estate. The Bank generally does not make unsecured commercial loans.

In the first quarter of 2010, the Bank recruited an experienced asset based lending team with a long track record of serving middle-market companies in New England. This Asset Based Lending Group serves its traditional New England market, as well as the Bank’s market in northeastern New York. This new group expands the Bank’s business lending offerings to include revolving lines of credit and term loans secured by accounts receivable, inventory, and other assets to manufacturers, distributors and select service companies experiencing seasonal working capital needs, rapid sales growth, a turnaround, buyout or recapitalization with credit needs ranging from $2 to $25 million. Asset based lending involves monitoring loan collateral so that outstanding balances are always properly secured by business assets. This new business line expands the Bank’s business services, diversifies its loan portfolio, and provides important credit services across a wider geography. The Asset Based Lending Group is located in Woburn, Massachusetts in the Greater Boston area where this lending team has been based for many years. The recruitment of this team included the operations personnel and the acquisition of lending systems which are critical to this form of lending. The Company's Chief Risk Officer brings extensive experience in the oversight of asset based lending functions, and has instituted underwriting and review policies appropriate for the integration of this form of lending into the Bank’s overall lending risk management processes.

In the fourth quarter of 2011, the Bank recruited an experienced commercial lending team to serve the commercial middle market in Central/Eastern Massachusetts. This team also has expertise in health care and education financing. Additionally, in the latter part of 2011, the Bank reorganized its small business lending function to expand this important business financing capability in 2012, and will include the retail division in the origination of conforming small business loans in order to provide the best service to community based small businesses.

Commercial loans are of higher risk and are made primarily on the basis of the borrower’s ability to make repayment from the cash flows of its business. Further, any collateral securing such loans may depreciate over time, may be difficult to monitor and appraise and may fluctuate in value. The Bank gives additional consideration to the borrower’s credit history and the guarantor’s capacity to help mitigate these risks.

Consumer Loans. The Bank’s consumer loans consist principally of home equity lines of credit, together with second mortgage loans and automobile loans. The Bank’s home equity lines of credit are typically secured by first or second mortgages on borrowers’ residences. Home equity lines have an initial revolving period up to fifteen years, followed by an amortizing term up to twenty years. These loans are normally indexed to the prime rate. Home equity loans also include amortizing fixed-rate second mortgages with terms up to fifteen years. Lending policies for combined debt service and collateral coverage are similar to those used for residential first mortgages, although underwriting verifications are more streamlined. The maximum combined loan-to-value is 80%. Home equity line credit risks are similar to those of adjustable-rate first mortgages, although these loans may be more sensitive to losses when interest rates are rising due to increased sensitivity to rate changes. Additionally, there may be possible compression of collateral coverage on second lien home equity lines. The Bank also includes all other consumer loans in this portfolio total, including personal secured and unsecured loans and overdraft protection facilities.

Maturity and Sensitivity of Loan Portfolio. The following table shows contractual final maturities of selected loan categories at year-end 2011. The contractual maturities do not reflect premiums, discounts, deferred costs, and prepayments.

Item 1 - Table 2 - Loan Contractual Maturity -Scheduled Loan Amortizations are not included in the maturities presented.

For the $308 million of loans above which mature in more than one year, $70 million of these loans are fixed-rate and $238 million are variable rate.

Loan Administration. Lending activities are governed by a loan policy approved by the Board’s Risk Management Committee. Internal staff perform post-closing loan documentation review, quality control, and monitor commercial loan administration. The lending staff assigns a risk rating to all commercial loans. Management primarily relies on internal risk management staff to review the risk ratings of the majority of commercial loan balances.

The Bank’s lending activities follow written, non-discriminatory underwriting standards and loan origination procedures established by the Risk Management Committee and Management. The Bank’s loan underwriting is based on a review of certain factors including risk ratings, recourse, loan-to-value ratios and material policy exceptions. The Risk Management Committee has established individual and combined loan limits and lending approval authorities. Management’s Executive Loan Committee is responsible for commercial and residential loan approvals in accordance with these standards and procedures. Generally, Commercial lending management has the authority to approve pass rated secured loans up to $2 million, and in conjunction with the Senior Credit Officer up to $7.5 million (or $5 million in the case of material policy exceptions). The Executive Loan Committee approves secured loans over these amounts (and over $1 million unsecured).

The Bank’s lending activities are conducted by its salaried and commissioned loan personnel. Designated salaried branch staff originate conforming residential mortgages and receive bonuses based on overall performance. Additionally, the Bank employs commissioned residential mortgage originators. Commercial lenders receive salaries and are eligible for bonuses based on overall performance. From time to time, the Bank will purchase whole loans or participations in loans. These loans are underwritten according to the Bank’s underwriting criteria and procedures and are generally serviced by the originating lender under terms of the applicable participation agreement. The Bank routinely sells newly originated fixed rate residential mortgages in the secondary market. Customer rate locks are offered without charge and rate locked applications are generally committed for forward sale to minimize interest rate risk pending delivery of the loans to the investors. The Bank sells a limited number of commercial loan participations on a non-recourse basis. The Bank issues loan commitments to its prospective borrowers conditioned on the occurrence of certain events. Loan origination commitments are made in writing on specified terms and conditions and are generally honored for up to sixty days from approval; some commercial commitments are made for longer terms.

The loan policy sets certain limits on concentrations of credit and requires periodic reporting of concentrations to the Risk Management Committee. Loans outstanding to the ten largest relationships each averaged $23 million, or 6.4% of risk based capital in total. Total year-end commercial construction loans outstanding were 36% of the Bank’s risk based capital at year-end, and total commercial mortgage outstandings (including certain owner-occupied loans) were estimated at 256% of risk based capital. The Bank’s portfolio management objective has been to reduce these concentrations. The FDIC has established monitoring guidelines of 100% and 300% for these ratios, respectively. Above these guidelines, additional monitoring and risk management controls are required.

Problem Assets. The Bank prefers to work with borrowers to resolve problems rather than proceeding to foreclosure. For commercial loans, this may result in a period of forbearance or restructuring of the loan, which is normally done at current market terms and does not result in a “troubled” loan designation. For residential mortgage loans, the Bank generally follows FDIC guidelines to attempt a restructuring that will enable an owner-occupant to remain in their home. However, if these processes fail to result in a performing loan, then the Bank generally will initiate foreclosure or other proceedings no later than the 90^th day of a delinquency, as necessary, to minimize any potential loss. Management reports delinquent loans and non-performing assets to the Board quarterly. Loans are generally removed from accruing status when they reach 90 days delinquent, except for certain loans which are well secured and in the process of collection. Delinquent automobile loans are maintained on accrual until they reach 120 days delinquent, and then they are generally charged-off.

Real estate acquired by the Bank as a result of loan collections is classified as real estate owned until sold. When property is acquired it is recorded at fair market value less estimated selling costs at the date of foreclosure, establishing a new cost basis. Holding costs and decreases in fair value after acquisition are expensed.

Interest income that would have been recorded for 2011 had nonaccruing loans been current according to their original terms, amounted to $1.3 million. Included in this amount is $54 thousand related to troubled debt restructurings. The amount of interest income on those loans that was included in net income in 2011 was $0.7 million. Included in this amount is $100 thousand related to troubled debt restructurings. Interest income on accruing troubled debt restructurings totaled $0.3 million for 2011. The total carrying value of troubled debt restructurings was $1.3 million at year-end.

The following table sets forth additional information on year-end problem assets and accruing troubled debt restructurings (“TDR”). Due to accounting standards for business combinations, non-accrual loans of acquired banks are recorded as accruing on the acquisition date. Therefore measures related to accruing and non-accruing loans reflect these standards and may not be comparable compared to prior periods. 

Asset Classification and Delinquencies. The Bank performs an internal analysis of its commercial loan portfolio and assets to classify such loans and assets similar to the manner in which such loans and assets are classified by the federal banking regulators. There are four classifications for loans with higher than normal risk: Loss, Doubtful, Substandard and Special Mention. An asset classified as Loss is normally fully charged-off. Substandard assets have one or more defined weaknesses and are characterized by the distinct possibility that the insured institution will sustain some loss if the deficiencies are not corrected. Doubtful assets have the weaknesses of substandard assets with the additional characteristic that the weaknesses make collection or liquidation in full on the basis of currently existing facts, conditions and values questionable, and there is a high possibility of loss. Assets that do not currently expose the insured institution to sufficient risk to warrant classification in one of the aforementioned categories but possess weaknesses are designated Special Mention. Please see the additional discussion of non-accruing and potential problem loans in Item 7 and additional information about loans by risk rating in the Loans Note to the consolidated financial statements.

Allowance for Loan Losses. The Bank’s loan portfolio is regularly reviewed by management to evaluate the adequacy of the allowance for loan losses. The allowance represents management’s estimate of inherent losses that are probable and estimable as of the date of the financial statements. The allowance includes a specific component for impaired loans (a “specific loan loss reserve”) and a general component for portfolios of all outstanding loans (a “general loan loss reserve”). There is no allowance for loan losses assigned to acquired loans which are carried at fair value, including the impact of expected losses, as of the acquisition date. The loan loss allowance is discussed further in the Note about Significant Accounting Policies in the consolidated financial statements.

For loans covered by the loan loss allowance, Management assesses specific loan loss reserves when it deems that it is probable that the Bank will be unable to collect all amounts due according to the contractual terms stipulated in the loan agreement. Management weighs various factors in its assessment, including but not limited to, its review of the borrower’s payment history and the borrower’s future ability to service the debt, the current value of any pledged collateral, and the strength of any guarantor support. Generally non-accruing commercial loans are deemed impaired and evaluated for specific valuation allowances. Confirmed loan losses are charged-off directly to the allowance. Losses are deemed confirmed when upon review of all the available evidence, any portion of the loan balance is deemed uncollectible. Subsequent recoveries, if any, are credited to the allowance.

For loans covered by the loan loss allowance, Management estimates general loan loss reserves when it is probable that there would be credit losses in portfolios of loans with similar characteristics. Management has identified four primary loan portfolios: residential mortgages, commercial mortgages, commercial business and consumer loans. Sub-portfolios within these primary loan portfolios are also evaluated in order to arrive at a more precise general loan loss allowance.. The methodology for computing the general allowance was enhanced in 2011. This methodology includes a historical loss component and an environmental factors component. The historical loss component is based on the Bank’s risk rating system in combination with the attribution of loss factors based on industry historical corporate default and recovery rates. The environmental factors component assesses loss potential as it may be affected by economic business conditions, lending policies and procedures, portfolio characteristics, management and staff changes, problem loan trends, and credit concentration trends. While the general loss reserve is analyzed according to the various subportfolios, the general loss reserve in aggregate is available to cover all losses in all components of the loan portfolio.

Management believes that it uses the best information available to establish the allowance for loan losses. However, future adjustments to the allowance for loan losses may be necessary, and results of operations could be adversely affected if circumstances differ substantially from the assumptions used in making its determinations. Because the estimation of inherent losses cannot be made with certainty, there can be no assurance that the existing allowance for loan losses is adequate or that increases will not be necessary should the quality of any loan or loan portfolio category deteriorate as a result of the factors discussed above. Additionally, the regulatory agencies, as an integral part of their examination process, also periodically review the Bank’s allowance for loan losses. Such agencies may require the Bank to make additional provisions for estimated losses based upon judgments different from those of management. Any material increase in the allowance for loan losses may adversely affect the Bank’s financial condition and results of operations.

The following table presents an analysis of the allowance for loan losses for the years indicated.

The following tables present year-end data for the approximate allocation of the allowance for loan losses by loan categories at the dates indicated (including an apportionment of any unallocated amount). The first table shows for each category the amount of the allowance allocated to that category as a percentage of the outstanding loans in that category. The second table shows the allocated allowance together with the percentage of loans in each category to total loans. Management believes that the allowance can be allocated by category only on an approximate basis. The allocation of the allowance to each category is not indicative of future losses and does not restrict the use of any of the allowance to absorb losses in any category. Due to the impact of accounting standards for acquired loans, data in the accompanying tables may not be comparable between accounting periods.

Item 1 - Table 5A - Allocation of Allowance for Loan Loss by Category

Item 1 - Table 5B - Allocation of Allowance for Loan Loss

Investment Securities Activities

The securities portfolio provides cash flow to protect the safety of customer deposits and as a potential source of liquidity for funding loan commitments. The portfolio is also used to manage interest rate risk and to earn a reasonable return on investment. Investment decisions are made in accordance with the Company's investment policy and include consideration of risk, return, duration, and portfolio concentrations. Day-to-day oversight of the portfolio rests with the Chief Financial Officer and the Treasurer. The Asset/Liability Committee meets monthly and reviews investment strategies. The Risk Management Committee reviews all securities transactions and provides general oversight of the investment function.

The Company has historically maintained a high-quality portfolio of limited duration mortgage-backed securities, together with a portfolio of municipal bonds including national and local issuers and local economic development bonds issued to non-profit organizations. Nearly all of the mortgage-backed securities are issued by Ginnie Mae, Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac, and they generally have an average duration of two to four years. They principally consist of collateralized mortgage obligations (generally consisting of planned amortization class bonds). Other than securities issued by the above agencies, no other issuer concentrations exceeding 10% of stockholders’ equity existed at year-end 2011. The municipal portfolio provides tax-advantaged yield, and the local economic development bonds were originated by the Company to area borrowers. Nearly all of the Company's available for sale municipal securities are investment grade rated and most of the portfolio carries credit enhancement protection. The Company also invests in equity securities of local financial institutions for a variety of reasons, including if it concludes the financial institution is undervalued or if the Company might consider partnering with the financial institution in the future. The Company owns restricted equity in the Federal Home Loan Bank of Boston (“FHLBB”) based on the operating relationship with the FHLBB. The Company owns an interest rate swap against a tax advantaged economic development bond issued to a local not-for-profit organization, and as a result this security is carried as a trading account security. The Bank did not record any material losses or write-downs of investment securities during the year and none of the Company’s investment securities were other-than-temporarily impaired at year-end.

The following tables present the amortized cost and fair value of the Company's securities, by type of security, for the years indicated.

Item 1 - Table 6A - Amortized Cost and Fair Value of Securities

Item 1 - Table 6B - Amortized Cost and Fair Value of Securities

The schedule includes available-for-sale and held-to-maturity securities as well as the trading security and restricted equity securities.

The following table summarizes year-end 2011 amortized cost, weighted average yields and contractual maturities of debt securities. A significant portion of the mortgage-based securities are planned amortization class bonds. Their expected durations are 2-4 years at current interest rates, but the contractual maturities shown reflect the underlying maturities of the collateral mortgages. Additionally, the mortgage-based securities maturities shown below are based on final maturities and do not include scheduled amortization.

Item 1 - Table 7 - Weighted Average Yield

Deposit Activities and Other Sources of Funds

Deposits are the major source of funds for the Bank's lending and investment activities. Deposit accounts are the primary product and service interaction with the Bank’s customers. The Bank serves personal, commercial, non-profit, and municipal deposit customers. Most of the Bank’s deposits are generated from the areas surrounding its branch offices. The Bank offers a wide variety of deposit accounts with a range of interest rates and terms. The Bank also periodically offers promotional interest rates and terms for limited periods of time. The Bank’s deposit accounts consist of interest-bearing checking, noninterest-bearing checking, regular savings, money market savings and time certificates of deposit. The Bank emphasizes its transaction deposits – checking and NOW accounts for personal accounts and checking accounts promoted to businesses. These accounts have the lowest marginal cost to the Bank and are also often a core account for a customer relationship. The Bank offers a courtesy overdraft program to improve customer service, and also provides debit cards and other electronic fee producing payment services to transaction account customers. The Bank is promoting remote deposit capture devices so that commercial accounts can make deposits from their place of business. Money market accounts have increased in popularity due to their interest rate structure. Savings accounts include traditional passbook and statement accounts. The Bank’s time accounts provide maturities from three months to ten years. Additionally, the Bank offers a variety of retirement deposit accounts to personal and business customers. Deposit service fee income also includes other miscellaneous transaction and convenience services sold to customers through the branch system as part of an overall service relationship.

The Bank offers 100% insurance on all deposits as a result of a combination of insurance from the FDIC and the Massachusetts Depositors Insurance Fund, a mutual insurance fund sponsored by Massachusetts-chartered savings banks. This provides a competitive advantage compared to banks which do not offer this insurance. In the fourth quarter of 2008, the FDIC increased its insurance limits from $100 thousand per person to $250 thousand per person. Additionally, the FDIC optionally offered unlimited insurance on most categories of transaction deposit accounts, and the Bank opted to participate in this program. The $250 thousand limit was made permanent by the passage of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (the “Dodd-Frank Act”). The Dodd-Frank Act also extended the unlimited coverage on non-interest bearing demand accounts through December 31, 2012.

The following table presents information concerning average balances and weighted average interest rates on the Bank’s interest-bearing deposit accounts for the years indicated. Deposit amounts in the following tables include balances associated with discontinued operations.

Item 1 - Table 8 - Average Balance and Weighted Average Rates for Deposits  

At year-end 2011, the Bank had time deposit accounts in amounts of $100 thousand or more maturing as follows:

Item 1 - Table 9 - Maturity of Deposits > $100,000

The Company also uses borrowings from the FHLBB as an additional source of funding, particularly for daily cash management and for funding longer duration assets. FHLBB advances also provide more pricing and option alternatives for particular asset/liability needs. The FHLBB functions as a central reserve bank providing credit for member institutions. As an FHLBB member, the Company is required to own capital stock of the FHLBB. FHLBB borrowings are secured by a blanket lien on most of the Bank’s mortgage loans and mortgage-related securities, as well as certain other assets. Advances are made under several different credit programs with different lending standards, interest rates, and range of maturities. The Company has a $15 million trust preferred debenture outstanding . Subject to certain limitations, the Company can also choose to issue common stock in public stock offerings and can also potentially obtain privately placed common and preferred stock, and subordinated, and senior debt from institutional and private investors.

DERIVATIVE FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS

The Company uses interest rate swap instruments for its own account and also offers them for sale to commercial customers for their own accounts, normally in conjunction with commercial loans offered by the Bank to these customers. At year-end 2011, the Company held derivative financial instruments with a total notional amount of $578 million. The Company has a policy for managing its derivative financial instruments, and the policy and program activity are overseen by the Risk Management Committee. Interest rate swap counterparties are limited to a select number of national financial institutions and commercial borrower customers. Collateral may be required based on financial condition tests. The Company works with a third-party firm which assists in marketing swap transactions, documenting transactions, and providing information for bookkeeping and accounting purposes.

Wealth Management Services

The Company's Wealth Management Group provides consultative investment management and trust relationships to individuals, businesses, and institutions, with an emphasis on personal investment management. The Wealth Management Group has built a track record over more than a decade with its dedicated in-house investment management team. In 2011, the Wealth Management business line expanded with the integration of the Renaissance Investment Group in the Legacy merger. At year-end 2011, assets under management (including investment accounts) totaled $964 million. Wealth management services include investment management, trust administration, estate planning, and private banking. The Bank also provides a full line of investment products, financial planning, and brokerage services utilizing Commonwealth Financial Network as the broker/dealer.

Insurance

As an independent insurance agent, the Berkshire Insurance Group represents a carefully selected group of financially sound, reputable insurance companies offering attractive coverage at competitive prices. The Insurance Group offers a full line of personal and commercial property and casualty insurance. It also offers employee benefits insurance and a full line of personal life, health, and financial services insurance products. The Group sells all lines of insurance in Western Massachusetts, Southern Vermont, Upstate New York and Northwestern Connecticut. Berkshire Insurance Group operates a focused cross-sell program of insurance and banking products through all offices and branches of the Bank with some of the Group’s offices co-located within the Bank’s branches.

Personnel

At year-end 2011, the Company had 760 full time equivalent employees (excluding employees assigned to discontinued operations which were divested in January, 2012). Total employees increased from 599 at the start of the year due to the Rome and Legacy mergers. Rome and Legacy had reported 270 full time equivalent employees as of December 31, 2010. Additionally, Berkshire adjusted its staffing based on new branches and lending teams added in 2011, along with other targeted staff increases related to deepening the Company’s infrastructure. The Company's employees are not represented by a collective bargaining unit.

Subsidiary Activities

The Parent wholly owns two active consolidated subsidiaries: the Bank and Berkshire Insurance Group. The Bank is a Massachusetts chartered savings bank. One of its subsidiaries is Berkshire Bank Municipal Bank which is chartered in the state of New York. Berkshire Insurance Group is incorporated in Massachusetts.

The Parent also owns all of the common stock of a Delaware statutory business trust, Berkshire Hills Capital Trust I. The capital trust was organized under Delaware law to facilitate the issuance of trust preferred securities and is not consolidated into the Company’s financial results. Its only activity has been the issuance of the $15 million trust preferred security related to the junior subordinated debentures reported in the Company’s consolidated financial statements.

Additional information about subsidiaries is contained in Exhibit 21 to this report.

Segment Reporting

The Company has two reportable operating segments, Banking and Insurance. Banking includes the activities of the Bank and its subsidiaries, which provide commercial and retail banking services. Insurance includes the activities of Berkshire Insurance Group, which provides commercial and consumer insurance services. The only other consolidated financial activity of the Company is that of the Company’s role as Parent of the Bank and Berkshire Insurance Group. For more information about the Company’s reportable operating segments, see the related note in the consolidated financial statements.

REGULATION AND SUPERVISION

General

Berkshire Hills Bancorp is a Delaware corporation and savings and loan holding company registered with the Federal Reserve Board. The Bank's deposits are insured up to applicable limits by the FDIC and by the Depositors Insurance Fund of Massachusetts for amounts in excess of the FDIC insurance limits. The Bank is subject to extensive regulation by the Massachusetts Commissioner of Banks (the “Commissioner”) as its chartering agency, and by the FDIC, as its deposit insurer. The Bank is required to file reports with the Commissioner and the FDIC concerning its activities and financial condition in addition to obtaining regulatory approvals prior to entering into certain transactions such as mergers with, or acquisitions of, other savings institutions. The Commissioner and the FDIC conduct periodic examinations to test the Bank’s safety and soundness and compliance with various regulatory requirements. As a savings and loan holding company, Berkshire Hills Bancorp is required by federal law to file reports with, and otherwise comply with the rules and regulations of, the Federal Reserve Board. The regulatory structure gives the regulatory authorities extensive discretion in connection with their supervisory and enforcement activities and examination policies, including policies with respect to the classification of assets and the establishment of adequate loan loss reserves for regulatory purposes. Any change in such regulatory requirements and policies, whether by the Commissioner, the Massachusetts legislature, the FDIC, the Federal Reserve Board or Congress, could have a material adverse impact on Berkshire Hills Bancorp, the Bank and their operations.

The 2010 Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (the “Dodd-Frank Act”) made extensive changes in the regulation of insured depository institution.  Under the Dodd-Frank Act, the Office of Thrift Supervision (“OTS”), the previous federal regulator of Berkshire Hills Bancorp, was eliminated. At the same time, responsibility for the regulation and supervision of savings and loan holding companies, such as Berkshire Hills Bancorp, was transferred to the Federal Reserve Board, which also supervises bank holding companies. The transfer took place as of July 21, 2011.

Additionally, the Dodd-Frank Act created a new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau as an independent bureau of the Federal Reserve Board.  The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau assumed responsibility for the implementation of the federal financial consumer protection and fair lending laws and regulations, a function previously assigned to prudential regulators, and has authority to impose new requirements.  However, institutions of less than $10 billion in assets, such as the Bank, will continue to be examined for compliance with consumer protection and fair lending laws and regulations by, and be subject to the primary enforcement authority of their prudential regulator rather than the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.  In addition, the Dodd-Frank Act directed changes in the way that institutions are assessed for deposit insurance, mandated the imposition of consolidated capital requirements on savings and loan holding companies such as Berkshire Hills Bancorp, required originators of certain securitized loans to retain a percentage of the risk for the transferred loans, stipulated regulatory rate-setting for certain debit card interchange fees, repealed restrictions on the payment of interest on commercial demand deposits and contained a number of reforms related to mortgage originations.  Many of the provisions of the Dodd-Frank Act are subject to delayed effective dates and/or require the issuance of implementing regulations.  Their impact on operations cannot yet be fully assessed.  However, there is a significant possibility that the Dodd-Frank Act will, at a minimum, result in increased regulatory burden, compliance costs and interest expense for the Company and the Bank.

Certain regulatory requirements applicable to the Company, including certain changes made by the Dodd-Frank Act, are referred to below or elsewhere herein. The description of statutory provisions and regulations applicable to savings institutions and their holding companies set forth in this Form 10-K does not purport to be a complete description of such statutes and regulations and their effects on the Company and is qualified in its entirety by reference to the actual laws and regulations.

Massachusetts Banking Laws and Supervision

General. As a Massachusetts-chartered savings bank, the Bank is subject to supervision, regulation and examination by the Commissioner and to various Massachusetts statutes and regulations which govern, among other things, investment powers, lending and deposit-taking activities, borrowings, maintenance of surplus and reserve accounts, distribution of earnings and payment of dividends. In addition, the Bank is subject to Massachusetts consumer protection and civil rights laws and regulations. The approval of the Commissioner is required for a Massachusetts-chartered bank to establish or close branches, merge with other financial institutions, organize a holding company, issue stock and undertake certain other activities.

Massachusetts regulations generally allow Massachusetts banks to engage in activities permissible for federally chartered banks or banks chartered by another state. The Commissioner has adopted procedures reducing regulatory burdens and expense and expediting branching by well-capitalized and well-managed banks.

Dividends. A Massachusetts stock bank may declare cash dividends from net profits not more frequently than quarterly and non-cash dividends at any time. No dividends may be declared, credited or paid if the bank’s capital stock is impaired. The approval of the Commissioner is required if the total of all dividends declared in any calendar year exceeds the total of its net profits for that year combined with its retained net profits of the preceding two years. Net profits for this purpose means the remainder of all earnings from current operations plus actual recoveries on loans and investments and other assets after deducting from the total thereof all current operating expenses, actual losses, accrued dividends on preferred stock, if any, and all federal and state taxes.

Loans to One Borrower Limitations. Massachusetts banking law grants broad lending authority. However, with certain limited exceptions, total obligations of one borrower to a bank may not exceed 20.0% of the total of the bank’s capital, which is defined under Massachusetts law as the sum of the bank’s capital stock, surplus account and undivided profits.

Loans to a Bank’s Insiders. Massachusetts banking laws prohibit any executive officer, director or trustee from borrowing, otherwise becoming indebted, or becoming liable for a loan or other extension of credit by such bank to any other person, except for any of the following loans or extensions of credit: (i) loans or extensions of credit, secured or unsecured, to an officer of the bank in an amount not exceeding $100,000; (ii) loans or extensions of credit intended or secured for educational purposes to an officer of the bank in an amount not exceeding $200,000; (iii) loans or extensions of credit secured by a mortgage on residential real estate to be occupied in whole or in part by the officer to whom the loan or extension of credit is made, in an amount not exceeding $750,000; and (iv) loans or extensions of credit to a director or trustee of the bank who is not also an officer of the bank in an amount permissible under the bank’s loan to one borrower limit.

The loans listed above require approval of the majority of the members of the Bank’s Board of Directors, excluding any member involved in the loan or extension of credit. No such loan or extension of credit may be granted with an interest rate or other terms that are preferential in comparison to loans granted to persons not affiliated with the savings bank.

Investment Activities. In general, Massachusetts-chartered savings banks may invest in preferred and common stock of any corporation organized under the laws of the United States or any state provided such investments do not involve control of any corporation and do not, in the aggregate, exceed 4.0% of the bank’s deposits. Massachusetts-chartered savings banks may in addition invest an amount equal to 1.0% of their deposits in stocks of Massachusetts corporations or companies with substantial employment in Massachusetts which have pledged to the Commissioner that such monies will be used for further development within the Commonwealth. However, these powers are constrained by federal law.

Regulatory Enforcement Authority. Any Massachusetts-chartered bank that does not operate in accordance with the regulations, policies and directives of the Commissioner may be sanctioned for non-compliance, including seizure of the property and business of the bank and suspension or revocation of its charter. The Commissioner may, under certain circumstances, suspend or remove officers or directors who have violated the law, conducted the bank’s business in a manner which is unsafe, unsound or contrary to the depositors interests or been negligent in the performance of their duties. In addition, upon finding that a bank has engaged in an unfair or deceptive act or practice, the Commissioner may issue an order to cease and desist and impose a fine on the bank concerned. Finally, Massachusetts consumer protection and civil rights statutes applicable to the Bank permit private individual and class action law suits and provide for the rescission of consumer transactions, including loans, and the recovery of statutory and punitive damage and attorney’s fees in the case of certain violations of those statutes.

Depositors Insurance Fund. All Massachusetts-chartered savings banks are required to be members of the Depositors Insurance Fund (“DIF”), a corporation that insures savings bank deposits in excess of federal deposit insurance coverage.  The DIF is a private, industry-sponsored insurance company and is not backed by the federal government or the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.  The DIF is authorized to charge savings banks an annual assessment for its coverage. Such assessments may vary based on the risk classification assigned to the institution.

The combination of FDIC and DIF insurance provides customers of Massachusetts-chartered savings banks with full deposit insurance on all their deposit accounts. DIF insurance coverage requires no applications or special forms. Depositors automatically receive this added insurance benefit at no cost whenever they make a deposit to a new or existing account at a DIF member bank.  The DIF is examined annually by the Massachusetts Division of Banks and audited by an independent auditor.

Massachusetts has other statutes or regulations that are similar to the federal provisions discussed below.

Federal Regulations

Capital Requirements. Under FDIC regulations, federally insured state-chartered banks that are not members of the Federal Reserve System (“state non-member banks”), such as the Bank, are required to comply with minimum leverage capital requirements. For an institution determined by the FDIC to not be anticipating or experiencing significant growth and to be in general a strong banking organization, rated composite 1 under the Uniform Financial Institutions Rating System established by the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council, the minimum capital leverage requirement is a ratio of Tier 1 capital to total average assets (as defined) of 3%. For all other institutions, the minimum leverage capital ratio is not less than 4%. Tier 1 capital is the sum of common stockholders’ equity, noncumulative perpetual preferred stock (including any related surplus) and minority investments in certain subsidiaries, less intangible assets (except for certain servicing rights and credit card relationships) and certain other items.

The Bank must also comply with the FDIC risk-based capital guidelines. The FDIC guidelines require state non-member banks to maintain certain levels of regulatory capital in relation to regulatory risk-weighted assets. Risk-based capital ratios are determined by allocating assets and specified off-balance sheet items to four risk-weighted categories ranging from 0% to 100%, with higher levels of capital being required for the categories perceived as representing greater risk.

State non-member banks must maintain a minimum ratio of total capital to risk-weighted assets of at least 8%, of which at least one-half must be Tier 1 capital. Total capital consists of Tier 1 capital plus Tier 2 or supplementary capital items, which include allowances for loan losses in an amount of up to 1.25% of risk-weighted assets, cumulative preferred stock, a portion of the net unrealized gain on equity securities and other capital instruments. The includable amount of Tier 2 capital cannot exceed the amount of the institution’s Tier 1 capital.

As a savings and loan holding company, the Parent is not currently subject to any separate regulatory capital requirements, although this is expected to change in the future. The Bank’s regulatory capital is included in the Stockholders’ Equity note of the Company’s financial statements in Item 8 of this report. At year-end 2011, the Bank met each of its capital requirements.

Interstate Banking and Branching.  Federal law permits a bank, such as the Bank, to acquire an institution by merger in a state other than Massachusetts unless the other state has opted out. Federal law, as amended by the Dodd-Frank Act, authorizes de novo branching into another state to the extent that the target state allows its state chartered banks to establish branches within its borders. The Bank operates branches in New York and Vermont, as well as Massachusetts. Following the completion of the merger with CBT, the Bank will also operate branches in Connecticut. At its interstate branches, the Bank may conduct any activity that is authorized under Massachusetts law that is permissible either for a savings bank chartered in that state (subject to applicable federal restrictions) or a branch in that state of an out-of-state national bank. The New York State Superintendent of Banks and the Vermont Commissioner of Banking and Insurance may exercise certain regulatory authority over the Bank’s New York and Vermont branches. Following the completion of the merger with CBT, the Connecticut Commissioner of Banking may exercise certain regulatory authority over the Bank’s branches.

Prompt Corrective Regulatory Action. Federal law requires, among other things, that federal bank regulatory authorities take “prompt corrective action” with respect to banks that do not meet minimum capital requirements. For these purposes, the law establishes three categories of capital deficient institutions: undercapitalized, significantly undercapitalized and critically undercapitalized.

An institution is deemed to be “well capitalized” if it has a total risk-based capital ratio of 10% or greater, a Tier 1 risk-based capital ratio of 6% or greater, and a leverage ratio of 5% or greater. An institution is “adequately capitalized” if it has a total risk-based capital ratio of 8% or greater, a Tier 1 risk-based capital ratio of 4% or greater and generally a leverage ratio of 4% or greater. An institution is “undercapitalized” if it has a total risk-based capital ratio of less than 8%, a Tier 1 risk-based capital ratio of less than 4%, or generally a leverage ratio of less than 4% (3% or less for institutions with the highest examination rating). An institution is deemed to be “significantly undercapitalized” if it has a total risk-based capital ratio of less than 6%, a Tier 1 risk-based capital ratio of less than 3%, or a leverage ratio of less than 3%. An institution is considered to be “critically undercapitalized” if it has a ratio of tangible equity (as defined in the regulations) to total assets that is equal to or less than 2%. At year-end 2011, the Bank met the conditions to be classified as a “well capitalized” institution.

“Undercapitalized” banks must adhere to growth, capital distribution (including dividend) and other limitations and are required to submit a capital restoration plan. No institution may make a capital distribution, including payment as a dividend, if it would be “undercapitalized” after the payment. A bank’s compliance with such plans is required to be guaranteed by its parent holding company in an amount equal to the lesser of 5% of the institution’s total assets when deemed undercapitalized or the amount needed to comply with regulatory capital requirements. If an “undercapitalized” bank fails to submit an acceptable plan, it is treated as if it is “significantly undercapitalized.” “Significantly undercapitalized” banks must comply with one or more of a number of additional restrictions, including but not limited to an order by the FDIC to sell sufficient voting stock to become adequately capitalized, requirements to reduce assets and cease receipt of deposits from correspondent banks or dismiss directors or officers, and restrictions on interest rates paid on deposits, compensation of executive officers and capital distributions by the parent holding company. “Critically undercapitalized” institutions must comply with additional sanctions including, subject to a narrow exception, the appointment of a receiver or conservator within 270 days after it obtains such status.

Transactions with Affiliates. Transactions between depository institutions and their affiliates are governed by Sections 23A and 23B of the Federal Reserve Act. In a holding company context, at a minimum, the parent holding company of a savings bank and any companies which are controlled by such parent holding company are affiliates of the savings bank. Generally, Section 23A limits the extent to which the savings bank or its subsidiaries may engage in “covered transactions,” such as loans, with any one affiliate to 10% of such savings bank’s capital stock and surplus, and contains an aggregate limit on all such transactions with all affiliates to 20% of capital stock and surplus. Loans to affiliates and certain other specified transactions must comply with specified collateralization requirements. Section 23B requires that transactions with affiliates be on terms that are no less favorable to the savings bank or its subsidiary as similar transactions with non-affiliates.

Further, federal law restricts an institution with respect to loans to directors, executive officers, and principal stockholders (“insiders”). Loans to insiders and their related interests may not exceed, together with all other outstanding loans to such persons and affiliated entities, the institution’s total capital and surplus. Loans to insiders above specified amounts must receive the prior approval of the board of directors. Further, loans to insiders must be made on terms substantially the same as offered in comparable transactions to other persons, except that such insiders may receive preferential loans made under a benefit or compensation program that is widely available to the Bank’s employees and does not give preference to the insider over the employees. Federal law places additional limitations on loans to executive officers.

Enforcement. The FDIC has extensive enforcement authority over insured savings banks, including the Bank. This enforcement authority includes, among other things, the ability to assess civil money penalties, issue cease and desist orders and to remove directors and officers. In general, these enforcement actions may be initiated in response to violations of laws and regulations and unsafe or unsound practices. The FDIC has authority under federal law to appoint a conservator or receiver for an insured bank under certain circumstances.

Insurance of Deposit Accounts. The Bank’s deposit accounts are insured by the Deposit Insurance Fund of the FDIC up to applicable legal limits, and, as discussed above under “Massachusetts Banking Laws and Supervision—Depositors Insurance Fund”, by the Massachusetts Depositors Insurance Fund for amounts in excess of federal deposit insurance coverage.

The FDIC insures deposits up to the standard maximum deposit insurance amount (“SMDIA”) of $250 thousand. The deposit insurance limit was increased in response to the Dodd-Frank Act, which, among other provisions, made permanent the increase in the SMDIA from $100 thousand to $250 thousand. Additionally, in November 2010, pursuant to the Dodd-Frank Act, the FDIC issued a final rule to provide separate temporary coverage for noninterest-bearing transaction accounts. The final rule indicates that all funds held in noninterest-bearing transaction accounts are fully insured, without limit, and that this unlimited coverage is separate from, and in addition to, the coverage provided to depositors with respect to other accounts held at an insured depository institution, such as the Bank.  This provision for non-interest bearing transaction accounts became effective December 31, 2010 and terminates on December 31, 2012.

The FDIC has adopted a risk-based insurance assessment system. The FDIC assigns an institution to one of four risk categories based on the institution’s financial condition and supervisory ratings. An institution’s assessment rate depends on the capital category and supervisory category to which it is assigned, based on a final rule which becomes effective April 1, 2011.  Under the final rule, banks in Risk Category 1 have a base assessment rate of 5-9 basis points and those in Risk Category 2 have a rate of 14 basis points, subject to adjustment based on certain risk additional risk factors specified by the FDIC.  The overall range, including prospective adjustments, is 2.5 to 45 basis points.  Assessment rates are scheduled to decline as the FDIC Reserve Ratio improves.  As required by the Dodd-Frank Act, FDIC assessments are now based on each institution’s total assets less tier 1 capital, rather than deposits, as was previously the case. The FDIC has stated that nearly all of the 7,600-plus institutions with assets less than $10 billion will pay smaller assessments as a result of this final rule.

In the fourth quarter of 2009, due to stress on the insurance fund, the FDIC voted to require insured institutions to prepay thirteen quarters of estimated insurance assessments. The estimated quarterly risk-based assessments for the fourth quarter of 2009 and for all of 2010, 2011, and 2012 were paid by the Bank on December 30, 2009.

In addition, FDIC insured institutions are required to pay assessments to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation to fund interest payments on bonds issued by the Financing Corporation, an agency of the federal government established to recapitalize a predecessor to deposit insurance fund. These assessments will continue until the Financing Corporation bonds mature in 2017 through 2019. The assessment rate is adjusted quarterly to reflect changes in the assessment bases of the fund based on quarterly Call Report and Thrift Financial Report submissions and for the quarter ended December 21, 2011 amounted to .68 basis point of total assets less tier 1 capital.

Insurance of deposits may be terminated by the FDIC upon a finding that the institution has engaged in unsafe or unsound practices, is in an unsafe or unsound condition to continue operations or has violated any applicable law, regulation, rule, order or condition imposed by a regulator. Management does not know of any practice, condition or violation that might lead to termination of deposit insurance.

The Dodd-Frank Act increased the minimum target DIF ratio from 1.15% of estimated insured deposits to 1.35% of estimated insured deposits.  The FDIC must seek to achieve the 1.35% ratio by September 30, 2020.  Insured institutions with assets of $10 billion or more are supposed to fund the increase.  The Dodd-Frank Act eliminated the 1.50% maximum fund ratio, instead leaving it to the discretion of the FDIC.  The FDIC has recently exercised that discretion by establishing a long range fund ratio of 2.00%.

The FDIC has authority to increase insurance assessments.  A significant increase in insurance premiums would likely have an adverse effect on the operating expenses and results of operations of the Bank.  Management cannot predict what insurance assessment rates will be in the future.

Federal Home Loan Bank System. The Bank is a member of the Federal Home Loan Bank system, which consists of 12 regional Federal Home Loan Banks that provide a central credit facility primarily for member institutions. The Bank, as a member, is required to acquire and hold shares of capital stock in the FHLBB.

The Federal Home Loan Banks are required to provide funds for certain purposes including contributing funds for affordable housing programs. These requirements, and general financial results, could reduce the amount of dividends that the Federal Home Loan Banks pay to their members and result in the Federal Home Loan Banks imposing a higher rate of interest on advances to their members. Historically, the FHLBB paid dividends to member banks based on money market interest rates. Due to losses initially reported in the fourth quarter of 2008, the FHLBB suspended its dividend to members in the first quarter of 2009.  The dividend remained suspended through year-end 2010, but was recently restored to a nominal amount in the first quarter of 2011 and subsequent quarters.

Holding Company Regulation

General. Federal law allows a state savings bank that qualifies as a “Qualified Thrift Lender,” discussed below, to elect to be treated as a savings association for purposes of the savings and loan holding company provisions of federal law. Such election allows its holding company to be regulated as a savings and loan holding company by the Federal Reserve Board rather than as a bank holding company by the Federal Reserve Board under the federal Bank Holding Company Act. As such, the Parent is registered with the Federal Reserve Board and must adhere to the Federal Reserve Board’s regulations and reporting requirements. In addition, the FRB may examine, supervise and take enforcement action against the Parent and its non-savings institution subsidiaries. Among other things, this authority permits the Federal Reserve Board to restrict or prohibit activities that are determined to be a serious risk to the subsidiary savings institution. By regulation, the Federal Reserve Board may restrict or prohibit the Bank from paying dividends.

The Dodd-Frank Act provides for the elimination of the OTS and transferred its authority over and responsibilities for savings and loan holding companies to the Federal Reserve Board.  That transfer was effective July 21, 2011.

As a unitary savings and loan holding company, Berkshire Hills Bancorp is generally unrestricted under existing laws as to the types of business activities in which it may engage. The Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act of 1999 provided that unitary savings and loan holding companies may only engage in activities permitted to a financial holding company under that legislation and those permitted for multiple savings and loan holding companies. Unitary savings and loan companies existing prior to May 4, 1999 were grandfathered as to the unrestricted activities. The Company would become subject to activities restrictions upon the acquisition of another savings institution that is held as a separate subsidiary.

Federal law prohibits a savings and loan holding company from, directly or indirectly, acquiring more than 5% of the voting stock of another savings association or savings and loan holding company or from acquiring such an institution or company by merger, consolidation or purchase of its assets, without prior written approval of the Federal Reserve Board. In evaluating applications by holding companies to acquire savings associations, the Federal Reserve Board considers factors such as the financial and managerial resources and future prospects of the Company and the institution involved, the effect of the acquisition on the risk to the insurance fund, the convenience and needs of the community and competitive factors.

To be regulated as a savings and loan holding company (rather than as a bank holding company), the bank must qualify as a Qualified Thrift Lender. To qualify as a Qualified Thrift Lender, the bank must maintain compliance with the test for a “domestic building and loan association,” as defined in the Internal Revenue Code, or with a Qualified Thrift Lender Test. Under the Qualified Thrift Lender Test (the “QLT Test”), a savings institution is required to maintain at least 65% of its “portfolio assets” (total assets less: (1) specified liquid assets up to 20% of total assets; (2) intangibles, including goodwill; and (3) the value of property used to conduct business) in certain “qualified thrift investments” (primarily residential mortgages and related investments, including certain mortgage-backed securities) in at least 9 months out of each 12-month period. At year-end 2011, the Bank maintained at least 65% of its portfolio assets in qualified thrift investments and met the QTL Test for the year.

Unlike bank holding companies, savings and loan holding companies are not currently subject to specific regulatory capital requirements.  The Dodd-Frank Act, however, requires the Federal Reserve Board to promulgate consolidated capital requirements for depository institution holding companies that are no less stringent, both quantitatively and in terms of components of capital, than those applicable to institutions themselves.  That will eliminate the inclusion of certain instruments from Tier 1 capital, such as trust preferred securities, that are currently includable for bank holding companies.  Instruments issued before May 19, 2010 by companies of less than $15 billion in assets (as of December 31, 2009) are grandfathered.  There is a five year transition period from the July 21, 2010 date of enactment of the Dodd-Frank Act before the capital requirements are expected to apply to savings and loan holding companies.

The Dodd-Frank Act also extends the “source of strength” doctrine to savings and loan holding companies.  The regulatory agencies must promulgate regulations implementing the “source of strength” policy, which requires holding companies to act as a source of strength to their subsidiary depository institutions by providing capital, liquidity and other support in times of financial distress. Further, the Federal Reserve Board has issued a policy statement regarding the payment of dividends by bank holding companies that it has suggested is applicable to savings and loan holding companies as well. In general, the policy provides that dividends should be paid only out of current earnings and if the prospective rate of earnings retention by the holding company appears consistent with the organization’s capital needs, asset quality and overall financial condition. Regulatory guidance provides for prior regulatory review of capital distributions in certain circumstances such as where the company’s net income for the past four quarters, net of dividends previously paid over that period, is insufficient to fully fund the dividend or the company’s overall rate of earnings retention is inconsistent with the company’s capital needs and overall financial condition. The ability of a savings and loan holding company to pay dividends may be restricted if a subsidiary bank becomes undercapitalized. These regulatory policies could affect the ability of Berkshire Hills Bancorp to pay dividends or otherwise engage in capital distributions.

Acquisition of the Company. Under the Federal Change in Bank Control Act, a notice must be submitted to the Federal Reserve Board if any person (including a company), or group acting in concert, seeks to acquire “control” of a savings and loan holding company. A change in control may occur, and prior notice is required, upon the acquisition of 10% or more of the Company’s outstanding voting stock, unless the Federal Reserve Board has found that the acquisition will not result in a change of control of the Company.

Massachusetts Holding Company Regulation. In addition to the federal holding company regulations, a bank holding company organized or doing business in Massachusetts must comply with regulations under Massachusetts law. Approval of the Massachusetts regulatory authorities would be required for the Company to acquire 25% or more of the voting stock of another depository institution. Similarly, prior regulatory approval would be necessary for any person or company to acquire 25% or more of the voting stock of the Company. The term “bank holding company,” for the purpose of Massachusetts law, is defined generally to include any company which, directly or indirectly, owns, controls or holds with power to vote more than 25% of the voting stock of each of two or more banking institutions, including commercial banks and state co-operative banks, savings banks and savings and loan association and national banks, federal savings banks and federal savings and loan associations. In general, a holding company controlling, directly or indirectly, only one banking institution will not be deemed to be a bank holding company for the purposes of Massachusetts law. Under Massachusetts law, the prior approval of the Board of Bank Incorporation is required before any of the following: any company becoming a bank holding company; any bank holding company acquiring direct or indirect ownership or control of more than 5% of the voting stock of, or all or substantially all of the assets of, a banking institution; or any bank holding company merging with another bank holding company. Although Berkshire Hills Bancorp is not a bank holding company for purposes of Massachusetts law, any future acquisition of ownership, control, or the power to vote 25% or more of the voting stock of another banking institution or bank holding company would cause it to become such.

Legislation. The U.S. Congress, state lawmaking bodies and federal and state regulatory agencies continue to consider a number of wide-ranging and comprehensive proposals for altering the structure, regulation and competitive relationships of the nation’s financial institutions. In addition, both the U.S. Treasury Department and the Basel Committee have issued policy statements regarding proposed significant changes to the regulatory capital framework applicable to banking organizations as discussed above. The Company cannot predict whether or in what form further legislation or regulations may be adopted or the extent to which the Company may be affected thereby.

Berkshire Bank Municipal Bank

Berkshire Bank Municipal Bank is a state-chartered limited purpose commercial bank in New York, established to accept deposits of municipalities and other governmental entities in the State of New York. Berkshire Bank Municipal Bank is subject to extensive regulation, examination and supervision by the New York State Superintendent of Banks, as its primary regulator, and the FDIC, as the deposit insurer. It is also subject to regulation as to certain matters by the Federal Reserve Board.  As of year-end 2011, Berkshire Bank Municipal Bank met all of its capital requirements and met the capital conditions to be classified as a “well capitalized” institution.

Other Regulations

Consumer Protection Laws. The Bank is subject to federal and state consumer protection statues and regulations including, but not limited to, the:

The Bank also is subject to federal laws protecting the confidentiality of consumer financial records, and limiting the ability of the institution to share non-public personal information with third parties.

The Community Reinvestment Act (“CRA”) establishes a requirement for federal banking agencies that, in connection with examinations of financial institutions within their jurisdiction, the agencies evaluate the record of the financial institutions in meeting the credit needs of their local communities, including low- and moderate-income neighborhoods, consistent with the safe and sound operation of those institutions. These factors are also considered in evaluating mergers, acquisitions and applications to open a branch or new facility.  Under the CRA, institutions are assigned a rating of "outstanding," "satisfactory," "needs to improve," or "substantial non-compliance."  A less than “satisfactory” rating would result in the suspension of any growth of the Bank through acquisitions or opening de novo branches until the rating is improved. As of the most recent CRA examination by the FDIC, the Bank’s CRA rating was “satisfactory.”

Anti-Money Laundering Laws. The Bank is subject to extensive anti-money laundering provisions and requirements, which require the institution to have in place a comprehensive customer identification program and an anti-money laundering program and procedures. These laws and regulations also prohibit financial institutions from engaging in business with foreign shell banks; require financial institutions to have due diligence procedures and, in some cases, enhanced due diligence procedures for foreign correspondent and private banking accounts; and improve information sharing between financial institutions and the U.S. government. The Bank has established policies and procedures intended to comply with these provisions.

TAXATION

The Company reports its income on a calendar year basis using the accrual method of accounting.  This discussion of tax matters is only a summary and is not a comprehensive description of the tax rules applicable to the Company and its subsidiaries.  Further discussion of income taxation is contained in the income taxes note to the consolidated financial statements.

Federal

The federal income tax laws apply to the Company in the same manner as do other corporations with some exceptions.  We may exclude from income 100% of dividends received from the Bank and from Berkshire Insurance Group as members of the same affiliated group of corporations.   For federal income tax purposes, we may carry back net operating losses to the preceding two taxable years and forward to the succeeding twenty taxable years, subject to certain limitations.

State

The Company reports income on a calendar year basis to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.  The Massachusetts income tax rate for financial institutions was 9.5% in 2011 and is scheduled to decline to 9% in 2012 and thereafter. The Company’s taxable income under Massachusetts tax law includes gross income as defined under the Internal Revenue Code, plus interest from non-Massachusetts municipal obligations, less deductions, but not the credits, allowable under the provisions of the Internal Revenue Code. Carry forwards and carry backs of net operating losses are not allowed under Massachusetts tax law.  Also no deduction is allowed for bonus depreciation or state income taxes paid.

Massachusetts tax law generally permits special tax treatment for a qualifying limited purpose “securities corporation.” The Bank’s three securities corporations all qualify for this treatment, and are taxed at a 1.3% rate on their gross income.

The Company also pays certain franchise taxes annually in the states of Vermont and New York.  These taxes were immaterial to the Company’s results.

Overall Business Risks

The Company’s Business May Be Adversely Affected by Conditions in the Financial Markets and Economic Conditions Generally and Locally

From December 2007 through June 2009, the U.S. economy was in recession. Business activity across a wide range of industries and regions in the U.S. was greatly reduced. Although economic conditions improved, certain sectors, such as real estate, remain weak and unemployment remains high. U.S. fiscal and monetary policy have been stimulative, but the policy outlook remains uncertain amidst concerns about public debt levels and financial market conditions. International developments relating to European sovereign debt, in the Middle East, and elsewhere are affecting financial markets and oil and commodities prices, which may have a negative economic impact. Local governments and many businesses are in serious difficulty due to lower consumer spending and the lack of liquidity in the credit markets. A deterioration of business and economic conditions could adversely affect the credit quality of the Company’s loans, results of operations and financial condition.

Lending

Continued and Prolonged Deterioration in the Housing Sector, Commercial Real Estate, and Related Markets May Adversely Affect Our Business and Financial Results.

Softening residential housing markets, increasing delinquency and default rates and constrained secondary credit markets have been affecting the mortgage industry generally. Commercial and residential real estate markets have been impacted by the broader economic conditions previously discussed. Real estate lending is a major business activity for the Company. Real estate market conditions affect the value and marketability of this real estate collateral, and they also affect the cash flows, liquidity, and net worth of many borrowers whose operations and finances depend on real estate market conditions. Adverse conditions in our market areas could reduce our growth rate, affect the ability of our customers to repay their loans and generally affect our financial condition and results of operations.

Our Emphasis on Commercial Lending May Expose Us to Increased Lending Risks, Which Could Hurt Our Profits.

We plan to continue to emphasize the origination of commercial loans, which generally exposes us to a greater risk of nonpayment and loss because repayment of such loans often depends on the successful operations and income stream of the borrowers. Commercial loans are historically more sensitive to economic downturns. Such sensitivity includes potentially higher default rates and possible reduction of collateral values. Commercial lending involves larger loan sizes and larger relationship exposures, which can have a greater impact on profits in the event of adverse loan performance. The majority of the Company’s commercial mortgages are secured by real estate and are subject to the previously discussed real estate risk factors. Commercial lending sometimes involves construction or other development financing, which is dependent on the future success of new operations. The Company’s commercial lending activities extend beyond the area of its traditional branch footprint, which is the area of which the Company has the most knowledge. The Company’s commercial lending includes asset based lending, which depends on the Company’s processes for monitoring and being able to liquidate collateral on which these loans rely. Commercial loans may increase as a percentage of total loans, and commercial lending may continue to expose the company to increased risks.

Our Allowance for Loan Losses May Prove to be Insufficient to Absorb Losses in Our Loan Portfolio.

Like all financial institutions, we maintain an allowance for loan losses which is our estimate of the probable losses that are inherent in the loan portfolio as of the financial statement date. However, our allowance for loan losses may not be sufficient to cover actual loan losses, and future provisions for loan losses could materially and adversely affect our operating results. The accounting measurements related to impairment and the loan loss allowance require significant estimates which are subject to uncertainty and changes relating to new information and changing circumstances. Additionally, the allowance can only reflect those losses which are reasonably estimable, and there are constraints in our ability to estimate losses in this period of unusual economic and financial stress. This is particularly relevant for our estimates of losses for pools of loans. Accordingly, at any time, there may be probable losses inherent in the portfolio but which we are not reasonably able to estimate until additional information emerges which can form the basis for a reasonable estimate.

State and federal regulators, as an integral part of their examination process, periodically review our allowance for loan losses and may require us to increase our allowance for loan losses by recognizing additional provisions for loan losses charged to expense, or to decrease our allowance for loan losses by recognizing loan charge-offs, net of recoveries. Any such additional provisions for loan losses or charge-offs, as required by these regulatory agencies, could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

Our Estimates of Discounts on Acquired Loans With Deteriorated Credit Quality May Be Insufficient

Under generally accepted principles for business combinations, there is no loan loss allowance recorded for acquired loans, which are recorded at net fair value on the acquisition date. This net fair value generally includes embedded loss estimates for acquired loans with deteriorated credit quality. These estimates are based on projections of expected cash flows for these problem loans. If the projections are incorrect, the fair value estimates may exceed the actual collectability of the balances, and this may result in the related loans being considered impaired.

Operating

Our Expansion, Growth, and Acquisitions Could Negatively Impact Earnings If Not Successful.

We plan to achieve significant growth organically, by geographic expansion, through business line expansion, and through acquisitions. We have recently expanded into new geographic markets and anticipate that we will continue to expand into additional geographic markets as we grow as a regional bank. The success of this expansion depends on our ability to continue to maintain and develop an infrastructure appropriate to support and integrate such growth. Also, our success depends on the acceptance by customers of us and our services in these new markets and, in the case of expansion through acquisitions, our success depends on many factors, including the long-term recruitment and retention of key personnel and acquired customer relationships. The profitability of our expansion strategy also depends on whether the income we generate in the new markets will offset the increased expenses of operating a larger entity with increased personnel, more branch locations and additional product offerings.

We continue to identify and evaluate opportunities to expand through acquisition of banks, insurance agencies, and wealth management firms. Some of these opportunities could result in further geographic expansion. Merger and acquisition activities are subject to a number of risks, including lending, operating, and integration risks. Growth through acquisition requires careful due diligence, evaluation of risks, and projections of future operations and financial conditions. Actual results may differ from our expectations and could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations. Growth through acquisition also often involves the negotiation and execution of extensive merger agreements. Such agreements may give rise to litigation, or constrain us in certain ways, or expose us to other risks beyond our normal operating risks. 

The Company’s recruitment of new executive and commercial lending management has in several cases brought in new management from larger institutions. These individuals have often served larger customers than the Company has historically serviced, and they have had the benefit of larger capital and administrative resources than are present in the Company’s current structure. The success of this recruitment may depend on the successful integration of these individuals into the Company and may expose the Company to lending and operating losses related to large new customers in newer markets. The Company’s commercial banking strategy has particularly focused on taking market share from larger national institutions and in many cases these new accounts are larger than the Company’s historic accounts. Additionally, the Company’s ability to service these accounts may in some cases involve arranging loan participations and syndications. These activities can expose the Company to additional lending, administrative, and liquidity risks. The Company also actively recruits in other business lines, including private banking and wealth management. This activity can give the Company additional access to large customers in its markets in order to expand our business. Such recruitment can affect the retention of new and old business, and can also be affected by competitive reactions and other relationship risks in retaining accounts.

Competition From Financial Institutions and Other Financial Service Providers May Adversely Affect Our Growth and Profitability.

Competition in the banking and financial services industry is intense. We compete with commercial banks, savings institutions, mortgage brokerage firms, credit unions, finance companies, mutual funds, insurance companies, and brokerage and investment banking firms operating locally and elsewhere. Larger banking institutions have substantially greater resources and lending limits and may offer certain services that we do not. Local competitors with excess capital may accept lower returns on new business. There is increased competition by out-of-market competitors through the internet. Federal regulations and financial support programs may in some cases favor competitors or place us at an economic disadvantage. Our profitability depends on our continued ability to successfully compete and grow profitably in our market areas.

We are Subject to Security and Operational Risks Relating to Our Use of Technology that Could Damage Our Reputation and Our Business.

Security breaches in our internet banking activities could expose us to possible liability and damage our reputation. Any compromise of our security also could deter customers from using our internet banking services that involve the transmission of confidential information. We rely on industry standard internet security systems to provide the security and authentication necessary to effect secure transmission of data. These precautions may not protect our systems from compromises or breaches of our security measures that could result in damage to our reputation and our business. We utilize third party core banking software and for some systems we outsource our data processing to a third party. If our third party providers encounter difficulties or if we have difficulty in communicating with such third parties, it could significantly affect our ability to adequately process and account for customer transactions, which could significantly affect our business operations. We utilize file encryption in designated internal systems and networks and are subject to certain state and federal regulations regarding how we manage the security of the data that we are responsible for. Disaster and disaster recovery risks could affect our ability to operate and our reputation.

Financial and Operating Counterparties Expose Us to Risks.

We have increased our use of derivative financial instruments, primarily interest rate swaps, which expose us to financial and contractual risks with counterparty banks. We maintain correspondent bank relationships, manage certain loan participations, engage in securities transactions, and engage in other activities with financial counterparties that are customary to our industry. We also utilize services from major vendors of technology, telecommunications, and other essential operating services. There is financial and operating risk in these relationships, which we seek to manage through internal controls and procedures, but there is no assurance that we could not experience loss or interruption of our business as a result of unforeseen events with these providers.

We May Not Be Able to Attract and Retain Skilled People.

Our success depends, in large part, on our ability to attract new employees, retain and motivate our existing employees, and continue to compensate employees competitively amid intense public and regulatory scrutiny on the compensation practices of financial institutions. Competition for the best people in most activities engaged in by us can be intense and we may not be able to hire these people or to retain them.

Our Controls and Procedures May Fail or Be Circumvented.

Management regularly reviews and updates the Company’s internal controls, disclosure controls and procedures, and corporate governance policies and procedures. Any system of controls, however well designed and operated, is based in part on certain assumptions and can provide only reasonable, not absolute, assurances that the objectives of the system are met. Any failure or circumvention of the controls and procedures or failure to comply with regulations related to controls and procedures could have a material adverse effect on the Company’s business, results of operations and financial condition.

New Mortgage Lending Operations In Eastern Massachusetts May Expose Us to New Operating Risks.

Subsequent to year-end 2011, the Bank entered into an agreement to acquire the business assets of an established residential mortgage origination company in Eastern Massachusetts. This acquisition is expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2012. Under the agreement the Bank expects to employ the former employees of this company and to utilize its business name and operating procedures to originate residential mortgages in Eastern Massachusetts as well as in other Massachusetts and surrounding markets. The anticipated volume of mortgage originations is expected to exceed the Bank’s existing mortgage originations volume, and involves lending in a new market area with new staff and new processes. It is expected that most mortgage originations will be sold on a servicing released basis to secondary market investors. The Bank plans to implement an oversight/review process as these new operations are commenced in order to assimilate them into the Bank’s risk management program, however the conduct of these new activities may initially expose the Bank to the risk of loan losses, losses related to interest rate risk management, litigation, and other risks common in mortgage banking operations.

The Planned Core Bank Processing System Conversion Exposes Us to Operating and Financial Risks.

The Bank has contracted to convert its core bank processing system to a new system and a new vendor in 2012. This system will also be changed from primarily an “in-house” system run on the Bank’s own computers to one that is primarily a “service bureau” solution running on the provider’s computers and relying on long distance telecommunications. Core systems conversions involve extensive planning and operational changes which may affect bank account records, customer service delivery, internal procedures, technology risk management, and other significant operating activities. The conversion from one vendor to another can involve conversion costs and creates the risk of contract and performance disputer. Negotiations are ongoing with these vendors relating to contract matters. The planned changes expose the Bank to new risks with new systems and new vendors. The Bank is working closely with third parties to manage the related operating and financial risks.

Liquidity

Our Wholesale Funding Sources May Prove Insufficient to Replace Deposits at Maturity and Support Our Operations and Future Growth.

We must maintain sufficient funds to respond to the needs of depositors and borrowers. As a part of our liquidity management, we use a number of funding sources in addition to core deposit growth and repayments and maturities of loans and investments. These sources include Federal Home Loan Bank advances, proceeds from the sale of loans, and liquidity resources at the holding company. Our financial flexibility will be severely constrained if we are unable to maintain our access to funding or if adequate financing is not available to accommodate future growth at acceptable costs. Finally, if we are required to rely more heavily on more expensive funding sources to support future growth, our revenues may not increase proportionately to cover our costs. In this case, our operating margins and profitability would be adversely affected. Turbulence in the capital and credit markets may adversely affect our liquidity and financial condition and the willingness of certain counterparties and customers to do business with us.

Our Ability to Service Our Debt, Pay Dividends and Otherwise Pay Our Obligations as They Come Due Is Substantially Dependent on Capital Distributions from the Bank, and These Distributions Are Subject to Regulatory Limits and Other Restrictions.

A substantial source of our holding company income is the receipt of dividends from the Bank, from which we service our debt, pay our obligations, and pay shareholder dividends. The availability of dividends from the Bank is limited by various statutes and regulations. It is possible, depending upon the financial condition of the Bank and other factors, that the applicable regulatory authorities could assert that payment of dividends or other payments is an unsafe or unsound practice. If the Bank is unable to pay dividends to us, we may not be able to service our debt, pay our obligations or pay dividends on our common stock. The inability to receive dividends from the Bank would adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.

Interest Rates

Changes in Interest Rates Could Adversely Affect Our Results of Operations and Financial Condition.

Net interest income is our largest source of income. Changes in interest rates can affect the level of net interest income. The Company’s interest rate sensitivity is discussed in more detail in Item 7A of this report. We principally manage interest rate risk by managing our volume and mix of our earning assets and funding liabilities. In a changing interest rate environment, we may not be able to manage this risk effectively. If we are unable to manage interest rate risk effectively, our business, financial condition and results of operations could be materially harmed. Changes in interest rates can also affect the demand for our products and services, and the supply conditions in the U.S. financial and capital markets. Changes in the level of interest rates may negatively affect our ability to originate real estate loans, the value of our assets and our ability to realize gains from the sale of our assets, all of which ultimately affect our earnings.

Securities Market Values

Declines in the Value of Certain Investment Securities Could Require Write-Downs, Which Would Reduce Our Earnings.

Unrealized losses on investment securities result from changes in credit spreads and liquidity issues in the marketplace, along with changes in the credit profile of individual securities issuers. We have concluded that, as of year-end 2011, any unrealized losses are temporary in nature, and we have the intent and ability to hold these investments for a time necessary to recover our cost or stated maturity (at which time, full payment is expected). However, a continued decline in the value of these securities or other factors could result in an other-than-temporary impairment write-down which would reduce our earnings. Some of the Company’s securities are locally originated economic development bonds. These securities could become impaired due to economic and real estate market conditions which also affect loan risk. We have an investment in the stock of the Federal Home Loan Bank of Boston, which recently reinstituted a modest dividend after a period when the dividend was suspended. If the capitalization of a Federal Home Loan Bank, including the FHLBB, became substantially diminished it could result in a write-down which would reduce our earnings.

Regulatory

Legislative and Regulatory Initiatives.

The potential exists for additional federal or state laws and regulations regarding lending, funding practices, capital, and liquidity standards. Bank regulatory agencies are expected to be more active in responding to concerns and trends identified in examinations, including the expected issuance of many formal enforcement orders. In addition, new laws, regulations, and other regulatory changes may also increase our costs of regulatory compliance and of doing business, and otherwise affect our operations. The FDIC sets the cost of our FDIC insurance premiums, which can affect our profitability.

We are required by federal and state regulatory authorities to maintain adequate levels of capital to support our operations. Regulatory capital requirements and their impact on the Company may change. We may need to raise additional capital in the future to support our operations and continued growth. Our ability to raise capital, if needed, will depend on conditions in the capital markets at that time, which are outside of our control, and on our financial performance. If we cannot raise additional capital when needed, it could affect our operations and our ability to execute our strategic plan, which includes further expanding our operations through internal growth and acquisitions.

The Dodd-Frank Act made extensive changes in the regulation of insured depository institution. In addition to eliminating the OTS and creating the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the Dodd-Frank Act, among other things, directs changes in the way that institutions are assessed for deposit insurance, mandates the imposition of consolidated capital requirements on savings and loan holding companies, requires originators of certain securitized loans to retain a percentage of the risk for the transferred loans, stipulates regulatory rate-setting for certain debit card interchange fees, repeals restrictions on the payment of interest on commercial demand deposits and contains a number of reforms related to mortgage originations. Many of the provisions of the Dodd-Frank Act are subject to delayed effective dates and/or require the issuance of implementing regulations. Their impact on operations cannot yet be fully assessed. However, there is a significant possibility that the Dodd-Frank Act will, at a minimum, result in increased regulatory burden, compliance costs and interest expense for the Company. 

New laws, regulations, and other regulatory changes, along with negative developments in the financial industry and the domestic and international credit markets, may significantly affect the markets in which we do business, the markets for and value of our loans and investments, and our ongoing operations, costs and profitability. For more information, see “Regulation and Supervision” in Item 1 of this report.

Provisions of Our Certificate of Incorporation, Bylaws and Delaware Law, as Well as State and Federal Banking Regulations, Could Delay or Prevent a Takeover of Us by a Third Party.

Provisions in our certificate of incorporation and bylaws, the corporate law of the State of Delaware, and state and federal regulations could delay, defer or prevent a third party from acquiring us, despite the possible benefit to our stockholders, or otherwise adversely affect the price of our common stock. These provisions include: limitations on voting rights of beneficial owners of more than 10% of our common stock, supermajority voting requirements for certain business combinations; the election of directors to staggered terms of three years; and advance notice requirements for nominations for election to our Board of Directors and for proposing matters that stockholders may act on at stockholder meetings. In addition, we are subject to Delaware laws, including one that prohibits us from engaging in a business combination with any interested stockholder for a period of three years from the date the person became an interested stockholder unless certain conditions are met. These provisions may discourage potential takeover attempts, discourage bids for our common stock at a premium over market price or adversely affect the market price of, and the voting and other rights of the holders of, our common stock. These provisions could also discourage proxy contests and make it more difficult for you and other stockholders to elect directors other than the candidates nominated by our Board.

Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets

Our Acquisitions Have Resulted in Significant Goodwill, Which if it Becomes Impaired Would be Required to be Written Down, Resulting in a Negative Impact on Earnings.

The initial recording and subsequent impairment testing of goodwill and other intangible assets requires subjective judgments about the estimates of the fair value of assets acquired. Factors that may significantly affect the estimates include specific industry or market sector conditions, changes in revenue growth trends, customer behavior, competitive forces, cost structures and changes in discount rates. It is possible that future impairment testing could result in an impairment of the value of goodwill or intangible assets, or both. If we determine impairment exists at a given point in time, our earnings and the book value of the related intangible asset(s) will be reduced by the amount of the impairment. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the results of impairment testing on goodwill and core deposit intangible assets have no impact on our tangible book value or regulatory capital levels. These are non-GAAP financial measures. They are not a substitute for GAAP measures and should only be considered in conjunction with the Company’s GAAP financial information.

Trading

The Trading History of Our Common stock is Characterized by Low Trading Volume. The Value of Your Investment May be Subject to Sudden Decreases Due to the Volatility of the Price of our Common Stock.

Our common stock trades on the NASDAQ Global Select Market. The level of interest and trading in our stock depends on many factors beyond our control. The market price of our common stock may be highly volatile and subject to wide fluctuations in response to numerous factors, including, but not limited to, the factors discussed in other risk factors and the following actual or anticipated fluctuations in our operating results; changes in interest rates; changes in the legal or regulatory environment in which we operate; press releases, announcements or publicity relating to us or our competitors or relating to trends in our industry; changes in expectations as to our future financial performance, including financial estimates or recommendations by securities analysts and investors; future sales of our common stock; changes in economic conditions in our marketplace, general conditions in the U.S. economy, financial markets or the banking industry; and other developments affecting our competitors or us. These factors may adversely affect the trading price of our common stock, regardless of our actual operating performance, and could prevent our stockholders from selling their common stock at a desirable price.

In the past, stockholders have brought securities class action litigation against a company following periods of volatility in the market price of their securities. We could be the target of similar litigation in the future, which could result in substantial costs and divert management’s attention and resources.

Pending Merger

Failure to Complete the Pending Merger with The Connecticut Bank and Trust Company Could Negatively Impact Our Stock Price and Future Business and Financial Results.

If this merger is not completed, our ongoing business may be adversely affected. In addition, we may experience negative reactions from the financial markets and from customers and employees. We also could be subject to litigation related to any failure to complete the merger or to enforcement proceedings commenced against us to perform certain obligations under the merger agreement. If the merger is not completed, we cannot assure our stockholders that the risks described above will not materialize and will not materially affect our business, financial results and stock price. Litigation may prevent the merger from being completed or from being completed within the expected timeframe. Please see Item 3 regarding legal proceedings. One of the conditions to the closing of the merger is that no order, decree or injunction issued by a governmental entity that prohibits the completion of the merger shall be in effect. As such, if the plaintiffs are successful in obtaining an injunction prohibiting the completion of the merger on the agreed-upon terms, then such injunction may prevent the merger from being completed, or from being completed within the expected timeframe.

None.

The Company’s headquarters are located in owned and leased facilities located in Pittsfield, Massachusetts. The Company also owns or leases other facilities within its primary market areas: Berkshire County, Massachusetts; Pioneer Valley (Springfield area), Massachusetts; Southern Vermont, the Capital Region, and Northeastern New York. The Company has 60 full-service banking offices. The Company’s Asset Based Lending Group operates from a leased facility in Woburn, Massachusetts and its new Central/Eastern Massachusetts Commercial Banking Team operates from a leased facility in Westborough, Massachusetts.

During 2011, the Berkshire acquired Rome Bancorp and Legacy Bancorp, which significantly expanded its owned and leased facilities. Pittsfield has been the headquarters location of both Berkshire and Legacy, and as a result of the merger the Company has significant headquarters facilities in Pittsfield. The Company expects to have excess facilities in this location as a result of merger related operational integrations, and the Company expects to discontinue the use of some headquarters facilities over time to eliminate this excess. Berkshire also utilizes former headquarters facilities in other locations and may identify and reduce excess facilities capacity over time. Additionally, as part of its integrations, the Company is in the process of adjusting its branch configuration. The Company divested four Legacy Berkshire County branches in 2011 in accordance with its merger agreement, and held three other branches as discontinued operations at year-end 2011 under contract for divestiture in January, 2012. In selected other locations, the Company may combine or relocate other branches over time based on market conditions. Berkshire has a pending agreement to acquire The Connecticut Bank and Trust Company, and expects to add that bank’s eight Hartford area branches in the second quarter of 2012.

In 2011, Berkshire relocated its Wealth Management business into a new facility located in Lenox, Massachusetts. Berkshire Insurance Group operates from 11 locations in Western Massachusetts in both standalone premises as well as in rented space located in the Bank’s premises. For several years, all new Berkshire branch locations have been based around its new retail branch design which eliminates traditional teller counters and provides an interactive customer service environment through “pod” stations which include automated cash handling technology. In many cases, this branch design also includes a multimedia community room which is offered for use by nonprofit community groups. Berkshire currently has 8 offices configured based on this new branch design, including all of the de novo branch offices opened in recent years in the Albany New York market.

At December 31, 2011, neither the Company nor the Bank was involved in any pending legal proceedings believed by management to be material to the Company’s financial condition or results of operations. Periodically, there have been various claims and lawsuits involving the Bank, such as claims to enforce liens, condemnation proceedings on properties in which the Bank holds security interests, claims involving the making and servicing of real property loans and other issues incident to the Bank’s business. However, neither the Company nor the Bank is a party to any pending legal proceedings that it believes, in the aggregate, would have a material adverse effect on the financial condition or operations of the Company. 

Following the public announcement of the execution of the Agreement and Plan of Merger, dated October 25, 2011 (the "Merger Agreement"), by and among the Company, the Bank and The Connecticut Bank and Trust Company (“CBT”), on January 18, 2012, Jean-Pierre Van Rooy, Marie-Claire Van Rooy and Eric Van Rooy filed a shareholder class action lawsuit in the Superior Court of the State of Connecticut, Judicial District of Hartford, against CBT, the Directors of CBT, the Company and the Bank (the “CBT shareholder litigation”).  The CBT shareholder litigation purports to be brought on behalf of all of CBT's public stockholders and alleges that the directors of CBT breached their fiduciary duties to CBT's stockholders by failing to take steps necessary to obtain a fair and adequate price for CBT's common stock and that the Company and the Bank knowingly aided and abetted CBT’s directors' breach of fiduciary duty.

CBT, its Directors, the Company and the Bank deny and intend to vigorously defend all of the allegations asserted in the CBT shareholder litigation. Management of the Company and the Bank believe that the CBT shareholder litigation will not have any material adverse effect on the financial condition or operations of the Company or the Bank.    

ITEM 4. MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES

Not Applicable.

PART II

Market Information

The common shares of the Company trade on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the symbol “BHLB”. The following table sets forth the quarterly high and low closing sales price information and dividends declared per share of common stock in 2011 and 2010.