EAGLE FINANCIAL SERVICES INC - Annual Report: 2020 (Form 10-K)

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549

FORM 10-K

(Mark One)

For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2020

or

☐      TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

Commission File Number: 0-20146

EAGLE FINANCIAL SERVICES, INC.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

(540) 955-2510

(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)

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

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

Common Stock, Par Value $2.50

(Title of class)

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

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  ☒

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  ☒    No  ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted 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  ☒    No  ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,”  “smaller reporting company,” and "emerging growth company" in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed a report on and attestation to its management’s assessment of the effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (15 U.S.C. 7262(b)) by the registered public accounting firm that prepared or issued its audit report.   □

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

The aggregate market value of the voting common equity held by non-affiliates of the registrant at June 30, 2020 was $67,812,259.

The number of shares of the registrant’s Common Stock ($2.50 par value) outstanding as of March 18, 2021 was 3,429,686.

DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE

Portions of the registrant’s Proxy Statement for the 2021 Annual Meeting of Shareholders are incorporated by reference into Part III.

EAGLE FINANCIAL SERVICES, INC.

INDEX TO FORM 10-K

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PART I

Item 1.     Business

General

Eagle Financial Services, Inc. (the “Company”) is a bank holding company that was incorporated in 1991. The company is headquartered in Berryville, Virginia and conducts its operations through its subsidiary, Bank of Clarke County (the “Bank”). The Bank is chartered under Virginia law.

The Bank has twelve full-service branches, one loan production office and one drive-through only facility. The Bank’s main office is located at 2 East Main Street in Berryville, Virginia. The Bank opened for business on April 1, 1881. The Bank has offices located in Clarke County, Frederick County, Loudoun County and Fairfax County, as well as the Towns of Leesburg and Purcellville and the City of Winchester. This market area is located in the Shenandoah Valley and Northern Virginia.

The Bank offers a wide range of retail and commercial banking services, including demand, savings and time deposits and consumer, mortgage and commercial loans.  The Bank has thirteen ATM locations in its trade area and issues both ATM cards and Debit cards to deposit customers. These cards can be used to withdraw cash at most ATM’s through the Bank’s membership in both regional and national networks. These cards can also be used to make purchases at retailers who accept transactions through the same regional and national networks. The Bank offers telephone banking, internet banking, and mobile banking to its customers. Internet banking also offers online bill payment to consumer and commercial customers. The Bank offers other commercial deposit account services such as ACH origination and remote deposit capture.

Eagle Investment Group (“EIG”), a division of the Bank, offers both a trust department and investment services. The trust services division of EIG offers a full range of personal and retirement plan services, which include serving as agent for bill paying and custody of assets, as investment manager with full authority or advisor, as trustee or co-trustee for trusts under will or under agreement, as trustee of life insurance trusts, as guardian or committee, as agent under a power of attorney, as executor or co-executor for estates, as custodian or investment advisor for individual retirement plans, and as trustee or trust advisor for corporate retirement plans such as profit sharing and 401(k) plans. The brokerage division of EIG offers a full range of investment services, which include tax-deferred annuities, IRAs and rollovers, mutual funds, retirement plans, 529 college savings plans, life insurance, long term care insurance, fixed income investing, brokerage CDs, and full service or discount brokerage services. Non-deposit investment products are offered through a third party provider.

The Bank of Clarke County, is a partner in Bankers Title Shenandoah, LLC, which sells title insurance and is an investor in Virginia Bankers Insurance Center, LLC, which serves as the broker for insurance sales through its member banks.  Bank of Clarke County is also an investor in building rehabilitation projects in surrounding states. These investments generate tax credits for the Bank.

Employees

The Company, including the Bank, had 66 officers, 120 other full-time and 18 part-time employees (or 195 full-time equivalent employees) at December 31, 2020. None of the Company’s employees are represented by a union or covered under a collective bargaining agreement. The Company considers relations with its employees to be excellent.

Securities and Exchange Commission Filings

The Company maintains an internet website at www.bankofclarke.bank. Shareholders of the Company and the public may access, free of charge, the Company’s periodic and current reports (including annual reports on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and current reports on Form 8-K, and any amendments to those reports) filed with or furnished to the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"), through the “Investor Relations” section of the Company’s website. The reports are made available on this website as soon as practicable following the filing of the reports with the SEC. In addition, certain committee charters and the Company's Code of Ethics are available on the Company's website. The information is free of charge and may be reviewed, downloaded and printed from the website at any time. The information on the Company's website is not a part of, and is not incorporated into, this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

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Competition

There is significant competition for both loans and deposits within the Company’s trade area. Competition for loans comes from other commercial banks, savings banks, credit unions, mortgage brokers, finance companies, financial technology firms, insurance companies, and other institutional lenders. Competition for deposits comes from other commercial banks, savings banks, credit unions, brokerage firms, and other financial institutions. Based on total deposits at June 30, 2020 as reported to the FDIC, the Company has 7.93% of the total deposits in its market area. The Company’s market area includes Clarke County, Frederick County, Loudoun County and the City of Winchester.

Supervision and Regulation

General. As a bank holding company, the Company is subject to regulation under the Bank Holding Company Act of 1956, as amended, and the examination and reporting requirements of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (the "Federal Reserve"). As a state-chartered commercial bank, the Bank is subject to regulation, supervision and examination by the Virginia State Corporation Commission’s Bureau of Financial Institutions. It is also subject to regulation, supervision and examination by the Federal Reserve. Other federal and state laws, including various consumer and compliance laws, govern the activities of the Bank, the investments that it makes and the aggregate amount of loans that it may grant to one borrower.

The following sections summarize the significant federal and state laws applicable to the Company and its subsidiary. To the extent that statutory or regulatory provisions are described, the description is qualified in its entirety by reference to that particular statutory or regulatory provision.

The Bank Holding Company Act. Under the Bank Holding Company Act, the Company is subject to periodic examination by the Federal Reserve and is required to file periodic reports regarding its operations and any additional information that the Federal Reserve may require. Activities at the bank holding company level are limited to the following:

Some of the activities that the Federal Reserve has determined by regulation to be closely related to the business of a banking include making or servicing loans and specific types of leases, performing specific data processing services and acting in some circumstances as a fiduciary or investment or financial adviser.

With some limited exceptions, the Bank Holding Company Act requires every bank holding company to obtain the prior approval of the Federal Reserve before:

In addition, and subject to some exceptions, the Bank Holding Company Act and the Change in Bank Control Act, together with their regulations, require Federal Reserve approval prior to any person or company acquiring 25% or more of any class of voting securities of the bank holding company. Prior notice to the Federal Reserve is required if a person acquires 10% or more, but less than 25%, of any class of voting securities of a bank or bank holding company and either the institution has registered securities under Section 12 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 or no other person owns a greater percentage of that class of voting securities immediately after the transaction.

In November 1999, Congress enacted the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (“GLBA”), which made substantial revisions to the statutory restrictions separating banking activities from other financial activities. Under the GLBA, bank holding companies that are well-capitalized and well-managed and meet other conditions can elect to become “financial holding companies.” As financial holding companies, they and their subsidiaries are permitted to acquire or engage in previously impermissible activities such as insurance underwriting, securities underwriting and distribution, travel agency activities, insurance agency activities, merchant banking and other activities that the Federal Reserve determines to be financial in nature or complementary to these activities. Financial holding companies continue to be subject to the overall oversight and supervision of the Federal Reserve, but the GLBA applies the concept of functional regulation to the activities conducted by subsidiaries. For example, insurance activities would be subject to supervision and regulation by state insurance authorities. Although the Company has not elected to become a financial holding company in order to exercise the broader activity powers provided by the GLBA, the Company may elect do so in the future.

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Payment of Dividends. The Company is organized under the Virginia Stock Corporation Act, which prohibits the payment of a dividend if, after giving it effect, the corporation would not be able to pay its debts as they become due in the usual course of business or if the corporation’s total assets would be less than the sum of its total liabilities plus the amount that would be needed, if the corporation were to be dissolved, to satisfy the preferential rights upon dissolution of any preferred shareholders. In addition, the Federal Reserve has indicated that a bank holding company should generally pay dividends only if its current earnings are sufficient to fully fund the dividends, and the prospective rate of earnings retention appears consistent with the organization’s capital needs, asset quality and overall financial condition.

The Company is a legal entity separate and distinct from its subsidiary. Its ability to distribute cash dividends will depend primarily on the ability of the Bank to pay dividends to it, and the Bank is subject to laws and regulations that limit the amount of dividends that it can pay. As a state member bank, the Bank is subject to certain restrictions imposed by the reserve and capital requirements of federal and Virginia banking statutes and regulations. Under Virginia law, a bank may not declare a dividend in excess of its undivided profits. Additionally, the Bank may not declare a dividend if the total amount of all dividends, including the proposed dividend, declared by it in any calendar year exceeds the total of its retained net income of that year to date, combined with its retained net income of the two preceding years, unless the dividend is approved by the Federal Reserve.

The Federal Reserve, the FDIC and the state of Virginia have the general authority to limit the dividends paid by insured banks if the payment is deemed an unsafe and unsound practice. These regulators have indicated that paying dividends that deplete a bank’s capital base to an inadequate level would be an unsound and unsafe banking practice. The Bank may also not declare or pay a dividend without the approval of its board and two-thirds of its shareholders if the dividend would exceed its undivided profits, as reported to the Federal Reserve.

The Company does not expect that any of these laws, regulations or policies will materially affect the Bank's ability to pay dividends to the Company. Refer to Item 5 for additional information on dividend restrictions. During the year ended December 31, 2020, the Bank paid $4.3 million in dividends to the Company.  The Company paid cash dividends of $3.2 million and total dividends of $3.6 million, including cash dividends that were reinvested in Company stock.

Insurance of Accounts, Assessments and Regulation by the FDIC. The Bank’s deposits are insured up to applicable limits by the FDIC.  In July 2010, the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (the "Dodd-Frank Act") permanently raised the standard maximum deposit insurance amount to $250,000.  The FDIC has implemented a risk-based assessment system in which assessment rates for insured institutions with under $10 billion in assets are calculated based on supervisory evaluations and certain other financial measures. The assessment base is an institution’s average consolidated total assets less average tangible equity, and the initial base assessment rates are currently between 3 and 30 basis points depending on the institution's composite rating, and subject to potential adjustment based on certain long-term unsecured debt. Once the reserve ratio reaches 2.0% or greater, initial base assessment rates will range from 2 to 28 basis points and, once the reserve ratio reaches 2.5% or greater, the initial base assessment rate will range from 1 to 25 basis points.

Capital Requirements. The Federal Reserve and the other federal banking agencies have issued risk-based and leverage capital guidelines applicable to U.S. banking organizations. Those regulatory agencies may from time to time require that a banking organization maintain capital above the minimum levels because of its financial condition or actual or anticipated growth. Pursuant to the Federal Reserve’s Small Bank Holding Company and Savings and Loan Holding Company Policy Statement, qualifying bank holding companies with total consolidated assets of less than $3 billion, such as the Company, are not subject to consolidated regulatory capital requirements.

Effective January 1, 2015, the Federal Reserve adopted capital rules intended to revise and strengthen its risk-based and leverage capital requirements and its method for calculating risk-weighted assets. The rules implemented the Basel III regulatory capital reforms from the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision and certain provisions of the Dodd-Frank Act.

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Under these risk-based capital requirements of the Federal Reserve, the Bank is required to maintain a minimum ratio of total capital (which is defined as core capital and supplementary capital less certain specified deductions from total capital such as reciprocal holdings of depository institution capital instruments and equity investments) to risk-weighted assets of at least 8.0%. At least 6.0% of risk-weighted assets is required to be “Tier 1 capital,” which consists principally of common and certain qualifying preferred shareholders’ equity (including grandfathered trust preferred securities) as well as retained earnings, less certain intangibles and other adjustments. The “Tier 2 capital” consists of cumulative preferred stock, long-term perpetual preferred stock, a limited amount of subordinated and other qualifying debt (including certain hybrid capital instruments), and a limited amount of the allowance for loan losses, including reserves for off-balance sheet commitments. A common equity Tier 1 capital ratio of 4.5% of risk-weighted assets also was added with the rules effective January 1, 2015.

Each of the federal bank regulatory agencies also has established a minimum leverage capital ratio of Tier 1 capital to average adjusted assets (“Tier 1 leverage ratio”). The guidelines require a minimum Tier 1 leverage ratio of 3.0% for financial holding companies and banking organizations with the highest supervisory rating. All other banking organizations are required to maintain a minimum Tier 1 leverage ratio of 4.0% unless a different minimum was specified by an appropriate regulatory authority. In addition, for a depository institution to be considered “well capitalized” under the regulatory framework for prompt corrective action, its Tier 1 leverage ratio must be at least 5.0%. Banking organizations that have experienced internal growth or made acquisitions are expected to maintain strong capital positions substantially above the minimum supervisory levels without significant reliance on intangible assets. The Federal Reserve has not advised the Company or the Bank of any specific minimum leverage ratio applicable to either entity.

The capital requirements that became effective January 1, 2015 were phased in over a four-year period. As fully phased in effective January 1, 2019, the rules require the Bank to maintain (i) a minimum ratio of common equity Tier 1 to risk-weighted assets of at least 4.5%, plus a 2.5% “capital conservation buffer” (which is added to the 4.5% common equity Tier 1 ratio, effectively resulting in a minimum ratio of common equity Tier 1 to risk-weighted assets of at least 7.0%); (ii) a minimum ratio of Tier 1 capital to risk-weighted assets of at least 6.0%, plus the 2.5% capital conservation buffer (which is added to the 6.0% Tier 1 capital ratio, effectively resulting in a minimum Tier 1 capital ratio of 8.5%); (iii) a minimum ratio of total capital to risk-weighted assets of at least 8.0%, plus the 2.5% capital conservation buffer (which is added to the 8.0% total capital ratio, effectively resulting in a minimum total capital ratio of 10.5%); and (iv) a minimum leverage ratio of 4.0%, calculated as the ratio of Tier 1 capital to average assets.

The capital conservation buffer requirement was phased in beginning January 1, 2016, at 0.625% of risk-weighted assets, increasing by the same amount each year until fully implemented at 2.5% effective January 1, 2019. The capital conservation buffer is designed to absorb losses during periods of economic stress. Banking institutions with a ratio of common equity Tier 1 to risk-weighted assets above the minimum but below the conservation buffer will face constraints on dividends, equity repurchases, and compensation based on the amount of the shortfall.

The Federal Reserve’s final rules also revised the “prompt corrective action” regulations pursuant to Section 38 of the FDIA by (i) introducing a common equity Tier 1 capital ratio requirement at each level (other than critically undercapitalized), with the required ratio being 6.5% for well-capitalized status; (ii) increasing the minimum Tier 1 capital ratio requirement for each category, with the minimum ratio for well-capitalized status being 8.0%; and (iii) eliminating the provision that provided that a bank with a composite supervisory rating of 1 may have a 3.0% Tier 1 leverage ratio and still be well-capitalized. These thresholds were effective for the Bank as of January 1, 2015. The minimum total capital to risk-weighted assets ratio (10.0%) and minimum leverage ratio (5.0%) for well-capitalized status were unchanged by the final rules.

In December 2017, the Basel Committee published standards that it described as the finalization of the Basel III post-crisis regulatory reforms (the standards are commonly referred to as “Basel IV”). Among other things, these standards revise the Basel Committee’s standardized approach for credit risk (including by recalibrating risk weights and introducing new capital requirements for certain “unconditionally cancellable commitments,” such as unused credit card lines of credit) and provide a new standardized approach for operational risk capital. Under the proposed framework, these standards will generally be effective on January 1, 2022, with an aggregate output floor phasing-in through January 1, 2027. Under the current capital rules, operational risk capital requirements and a capital floor apply only to advanced approaches institutions, and not to the Company. The impact of Basel IV on the Company and the Bank will depend on the manner in which it is implemented by the federal bank regulatory agencies.

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As directed by the Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief and Consumer Protection Act (the “Economic Growth Act”), the federal banking regulators jointly issued a final rule in 2019 that permits qualifying banks that have less than $10 billion in total consolidated assets to elect to be subject to a 9% “community bank leverage ratio.”  A qualifying bank that has chosen the proposed framework is not be required to calculate the existing risk-based and leverage capital requirements and would be considered to have met the capital ratio requirements to be “well capitalized” under prompt corrective action rules, provided it has a community bank leverage ratio greater than 9%. The Bank did not opt into the CBLR framework as of December 31, 2020. The community bank leverage ratio rules were temporarily modified in response to COVID-19.  See “CARES ACT” below.

Other Safety and Soundness Regulations. There are a number of obligations and restrictions imposed on bank holding companies and their depository institution subsidiaries by federal law and regulatory policy that are designed to reduce potential loss exposure to the depositors of such depository institutions and to the FDIC insurance funds in the event that the depository institution is insolvent or is in danger of becoming insolvent.  For example, under the requirements of the Federal Reserve with respect to bank holding company operations, a bank holding company is required to serve as a source of financial strength to its subsidiary depository institutions and to commit resources to support such institutions in circumstances where it might not do so otherwise. In addition, the “cross-guarantee” provisions of federal law require insured depository institutions under common control to reimburse the FDIC for any loss suffered or reasonably anticipated by the FDIC as a result of the insolvency of commonly controlled insured depository institutions or for any assistance provided by the FDIC to commonly controlled insured depository institutions in danger of failure. The FDIC may decline to enforce the cross-guarantee provision if it determines that a waiver is in the best interests of the deposit insurance funds. The FDIC’s claim for reimbursement under the cross guarantee provisions is superior to claims of shareholders of the insured depository institution or its holding company but is subordinate to claims of depositors, secured creditors and nonaffiliated holders of subordinated debt of the commonly controlled insured depository institutions.

Interstate Banking and Branching. Current federal law authorizes interstate acquisitions of banks and bank holding companies without geographic limitation. Effective June 1, 1997, a bank headquartered in one state is authorized to merge with a bank headquartered in another state, as long as neither of the states had opted out of such interstate merger authority prior to such date. After a bank has established branches in a state through an interstate merger transaction, the bank may establish and acquire additional branches at any location in the state where a bank headquartered in that state could have established or acquired branches under applicable federal or state law.

Monetary Policy. The commercial banking business is affected not only by general economic conditions but also by the monetary policies of the Federal Reserve. The instruments of monetary policy employed by the Federal Reserve include open market transactions in United States government securities, changes in the discount rate on member bank borrowing and changes in reserve requirements against deposits held by all federally insured banks. The Federal Reserve monetary policies have had a significant effect on the operating results of commercial banks in the past and are expected to continue to do so in the future. In view of changing conditions in the national and international economy and in the money markets, as well as the effect of actions by monetary fiscal authorities, including the Federal Reserve, no prediction can be made as to possible future changes in interest rates, deposit levels, loan demand or the business and earnings of the Bank.

Federal Reserve System. In 1980, Congress enacted legislation that imposed reserve requirements on all depository institutions that maintain transaction accounts or nonpersonal time deposits. NOW accounts, money market deposit accounts and other types of accounts that permit payments or transfers to third parties fall within the definition of transaction accounts and are subject to these reserve requirements, as are any nonpersonal time deposits at an institution.

The reserve percentages are subject to adjustment by the Federal Reserve. Because required reserves must be maintained in the form of vault cash or in a non-interest-bearing account at, or on behalf of, a Federal Reserve Bank, the effect of the reserve requirement is to reduce the amount of the institution’s interest-earning assets.

However, in March 2020, in an unprecedented move, the Federal Reserve announced that the banking system had ample reserves, and, as reserve requirements no longer played a significant role in this regime, it reduced all reserve tranches to zero percent, thereby freeing banks from the reserve maintenance requirement. The action permits the Bank to loan or invest funds that were previously unavailable. The Federal Reserve has indicated that it expects to continue to operate in an ample reserves regime for the foreseeable future.

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Transactions with Affiliates. Transactions between banks and their affiliates are governed by Sections 23A and 23B of the Federal Reserve Act. An affiliate of a bank is any bank or entity that controls, is controlled by or is under common control with such bank. Generally, Sections 23A and 23B (i) limit the extent to which the Bank or its subsidiaries may engage in “covered transactions” with any one affiliate to an amount equal to 10% of such institution’s capital stock and surplus, and maintain an aggregate limit on all such transactions with affiliates to an amount equal to 20% of such capital stock and surplus, and (ii) require that all such transactions be on terms substantially the same, or at least as favorable, to the association or subsidiary as those provided to a nonaffiliate. The term “covered transaction” includes the making of loans, purchase of assets, issuance of a guarantee and similar other types of transactions.

Transactions with Insiders. The Federal Reserve Act and related regulations impose specific restrictions on loans to directors, executive officers and principal shareholders of banks. Under Section 22(h) of the Federal Reserve Act, loans to a director, an executive officer and to a principal shareholder of a bank, and some affiliated entities of any of the foregoing, may not exceed, together with all other outstanding loans to such person and affiliated entities, the bank’s loan-to-one borrower limit. Loans in the aggregate to insiders and their related interests as a class may not exceed two times the bank’s unimpaired capital and unimpaired surplus until the bank’s total deposits equal or exceed $100,000,000, at which time the aggregate is limited to the bank’s unimpaired capital and unimpaired surplus. Section 22(h) also prohibits loans, above amounts prescribed by the appropriate federal banking agency, to directors, executive officers and principal shareholders of a bank or bank holding company, and their respective affiliates, unless such loan is approved in advance by a majority of the board of directors of the bank with any “interested” director not participating in the voting. The FDIC has prescribed the loan amount, which includes all other outstanding loans to such person, as to which such prior board of director approval is required, as being the greater of $25,000 or 5% of capital and surplus (up to $500,000). Section 22(h) requires that loans to directors, executive officers and principal shareholders be made on terms and underwriting standards substantially the same as offered in comparable transactions to other persons.

The Dodd-Frank Act also provides that banks may not “purchase an asset from, or sell an asset to” a bank insider (or their related interests) unless (i) the transaction is conducted on market terms between the parties, and (ii) if the proposed transaction represents more than 10 percent of the capital stock and surplus of the bank, it has been approved in advance by a majority of the bank’s non-interested directors.

Community Reinvestment Act. Under the Community Reinvestment Act and related regulations, depository institutions have an affirmative obligation to assist in meeting the credit needs of their market areas, including low and moderate-income areas, consistent with safe and sound banking practice. The Community Reinvestment Act directs each bank to maintain a public file containing specific information, including all written comments received from the public for the current year and each of the previous two calendar years that specifically relate to the bank’s performance in helping to meet community credit needs. Depository institutions are periodically examined for compliance with the Community Reinvestment Act and are periodically assigned ratings in this regard. Banking regulators consider a depository institution’s Community Reinvestment Act rating when reviewing applications to establish new branches, undertake new lines of business, and/or acquire part or all of another depository institution. An unsatisfactory rating can significantly delay or even prohibit regulatory approval of a proposed transaction by a bank holding company or its depository institution subsidiaries.

Fair Lending; Consumer Laws. In addition to the Community Reinvestment Act, other federal and state laws regulate various lending and consumer aspects of the banking business. Governmental agencies, including the Department of Housing and Urban Development, the Federal Trade Commission and the Department of Justice, have become concerned that prospective borrowers experience discrimination in their efforts to obtain loans from depository and other lending institutions. These agencies have brought litigation against depository institutions alleging discrimination against borrowers. Many of these suits have been settled, in some cases for material sums, short of a full trial.

These governmental agencies have clarified what they consider to be lending discrimination and have specified various factors that they will use to determine the existence of lending discrimination under the Equal Credit Opportunity Act and the Fair Housing Act, including evidence that a lender discriminated on a prohibited basis, evidence that a lender treated applicants differently based on prohibited factors in the absence of evidence that the treatment was the result of prejudice or a conscious intention to discriminate, and evidence that a lender applied an otherwise neutral non-discriminatory policy uniformly to all applicants, but the practice had a discriminatory effect, unless the practice could be justified as a business necessity.

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Banks and other depository institutions are also subject to numerous consumer-oriented laws and regulations. These laws, which include the Truth in Lending Act, the Truth in Savings Act, the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act, the Electronic Funds Transfer Act, the Funds Availability Act, the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, and the Fair Housing Act, require compliance by depository institutions with various disclosure requirements and requirements regulating the availability of funds after deposit or the making of some loans to customers.

On September 20, 2017, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (the "CFPB") issued a final rule that amends Regulation B to permit creditors additional flexibility in complying with Regulation B in order to facilitate compliance with Regulation C, adds certain model forms and removes others from Regulation B, and makes various other amendments to Regulation B and its commentary to facilitate the collection and retention of information about the ethnicity, sex, and race of certain mortgage applicants.  The rule was effective on January 1, 2018, except that the amendment to Appendix B removing the existing “Uniform Residential Loan Application” form in amendatory instruction 6 is effective January 1, 2022.

Privacy Regulations. The GLBA contains extensive customer privacy protection provisions. Under these provisions, a financial institution must provide to its customers, both at the inception of the customer relationship and on an annual basis, the institution’s policies and procedures regarding the handling of customers’ nonpublic personal financial information. The law provides that, except for specific limited exceptions, an institution may not provide such personal information to unaffiliated third parties unless the institution discloses to the customer that such information may be so provided and the customer is given the opportunity to opt out of such disclosure. An institution may not disclose to a non-affiliated third party, other than to a consumer reporting agency, customer account numbers or other similar account identifiers for marketing purposes. The GLBA also provides that the states may adopt customer privacy protections that are more strict than those contained in the act.

Amendment to the Annual Privacy Notice Requirement Under the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (Regulation P). In July 2016 the CFPB proposed to update Regulation P to implement a December 2015 statutory amendment to the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act. The August 10, 2018 rule finalized that proposal. The rule provides an exception under which financial institutions that meet certain conditions are not required to provide annual privacy notices to customers. To qualify for this exception, a financial institution must not share nonpublic personal information about customers except as described in certain statutory exceptions. In addition, the rule requires that the financial institution must not have changed its policies and practices with regard to disclosing nonpublic personal information from those that the institution disclosed in the most recent privacy notice it sent. As part of its implementation, the CFPB also amended Regulation P to provide timing requirements for delivery of annual privacy notices in the event that a financial institution that qualified for this annual notice exception later changes its policies or practices in such a way that it no longer qualifies for the exception. The CFPB further removed the Regulation P provision that allowed for use of the alternative delivery method for annual privacy notices because the CFPB believes the alternative delivery method will no longer be used in light of the annual notice exception.

Anti-Money Laundering Laws and Regulations.  The Bank is subject to several federal laws that are designed to combat money laundering, terrorist financing, and transactions with persons, companies or foreign governments designated by U.S. authorities (“AML laws”). This category of laws includes the Bank Secrecy Act of 1970, the Money Laundering Control Act of 1986, the USA PATRIOT Act of 2001, and the Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2020.  The Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2020, the most sweeping anti-money laundering legislation in 20 years, requires various federal agencies to promulgate regulations implementing a number of its provisions.

The AML laws and their implementing regulations require insured depository institutions, broker-dealers, and certain other financial institutions to have policies, procedures, and controls to detect, prevent, and report money laundering and terrorist financing. The AML laws and their regulations also provide for information sharing, subject to conditions, between federal law enforcement agencies and financial institutions, as well as among financial institutions, for counter-terrorism purposes. Federal banking regulators are required, when reviewing bank holding company acquisition and bank merger applications, to take into account the effectiveness of the anti-money laundering activities of the applicants. To comply with these obligations, the Company has implemented appropriate internal practices, procedures, and controls.

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Cybersecurity. The federal banking agencies have adopted guidelines for establishing information security standards and cybersecurity programs for implementing safeguards under the supervision of a financial institution’s board of directors. These guidelines, along with related regulatory materials, increasingly focus on risk management and processes related to information technology and the use of third parties in the provision of financial products and services. The federal banking agencies expect financial institutions to establish lines of defense and ensure that their risk management processes also address the risk posed by compromised customer credentials, and also expect financial institutions to maintain sufficient business continuity planning processes to ensure rapid recovery, resumption and maintenance of the institution’s operations after a cyber-attack. If the Bank fails to meet the expectations set forth in this regulatory guidance, it could be subject to various regulatory actions and any remediation efforts may require significant resources of the Bank. In addition, all federal and state bank regulatory agencies continue to increase focus on cybersecurity programs and risks as part of regular supervisory exams.

In December 2020, the federal banking agencies issued a notice of proposed rulemaking that would require banking organizations to notify their primary regulator within 36 hours of becoming aware of a “computer-security incident” or a “notification incident.” The proposed rule also would require specific and immediate notifications by bank service providers that become aware of similar incidents.

Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002. The Sarbanes-Oxley Act implemented a number of laws affecting corporate governance, accounting obligations and corporate reporting. The Sarbanes-Oxley Act is applicable to all companies with equity securities registered or that file reports under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. In particular, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act established: (i) requirements for audit committees, including independence, expertise, and responsibilities; (ii) responsibilities regarding financial statements for the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer of the reporting company; (iii) standards for auditors and regulation of audits; (iv) disclosure and reporting obligations for reporting companies and their directors and executive officers; and (v) civil and criminal penalties for violations of the securities laws. Because the Company’s common stock is registered with the SEC, it is currently subject to these requirements.

Incentive Compensation. In June 2010, the Federal Reserve issued a final rule on incentive compensation policies intended to ensure that the incentive compensation policies of banking organizations do not undermine the safety and soundness of such organizations by encouraging excessive risk-taking. Banking organizations are instructed to review their incentive compensation policies to ensure that they do not encourage excessive risk-taking and implement corrective programs as needed. The Federal Reserve will review, as part of the regular, risk-focused examination process, the incentive compensation arrangements of banking organizations, such as the Bank, that are not “large, complex banking organizations.” These reviews will be tailored to each organization based on the scope and complexity of the organization’s activities and the prevalence of incentive compensation arrangements. The findings of the supervisory initiatives will be included in reports of examination. Deficiencies will be incorporated into the organization’s supervisory ratings, which can affect the organization’s ability to make acquisitions and take other actions.

Dodd-Frank Act. In July 2010, the Dodd-Frank Act was signed into law, incorporating numerous financial institution regulatory reforms.  The Dodd-Frank Act implements far-reaching reforms of major elements of the financial landscape, particularly for larger financial institutions. Many of its provisions do not directly impact community-based institutions like the Bank. For instance, provisions that regulate derivative transactions and limit derivatives trading activity of federally-insured institutions, enhance supervision of “systemically significant” institutions, impose new regulatory authority over hedge funds, limit proprietary trading by banks, and phase-out the eligibility of trust preferred securities for Tier 1 capital are among the provisions that do not directly impact the Bank either because of exemptions for institutions below a certain asset size or because of the nature of the Bank’s operations. Certain aspects of the Dodd-Frank Act remain subject to rulemaking and interpretation and will take effect over several years, and their impact on the Company or the financial industry is difficult to predict before such regulations or interpretations are adopted.

In May 2018, the Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief, and Consumer Protection Act (the "Economic Growth Act") was enacted to modify or remove certain regulatory financial reform rules and regulations, including some of those implemented under the Dodd-Frank Act. While the Economic Growth Act maintains most of the regulatory structure established by the Dodd-Frank Act, it amends certain aspects of the regulatory framework for small depository institutions with assets of less than $10 billion, such as the Bank, and for large banks with assets of more than $50 billion.

Among other matters, the Economic Growth Act expands the definition of qualified mortgages which may be held by a financial institution with total consolidated assets of less than $10 billion, exempts community banks from the Volcker Rule, and includes additional regulatory relief regarding regulatory examination cycles, call reports, mortgage disclosures and risk weights for certain high-risk commercial real estate loans.

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Integrated Mortgage Disclosures under the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (Regulation X) and the Truth In Lending Act (Regulation Z).  Pursuant to the Dodd-Frank Act, the CFPB issued a final rule on November 20, 2013 (effective on October 3, 2015), combining certain disclosures that consumers receive in connection with applying for and closing on a mortgage loan under the Truth in Lending Act and the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act. The Bureau amended Regulation X (Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act or RESPA) and Regulation Z (Truth in Lending or TILA) to establish new disclosure requirements and forms in Regulation Z for most closed-end consumer credit transactions secured by real property. In addition to combining the existing disclosure requirements and implementing new requirements imposed by the Dodd-Frank Act, the final rule provides extensive guidance regarding compliance with those requirements.  The final rule applies to most closed-end consumer mortgages. It does not apply to home equity lines of credit, reverse mortgages, or mortgages secured by a mobile home or by a dwelling that is not attached to real property (in other words, land). The final rule also does not apply to loans made by a creditor who makes five or fewer mortgages in a year.

On July 7, 2017, the CFPB modified the Federal mortgage disclosure requirements under the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act and the Truth in Lending Act that are implemented in Regulation Z. This rule memorializes the CFPB’s informal guidance on various issues and makes additional clarifications and technical amendments. This rule also creates tolerances for the total of payments, adjusts a partial exemption mainly affecting housing finance agencies and nonprofits, extends coverage of the TILA-RESPA integrated disclosure (integrated disclosure) requirements to all cooperative units, and provides guidance on sharing the integrated disclosures with various parties involved in the mortgage origination process.

On October 4, 2017, the CFPB issued an interim final rule amending a provision of the Regulation X mortgage servicing rules issued in 2016 relating to the timing for servicers to provide modified written early intervention notices to borrowers who have invoked their cease communication rights under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.

On March 8, 2018, the CFPB issued a rule amending certain aspects of the mortgage servicing rule issued in 2016 relating to periodic statements. These amendments revise the timing requirements for servicers transitioning between modified or unmodified periodic statements and coupon books when consumers enter or exit bankruptcy.

On April 26, 2018, the CFPB amended federal mortgage disclosure requirements under RESPA and TILA that are implemented in Regulation Z. The amendments relate to when a creditor may compare charges paid by or imposed on the consumer to amounts disclosed on a Closing Disclosure, instead of a Loan Estimate, to determine if an estimated closing cost was disclosed in good faith.

Flood Insurance Rule.   On July 21, 2015, five federal regulatory agencies announced the approval of a joint final rule that modifies regulations that apply to loans secured by properties located in special flood hazard areas. The final rule implements provisions of the Homeowner Flood Insurance Affordability Act of 2014 relating to the escrowing of flood insurance payments and the exemption of certain detached structures from the mandatory flood insurance purchase requirement. The final rule also implements provisions in the Biggert-Waters Flood Insurance Reform Act of 2012 (Biggert-Waters Act) relating to the force placement of flood insurance.

On February 20, 2019, an Interagency Final Rule was issued amending regulations regarding loans in areas having special flood hazards to implement the private flood insurance provisions of the Biggert-WatersAct. Specifically, the final rule requires regulated lending institutions to accept policies that meet the statutory definition of "private flood insurance" in the Biggert-Waters Act and permits regulated lending institutions to exercise their discretion to accept flood insurance policies issued by private insurers and plans providing flood coverage issued by mutual aid societies that do not meet the statutory definition of "private flood insurance," subject to certain restrictions.

Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) Final Rule. On October 15, 2015, the CFPB issued the final rule aimed at increasing the “quality and type” of HMDA data collected and reported by financial institutions. The HMDA Rule changes: (1) the types of financial institutions that are subject to Regulation C; (2) the types of transactions that are subject to Regulation C; (3) the data that financial institutions are required to collect, record, and report; and (4) the processes for reporting and disclosing HMDA data. On August 24, 2017, the CFPB issued a final rule (2017 HMDA Rule) further amending Regulation C to make technical corrections and to clarify and amend certain requirements adopted by the 2015 HMDA Final Rule. The most significant changes were not effective until January 1, 2018. On or before March 1, 2019, lenders will report the new data they collect in 2018.  On October 10, 2019, the CFPB issued a final rule amending Regulation C to adjust the threshold for reporting data about open-end lines of credit by extending to January 1, 2022 the current temporary threshold of 500 open-end lines of credit. The CFPB also incorporated into Regulation C the interpretations and procedures from the interpretive and procedural rule that was issued on August 31, 2018, implementing provisions of the Economic Growth Act.

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Regulation CC. On September 17, 2018, the Federal Reserve Board adopted final amendments to Regulation CC (Expedited Funds Availability Act) to address situations where there is a dispute as to whether a check has been altered or was issued with an unauthorized signature, and the original paper check is not available for inspection. The rule adopts a presumption of alteration for disputes between banks over whether a substitute check or electronic check contains an alteration or is derived from an original check that was issued with an unauthorized signature of the drawer.

On June 26, 2019, the agencies finalized changes to Regulation CC to adopt a method for making inflationary adjustments to the dollar amounts in Regulation CC every five years pursuant to the Dodd-Frank Act. The first adjustments are effective July 1, 2020.  In addition, the final rule implements a provision of the Economic Growth Act to extend coverage of Regulation CC to American Samoa, the Northern Mariana Islands, and Guam.

Summaries of Rights Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (Regulation V). The CFPB issued an interim final rule on September 12, 2018 to update the CFPB’s model forms for the Summary of Consumer Identity Theft Rights and the Summary of Consumer Rights in Appendices I and K to Regulation V to incorporate a notice required by new Fair Credit Reporting Act section 605A(i)(5), added by the Economic Growth Act.

Home Mortgage Disclosure Act. The CFPB issued an interpretive and procedural rule on August 31, 2018 to implement and clarify the requirements of section 104(a) of the Economic Growth Act, which amended certain provisions of the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA). The rule clarifies that insured depository institutions and insured credit unions covered by a partial exemption under the Economic Growth Act have the option of reporting exempt data fields as long as they report all data fields within any exempt data point for which they report data; clarifies that only loans and lines of credit that are otherwise HMDA reportable count toward the thresholds for the partial exemptions; clarifies which of the data points in Regulation C are covered by the partial exemptions; designates a non-universal loan identifier for partially exempt transactions for institutions that choose not to report a universal loan identifier; and clarifies the Economic Growth Act’s exception to the partial exemptions for negative Community Reinvestment Act examination history.

Real Estate Appraisal Thresholds. On September 27, 2019, the agencies issued a final rule increasing the appraisal threshold for residential real estate transactions from $250,000 to $400,000. The final rule defines residential real estate transactions as a real estate related financial transaction that is secured by a single 1-to-4 family residential property.  For residential real estate transactions exempted from the appraisal requirement as a result of the revised threshold, regulated institutions must obtain an evaluation of the real property collateral that is consistent with safe and sound banking practices. The final rule includes exempted transactions with residential properties in rural areas under the Economic Growth Act and requires evaluations for these transactions. The final rule also amends appraisal regulations requiring regulated institutions to subject appraisals for federally related transactions to appropriate review for compliance with the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice.

Future Legislation and Regulation.  Congress may enact legislation from time to time that affects the regulation of the financial services industry, and state legislatures may enact legislation from time to time affecting the regulation of financial institutions chartered by or operating in those states. Federal and state regulatory agencies also periodically propose and adopt changes to their regulations or change the manner in which existing regulations are applied. The substance or impact of pending or future legislation or regulation, or the application thereof, cannot be predicted, although enactment of the proposed legislation could impact the regulatory structure under which the Company and the Bank operate and may significantly increase costs, impede the efficiency of internal business processes, require an increase in regulatory capital, require modifications to business strategy, and limit the ability to pursue business opportunities in an efficient manner. A change in statutes, regulations or regulatory policies applicable to the Company or the Bank could have a material, adverse effect on the business, financial condition and results of operations of the Company and the Bank. Future legislation, regulation, and government policy could affect the banking industry as a whole, including the business and results of operations of the Company and the Bank, in ways that are difficult to predict. The Company fully expects that the financial institution industry will remain heavily regulated in the near future and that additional laws or regulations may be adopted further regulating specific banking practices.

Employment Transition of Loan Originators.  Section 106 of the Economic Growth Act allows certain state-licensed mortgage loan originators (MLOs) who are licensed in one state to temporarily work in another state while waiting for licensing approval in the new state. It also grants MLOs who move from a depository institution (where loan officers do not need to be state licensed) to a nondepository institution (where they do need to be state licensed) a grace period to complete the necessary licensing.

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Wage and Hour Division, Department of Labor.  On December 16, 2019, the Department of Labor issued a final rule, the rule updates a number of regulations on the calculation of overtime compensation both to provide clarity and to better reflect the 21st-century workplace. These changes will promote compliance with the FLSA, provide appropriate and updated guidance in an area of evolving law and practice, and encourage employers to provide additional and innovative benefits to workers without fear of costly litigation.  This final rule was effective on January 15, 2020.

CARES Act. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, President Trump signed into law the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (“CARES”) Act on March 27, 2020. Among other things, the CARES Act included the following provisions impacting financial institutions:

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Item 1A.     Risk Factors

The Company is subject to many risks that could adversely affect its future financial condition and performance and, therefore, the market value of its securities. The risk factors applicable to the Company include, but are not limited to the following:

COVID-19 Pandemic Risks

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and measures intended to prevent its spread may adversely affect our business, financial condition and operations; the extent of such impacts are highly uncertain and difficult to predict.

Global health and economic concerns relating to the COVID-19 outbreak and government actions taken to reduce the spread of the virus have had a material adverse impact on the macroeconomic environment, and the outbreak has significantly increased economic uncertainty. The pandemic has resulted in federal, state and local authorities, including those who govern the markets in which we operate, implementing numerous measures to try to contain the virus. These measures, including shelter in place orders and business limitations and shutdowns, have significantly contributed to rising unemployment and negatively impacted consumer and business spending. The COVID-19 outbreak has adversely impacted and is likely to continue to adversely impact our workforce and operations and the operations of our customers and business partners. In particular, we may experience adverse effects due to a number of operational factors impacting us or our customers or business partners, including but not limited to:

The extent to which the pandemic impacts our business, liquidity, financial condition and operations will depend on future developments, which are highly uncertain and are difficult to predict, including, but not limited to, its duration and
severity, the actions to contain it or treat its impact, and how quickly and to what extent normal economic and operating
conditions can resume. In addition, the rapidly changing and unprecedented nature of COVID-19 heightens the inherent
uncertainty of forecasting future economic conditions and their impact on our loan portfolio, thereby increasing the risk that
the assumptions, judgments and estimates used to determine the allowance for loan losses and other estimates are
incorrect. Further, our loan deferral program could delay or make it difficult to identify the extent of asset quality deterioration during the deferral period. As a result of these and other conditions, the ultimate impact of the pandemic is highly uncertain and subject to change, and we cannot predict the full extent of the impacts on our business, our operations or the global economy as a whole.

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Technology Risks

The Company’s operations may be adversely affected by cyber security risks.

In the ordinary course of business, the Company collects and stores sensitive data, including proprietary business information and personally identifiable information of its customers and employees in systems and on networks. The secure processing, maintenance, and use of this information is critical to the Company's operations and business strategy. In addition, the Company relies heavily on communications and information systems to conduct its business. Any failure, interruption, or breach in security or operational integrity of these systems could result in failures or disruptions in the Company's customer relationship management, general ledger, deposit, loan, and other systems. The Company has invested in accepted technologies, and continually reviews processes and practices that are designed to protect its networks, computers, and data from damage or unauthorized access. To date, the Company has not experienced a significant compromise, significant data loss or any material financial losses related to cybersecurity attacks, but the Company’s systems and those of its customers and third-party service providers are under constant threat and it is possible that the Company could experience a significant event in the future. Risks and exposures related to cybersecurity attacks are expected to remain high for the foreseeable future due to the rapidly evolving nature and sophistication of these threats, as well as due to the expanding use of Internet banking, mobile banking and other technology-based products and services by the Company and its customers. The Company’s computer systems and infrastructure may be vulnerable to attacks by hackers or breached due to employee error, malfeasance, or other disruptions. A breach of any kind could compromise systems and the information stored there could be accessed, damaged, or disclosed. A breach in security or other failure could result in legal claims, regulatory penalties, disruption in operations, increased expenses, loss of customers and business partners, and damage to the Company’s reputation, which could adversely affect its business and financial condition. Furthermore, as cyber threats continue to evolve and increase, the Company may be required to expend significant additional financial and operational resources to modify or enhance its protective measures, or to investigate and remediate any identified information security vulnerabilities.

Failure to keep pace with technological change could adversely affect our business.

The financial services industry is continually undergoing rapid technological change with frequent introductions of new technology-driven products and services. The effective use of technology increases efficiency and enables financial institutions and other firms to better serve customers and to reduce costs. The pace of these technological changes has increased in the “Fintech” environment, in which industry changing products and services are often introduced and adopted, including innovative ways that customers can make payments, access products, and manage accounts.  Our future success depends, in part, upon our ability to address the needs of our customers by using technology to provide products and services that will satisfy customer demands, as well as to create additional efficiencies in our operations. Many of our competitors have substantially greater resources to invest in technological improvements. We may not be able to effectively implement new technology-driven products and services, which could entail significant time, resources and additional risk to develop or adopt, or be successful in marketing these products and services to our customers. Failure to successfully keep pace with technological change affecting the financial services industry could have a material adverse impact on our business and, in turn, our financial condition and results of operations.

Credit Risks

The Company’s concentration in loans secured by real estate may increase its credit losses, which would negatively affect our financial results.

At December 31, 2020, loans secured by real estate totaled $662.8 million and represented 79.25% of the Company’s loan portfolio, net of deferred loan fees. If we experience adverse changes in the local real estate market or in the local or national economy, borrowers’ ability to pay these loans may be impaired, which could impact the Company’s financial performance. The Company attempts to limit its exposure to this risk by applying good underwriting practices at origination, evaluating the appraisals used to establish property values, and routinely monitoring the financial condition of borrowers. If the value of real estate serving as collateral for the loan portfolio were to continue to decline materially, a significant part of the loan portfolio could become under-collateralized. If the loans that are secured by real estate become troubled when real estate market conditions are declining or have declined, in the event of foreclosure, the Company may not be able to realize the amount of collateral that was anticipated at the time of originating the loan. In that event, the Company might have to increase the provision for loan losses, which could have a material adverse effect on its operating results and financial condition.

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An inadequate allowance for loan losses would reduce our earnings.

Our earnings are significantly affected by our ability to properly originate, underwrite and service loans. We maintain an allowance for loan losses based upon many factors, including the following:

These determinations are based upon estimates that are inherently subjective, and their accuracy depends on the outcome of future events; therefore, realized losses may differ from current estimates. Changes in economic, operating, and other conditions, including changes in interest rates, which are generally beyond our control, could increase actual loan losses significantly. As a result, actual losses could exceed our current allowance estimate. We cannot provide assurance that our allowance for loan losses is sufficient to cover actual loan losses should such losses differ significantly from the current estimates.

Liquidity and Interest Rate Risks

The Company’s success depends upon its ability to manage interest rate risk.

The profitability of the Company depends significantly on its net interest income, which is the difference between the interest earned on loans, securities and other interest-earning assets, and the interest paid on deposits and borrowings. Changes in interest rates will affect the rates earned on securities and loans and rates paid on deposits and other borrowings. While the Company believes that its current interest rate exposure does not present any significant negative exposure to interest rate changes, it cannot eliminate its exposure to interest rate risk because the factors which cause interest rate risk are beyond the Company’s control. These factors include competition, federal economic, monetary and fiscal policies, and general economic conditions.

The Company may be required to transition from the use of the London Inter Offered Rate (“LIBOR”) index in the future.

The Company has certain variable-rate loans indexed to LIBOR to calculate the loan interest rate. The United Kingdom Financial Conduct Authority, which regulates LIBOR, has previously announced that the continued availability of the LIBOR on the current basis is not guaranteed after 2021. In November 2020, the administrator of LIBOR announced it will consult on its intention to extend the retirement date of certain offered rates whereby the publication of the one week and two month LIBOR offered rates will cease after December 31, 2021; but, the publication of the remaining LIBOR offered rates will continue until June 30, 2023. Given consumer protection, litigation, and reputation risks, federal bank regulators have indicated that entering into new contracts that use LIBOR as a reference rate after December 31, 2021, would create safety and soundness risks and that they will examine bank practices accordingly. Therefore, the agencies encouraged banks to cease entering into new contracts that use LIBOR as a reference rate as soon as practicable and in any event by December 31, 2021.

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It is difficult to predict whether and to what extent banks will continue to provide LIBOR submissions to the administrator of LIBOR or whether any additional reforms to LIBOR may be enacted in the United Kingdom or elsewhere. At this time, no consensus exists as to what rate or rates may become acceptable alternatives to LIBOR, and it is impossible to predict the effect of any such alternatives on the value of LIBOR-based variable-rate loans, as well as LIBOR-based securities, subordinated notes, trust preferred securities, or other securities or financial arrangements. The transition to alternative reference rate for new contracts, or the implementation of a substitute index or indices for the calculation of interest rates under the Company’s existing loan agreements with borrowers or other financial arrangements, could change the Company’s market risk profile, interest margin, interest spread and pricing models, may cause the Company to incur significant expenses in effecting the transition, may result in reduced loan balances if borrowers do not accept a substitute index or indices, and may result in disputes or litigation with customers or other counter-parties over the appropriateness or comparability to LIBOR of the substitute index or indices, any of which could have a material adverse effect on the Company’s results of operations.

Market Risks

The Company’s success depends upon its ability to compete effectively in the banking industry.

The Company’s banking subsidiary faces competition from banks and other financial institutions, including savings and loan associations, savings banks, finance companies and credit unions for deposits, loans and other financial services in our market area. Certain divisions within the banking subsidiary face competition from wealth management and investment brokerage firms. A number of these banks and other financial institutions are significantly larger and have substantially greater access to capital and other resources, as well as larger lending limits and branch systems, and offer a wider array of banking services. In addition, the Company faces competition from market place lenders and other financial technology firms, which may provide competitive services quickly and in innovative ways and may have fewer regulatory constraints and lower cost structures. This competition may reduce or limit our margins and our market share and may adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition.

The Company could be adversely affected by economic conditions in its market area.

The Company’s branches are located in the counties of Clarke, Frederick and Loudoun, the towns of Purcellville, Leesburg and Ashburn, and the City of Winchester. Because our lending is concentrated in this market, we will be affected by the general economic conditions in these areas. Changes in the economy may influence the growth rate of our loans and deposits, the quality of the loan portfolio and loan and deposit pricing. A decline in general economic conditions caused by inflation, recession, unemployment or other factors beyond our control would impact the demand for banking products and services generally, which could negatively affect our financial condition and performance.

The soundness of other financial institutions could adversely affect us.

Our ability to engage in routine funding transactions could be adversely affected by the actions and commercial soundness of other financial institutions. Financial services institutions are interrelated as a result of trading, clearing, counterparty or other relationships. We have exposure to many different industries and counterparties, and we routinely execute transactions with counterparties in the financial industry. As a result, defaults by, or even rumors or questions about, one or more financial services institutions, or the financial services industry generally, have led to market-wide liquidity problems and could lead to losses or defaults by us or by other institutions. Many of these transactions expose us to credit risk in the event of default of our counterparty or client. In addition, our credit risk may be exacerbated when the collateral held by us cannot be realized upon or is liquidated at prices not sufficient to recover the full amount of the financial instrument exposure due us. There is no assurance that any such losses would not materially and adversely affect our results of operations.

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Operational Risks

Our exposure to operational risk may adversely affect our business.

We are exposed to many types of operational risk, including reputational risk, legal and compliance risk, the risk of fraud or theft by employees or outsiders, unauthorized transactions by employees or operational errors, including clerical or record-keeping errors or those resulting from faulty or disabled computer or telecommunications systems.

Reputational risk, or the risk to our earnings and capital from negative public opinion, could result from our actual alleged conduct in any number of activities, including lending practices, corporate governance, regulatory compliance or the occurrence of any of the events or instances mentioned below, or from actions taken by government regulators or community organizations in response to that conduct.  Negative public opinion could also result from adverse news or publicity that impairs the reputation of the financial services industry generally.

Further, if any of our financial, accounting, or other data processing systems fail or have other significant shortcomings, we could be adversely affected. We depend on internal systems and outsourced technology to support these data storage and processing operations. Our inability to use or access these information systems at critical points in time could unfavorably impact the timeliness and efficiency of our business operations. We could be adversely affected if one of our employees causes a significant operational break-down or failure, either as a result of human error or where an individual purposefully sabotages or fraudulently manipulates our operations or systems.  We are also at risk of the impact of natural disasters, terrorism and international hostilities on our systems or for the effects of outages or other failures involving power or communications systems operated by others.

If any of the foregoing risks materialize, it could have a material adverse affect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

The Company may not be able to successfully manage its growth or implement its growth strategy, which may adversely affect results of operations and financial condition.

A key component of the Company’s business strategy is to continue to grow and expand. The Company’s ability to grow and expand depends upon its ability to open new branch locations, attract new deposits to the existing and new branch locations, and identify attractive loan and investment opportunities. The Company may not be able to implement its growth strategy if it is unable to identify attractive markets or branch locations. Once identified, successfully managing growth will depend on integrating the new branch locations while maintaining adequate capital, cost controls and asset quality. As this growth strategy is implemented, the Company will incur construction costs and increased personnel, occupancy and other operating expenses. Because these costs are incurred before new deposits and loans are generated, adding new branch locations will initially decrease earnings, despite efficient execution of this strategy. In addition, the Company could experience difficulties expanding into new markets or product lines.  The Company’s lack of history and familiarity with those markets, clients and lines of business may lead to unexpected challenges or difficulties that inhibit its success and adversely affect the Company’s results of operations.

The Company relies heavily on its senior management team and the unexpected loss of key officers could adversely affect operations.

The Company believes that its growth and success depends heavily upon the skills of its senior management team. The Company also depends on the experience of its subsidiary’s officers and on their relationships with the customers they serve. The loss of one or more of these officers could disrupt the Company’s operations and impair its ability to implement its business strategy, which could adversely affect the Company’s financial condition and performance.

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Legal, Regulatory and Compliance Risks

Government measures to regulate the financial industry, including the Dodd-Frank Act, subject us to increased regulation and could adversely affect us.

As a financial institution, we are heavily regulated at the state and federal levels. These laws and regulations are generally intended to benefit consumers, borrowers and depositors, but not investors. Our success depends on our ability to maintain compliance with existing and new laws and regulations. As a result of the financial crisis and related global economic downturn that began in 2007, we have faced, and expect to continue to face, increased public and legislative scrutiny as well as stricter and more comprehensive regulation of our financial services practices. The Dodd-Frank Act includes significant changes in the financial regulatory landscape and has increased our operations and compliance costs in the short-term. Future legislation, regulation and government policy, which are beyond our control, may change rapidly and unpredictably and could affect the banking industry as a whole, including our business and results of operations, in ways that are difficult to predict. With the incoming Biden administration, a Democratic controlled Congress, and changes in leadership at federal agencies such as the CFPB, we expect that financial institutions will remain heavily regulated in the near future and that additional laws or regulations may be adopted further regulating specific banking practices. As a result of the provisions in the Dodd-Frank Act and other current or future laws and regulations applicable to the Bank, we could experience additional costs, as well as limitations on the products and services we offer and on our ability to efficiently pursue business opportunities, which may adversely affect our businesses, financial condition or results of operations.

The Bank is subject to more stringent capital and liquidity requirements as a result of the Basel III regulatory capital reforms and the Dodd-Frank Act.

The Bank is subject to capital adequacy guidelines and other regulatory requirements specifying minimum amounts and types of capital which it must maintain. From time to time, regulators implement changes to these regulatory capital adequacy guidelines. Under the Dodd-Frank Act, the federal banking agencies have established stricter capital requirements and leverage limits for banks and bank holding companies that are based on the Basel III regulatory capital reforms. The Basel III Capital Rules require banking organizations to maintain significantly more capital and adopted more demanding regulatory capital risk weightings and calculations. While the recently passed Economic Growth Act requires that federal banking regulators establish a simplified leverage capital framework for smaller banks, these more stringent capital requirements could, among other things, limit banking operations and activities, and growth of loan portfolios, in order to focus on retention of earnings to improve capital levels. The Bank believes that it maintains sufficient levels of Tier 1 and Common Equity Tier 1 capital to comply with the Basel III Final rules. However, if the Bank fails to meet these minimum capital guidelines and/or other regulatory requirements, the Bank could be subject to regulatory restrictions, including limitations on paying dividends to the holding company for shareholder dividends and share repurchases and paying discretionary bonuses, or experience other adverse consequences that could cause its financial condition to be materially and adversely affected.

In addition, there can be no assurance that our methodology for assessing our asset quality will succeed in properly identifying impaired loans or calculating an appropriate loan loss allowance. We could sustain losses if we incorrectly assess the creditworthiness of our borrowers or fail to detect or respond to deterioration in asset quality in a timely manner. If our assumptions and judgments prove to be incorrect and the allowance for loan losses is inadequate to absorb losses, or if bank regulatory authorities require us to increase the allowance for loan losses as a part of their examination process, our earnings and capital could be significantly and adversely affected.

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Changes in accounting standards could impact reported earnings and capital.

The authorities that promulgate accounting standards, including the Financial Accounting Standards Board (the “FASB”), the SEC, and other regulatory authorities, periodically change the financial accounting and reporting standards that govern the preparation of the Company’s consolidated financial statements. These changes are difficult to predict and can materially impact how the Company records and reports its financial condition and results of operations. In some cases, the Company could be required to apply a new or revised standard retroactively, resulting in the restatement of financial statements for prior periods. Such changes could also impact the capital levels of the Bank, or require the Company to incur additional personnel or technology costs. Most notably, new guidance on the calculation of credit reserves using current expected credit losses, referred to as CECL, was finalized in June 2016. The standard has been delayed for the Company and will now be effective for the Company beginning January 1, 2023. To implement the new standard, the Company has and will incur costs related to data collection and documentation, technology and training.  Although the Company is currently unable to reasonably estimate the impact of the new standard on its financial statements, adoption of the new standard could necessitate, among other things, higher loan loss reserve levels, and the Company expects to recognize a one-time cumulative effect adjustment to the allowance for loan losses and opening retained earnings as of the beginning of the quarter in which the standard is effective.  If the Company is required to materially increase the level of the allowance for loan losses or incurs additional expenses to determine the appropriate level of the allowance for loan losses, such changes could adversely affect the Company’s capital levels, financial condition and results of operations.

Risks Relating to Our Securities

There can be no assurances concerning continuing dividend payments.

Our common stockholders are only entitled to receive the dividends declared by our Board of Directors. Although we have historically paid quarterly dividends on our common stock, there can be no assurances that we will be able to continue to pay regular quarterly dividends or an annual stock dividend or that any dividends we do declare will be in any particular amount. The primary source of money to pay our cash dividends comes from dividends paid to the Company by the Bank. The Bank’s ability to pay dividends to the Company is subject to, among other things, its earnings, financial condition and applicable regulations, which in some instances limit the amount that may be paid as dividends. In addition, the Company and the Bank are required to maintain a capital conservation buffer of 2.5% of Common Equity Tier 1 Capital on top of minimum risk-weighted asset ratios to pay dividends without additional restrictions.

There is a limited trading market for our common shares, and you may not be able to resell your shares at or above the price you paid for them.

Although our common shares are listed for trading under the symbol “EFSI,” the trading in our common shares has substantially less liquidity than many other publicly traded companies. A public trading market having the desired characteristics of depth, liquidity and orderliness depends on the presence in the market of willing buyers and sellers of our common shares at any given time. This presence depends on the individual decisions of investors and general economic and market conditions over which we have no control. We cannot assure you that volume of trading in our common shares will increase in the future.

The stock market can be volatile, and fluctuations in our operating results and other factors could cause our stock price to decline.

The stock market has experienced, and may continue to experience, fluctuations that significantly impact the market prices of securities issued by many companies. Market fluctuations could adversely affect our stock price. These fluctuations have often been unrelated or disproportionate to the operating performance of particular companies. These broad market fluctuations, as well as general economic, systemic, political and market conditions, such as recessions, loss of investor confidence, interest rate changes, tariffs, government shutdowns, Brexit, or international currency fluctuations, may negatively affect the market price of our common stock. Moreover, our operating results may fluctuate and vary from period to period due to the risk factors set forth herein. As a result, period-to-period comparisons should not be relied upon as an indication of future performance. Our stock price could fluctuate significantly in response to our quarterly or annual results, annual projections, and the impact of these risk factors on our operating results or financial position.

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Item 1B.     Unresolved Staff Comments

None.

Item 2.     Properties

The Company owns or leases buildings which are used in normal business operations. The Company’s corporate headquarters, and that of Bank of Clarke County, is located at 2 East Main Street, Berryville, Virginia, 22611. At December 31, 2020, Bank of Clarke County operated twelve full-service branches, one loan production office and one drive-through only facility in the Virginia communities of Berryville, Winchester, Boyce, Stephens City, Purcellville, Leesburg, Ashburn and Fairfax.  See Note 1 “Nature of Banking Activities and Significant Accounting Policies” and Note 6 “Bank Premises and Equipment, Net” and Note 13 "Leases" in the “Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements” of this Form 10-K for information with respect to the amounts at which bank premises and equipment are carried and commitments under long-term leases.

All of the Company’s properties are well maintained, are in good operating condition and are adequate for the Company’s present and anticipated future needs.

Item 3.     Legal Proceedings

There are no material pending legal proceedings to which the Company is a party or of which the property of the Company is subject.

Item 4.     Mine Safety Disclosures

None.

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PART II

Item 5.     Market for Registrant’s Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities

The Company’s common stock is quoted on the OTC Markets Group's OTCQX Market under the symbol “EFSI.” The OTC Markets Group provides information about the common stock to professional market makers who match sellers with buyers. Securities brokers can obtain information from the OTC Markets Group when working with clients. When a client decides to initiate a transaction, the broker will contact one of the stock’s market makers. Any over-the-counter market quotations in the Company’s common stock reflect inter-dealer prices, without retail mark-up, mark-down or commission and may not necessarily represent actual transactions.

As of March 18, 2021, the Company had approximately 929 shareholders of record.

The Company has historically paid dividends on a quarterly basis. The final determination of the timing, amount and payment of dividends on the Common Stock is at the discretion of the Company’s Board of Directors. Some of the factors affecting the payment of dividends on the Company’s common stock are operating results, financial condition, capital adequacy, regulatory requirements and shareholders returns.

Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities for the Quarter Ended December 31, 2020

On June 17, 2020, the Corporation renewed the stock repurchase program to repurchase up to 150,000 shares of its common stock prior to June 30, 2021. During 2020, the Company purchased 67,189 shares of its Common Stock under its stock repurchase program at an average price of $27.60.

The following table details the Company's purchases of its common stock during the fourth quarter pursuant to the Stock Repurchase program discussed above.

Stock Performance

The following line graph compares the cumulative total return to the shareholders of the Company to the returns of the NASDAQ Bank Index and the NASDAQ Composite Index for the last five years. The amounts in the table represent the value of the investment on December 31^st of the year indicated, assuming $100 was initially invested on December 31, 2015 and the reinvestment of dividends. See Management Discussion and Analysis sections Liquidity and Capital Resources and Note 16, “Restrictions on Dividends, Loans and Advances” to the Consolidated Financial Statements for information on Eagle Financial Services, Inc. ability and intent to pay dividends.

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Item 6.     Selected Financial Data

The following table presents selected financial data, which was derived from the Company’s audited financial statements for the periods indicated.

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Item 7.     Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operation

The purpose of this discussion is to focus on the important factors affecting the financial condition, results of operations, liquidity and capital resources of Eagle Financial Services, Inc. (the “Company”). This discussion should be read in conjunction with the Company’s Consolidated Financial Statements and the Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements presented in Item 8, Financial Statements and Supplementary Data, of this Form 10-K.

GENERAL

The Company is a bank holding company which owns 100% of the stock of Bank of Clarke County (the “Bank”). Accordingly, the results of operations for the Company are dependent upon the operations of the Bank. The Bank conducts a commercial banking business which consists of attracting deposits from the general public and investing those funds in commercial, consumer and real estate loans and corporate, municipal and U.S. government agency securities. The Bank’s deposits are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation to the extent permitted by law. At December 31, 2020, the Company had total assets of $1.13 billion, net loans of $829.2 million, total deposits of $1.01 billion and shareholders’ equity of $105.1 million. The Company’s net income was $11.2 million for the year ended December 31, 2020.

COVID-19 and Related Response

The COVID-19 crisis has changed our communities, both in the way we live and the way we do business. While circumstances continue to change at a rapid pace, the Company is steadfastly working to meet and exceed the needs of its customers, employees and the communities in which it does business. The Company, while considered an essential business, has implemented procedures to protect its employees, customers and the community and still serve their banking needs. Branch lobbies reopened in February 2021, but with enhanced safety features for employees and customers. Our customers also continue to conduct their business via automated teller machines, online banking and our call center. Approximately 50% of our employees are currently working from home with the remaining essential workers showing up every day at our branches and operations centers. In efforts to assist local businesses during this pandemic, the Company has approved 909 Small Business Association Paycheck Protection Program ("SBA PPP") loans, totaling $88.5 million as of December 31, 2020. The Company is also working with local small businesses, consumers and other commercial customers through its loan deferral program whereby customers experiencing hardships due to COVID-19 may be granted a deferral in loan payments for up to six months. During 2020, the Company approved 255 deferrals with loan balances totaling approximately $130.2 million for its customers experiencing hardships related to COVID-19. As of December 31, 2020, 241 loans with loan balances totaling approximately $128.7 million had begun making payments on their loans after the deferral date had passed.

MANAGEMENT’S STRATEGY

The Company strives to be an outstanding financial institution in its market by building solid sustainable relationships with: (1) its customers, by providing highly personalized customer service, a network of conveniently placed branches and ATMs, a competitive variety of products/services and courteous, professional employees, (2) its employees, by providing generous benefits, a positive work environment, advancement opportunities and incentives to exceed expectations, (3) its communities, by participating in local concerns, providing monetary support, supporting employee volunteerism and providing employment opportunities, and (4) its shareholders, by providing sound profits and returns, sustainable growth, regular dividends and committing to our local, independent status.

OPERATING STRATEGY

The Bank is a locally owned and managed financial institution. This allows the Bank to be flexible and responsive in the products and services it offers. The Bank grows primarily by lending funds to local residents and businesses at a competitive price that reflects the inherent risk of lending. The Bank attempts to fund these loans through deposits gathered from local residents and businesses. The Bank prices its deposits by comparing alternative sources of funds and selecting the lowest cost available. When deposits are not adequate to fund asset growth, the Bank relies on borrowings, both short and long term. The Bank’s primary source of borrowed funds is the Federal Home Loan Bank of Atlanta which offers numerous terms and rate structures to the Bank.

As interest rates change, the Bank attempts to maintain its net interest margin. This is accomplished by changing the price, terms, and mix of its financial assets and liabilities. The Bank also earns fees on services provided through Eagle Investment Group, which is the Bank’s investment management division that offers both trust services and investment sales, mortgage originations and deposit operations. The Bank also incurs noninterest expenses associated with compensating employees, maintaining and acquiring fixed assets, and purchasing goods and services necessary to support its daily operations.

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The Bank has a marketing department which seeks to develop new business. This is accomplished through an ongoing calling program whereby account officers visit with existing and potential customers to discuss the products and services offered. The Bank also utilizes traditional advertising such as television commercials, radio ads, newspaper ads, and billboards.

LENDING POLICIES

Administration and supervision over the lending process is provided by the Bank’s Credit Administration Department. The principal risk associated with the Bank’s loan portfolio is the creditworthiness of its borrowers. In an effort to manage this risk, the Bank’s policy gives loan amount approval limits to individual loan officers based on their position and level of experience. Credit risk is increased or decreased, depending on the type of loan and prevailing economic conditions. In consideration of the different types of loans in the portfolio, the risk associated with real estate mortgage loans, commercial loans and consumer loans varies based on employment levels, consumer confidence, fluctuations in the value of real estate and other conditions that affect the ability of borrowers to repay debt.

The Company has written policies and procedures to help manage credit risk. The Company utilizes a loan review process that includes formulation of portfolio management strategy, guidelines for underwriting standards and risk assessment, procedures for ongoing identification and management of credit deterioration, and regular portfolio reviews to establish loss exposure and to ascertain compliance with the Company’s policies.

The Bank uses a tiered approach to approve credit requests consisting of individual lending authorities, joint approval of Category I officers, and a director loan committee. Lending limits for individuals are set by the Board of Directors and are determined by loan purpose, collateral type, and internal risk rating of the borrower. The highest individual authority (Category I) is assigned to the Bank’s President / Chief Executive Officer, Chief Revenue Officer and Chief Credit Officer (approval authority only). Two officers in Category I may combine their authority to approve loan requests to borrowers with credit exposure up to $10.0 million on a secured basis and $6.0 million unsecured. Three Category I officers may combine to approve loan requests to borrowers with credit exposure up to $15.0 million on a secured basis and $9.0 million unsecured. Officers in Category II, III, IV, V, VI and VII have lesser authorities and with approval of a Category I officer may extend loans to borrowers with exposure of $5.0 million on a secured basis and $3.0 million unsecured.  Loans exceeding $15.0 million and up to the Bank’s legal lending limit can be approved by the Director Loan Committee consisting of four directors (three directors constituting a quorum). The Director’s Loan Committee also reviews and approves changes to the Bank’s Loan Policy as presented by management.

The following sections discuss the major loan categories within the total loan portfolio:

One-to-Four-Family Residential Real Estate Lending

Residential lending activity may be generated by the Bank’s loan officer solicitations, referrals by real estate professionals, and existing or new bank customers. Loan applications are taken by a Bank loan officer. As part of the application process, information is gathered concerning income, employment and credit history of the applicant. The valuation of residential collateral is provided by independent fee appraisers who have been approved by the Bank’s Directors Loan Committee. In connection with residential real estate loans, the Bank requires title insurance, hazard insurance and, if applicable, flood insurance. In addition to traditional residential mortgage loans secured by a first or junior lien on the property, the Bank offers home equity lines of credit.

Commercial Real Estate Lending

Commercial real estate loans are secured by various types of commercial real estate in the Bank’s market area, including multi-family residential buildings, commercial buildings and offices, small shopping centers and churches. Commercial real estate loan originations are obtained through broker referrals, direct solicitation of developers and continued business from customers. In its underwriting of commercial real estate, the Bank’s loan to original appraised value ratio is generally 80% or less. Commercial real estate lending entails significant additional risk as compared with residential mortgage lending. Commercial real estate loans typically involve larger loan balances concentrated with single borrowers or groups of related borrowers. Additionally, the repayment of loans secured by income producing properties is typically dependent on the successful operation of a business or a real estate project and thus may be subject, to a greater extent, to adverse conditions in the real estate market or the economy, in general. The Bank’s commercial real estate loan underwriting criteria require an examination of debt service coverage ratios, the borrower’s creditworthiness, prior credit history and reputation, and the Bank typically requires personal guarantees or endorsements of the borrowers’ principal owners.

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Construction and Land Development Lending

The Bank makes local construction loans, primarily residential, and land acquisition and development loans. The construction loans are secured by residential houses under construction and the underlying land for which the loan was obtained. The average life of most construction loans is less than one year and the Bank offers both fixed and variable rate interest structures. The interest rate structure offered to customers depends on the total amount of these loans outstanding and the impact of the interest rate structure on the Bank’s overall interest rate risk. There are two characteristics of construction lending which impact its overall risk as compared to residential mortgage lending. First, there is more concentration risk due to the extension of a large loan balance through several lines of credit to a single developer or contractor. Second, there is more collateral risk due to the fact that loan funds are provided to the borrower based upon the estimated value of the collateral after completion. This could cause an inaccurate estimate of the amount needed to complete construction or an excessive loan-to-value ratio. To mitigate the risks associated with construction lending, the Bank generally limits loan amounts to 80% of the estimated appraised value of the finished home. The Bank also obtains a first lien on the property as security for its construction loans and typically requires personal guarantees from the borrower’s principal owners. Finally, the Bank performs inspections of the construction projects to ensure that the percentage of construction completed correlates with the amount of draws on the construction line of credit.

Commercial and Industrial Lending

Commercial business loans generally have more risk than residential mortgage loans but have higher yields. To manage these risks, the Bank generally obtains appropriate collateral and personal guarantees from the borrower’s principal owners and monitors the financial condition of its business borrowers. Residential mortgage loans generally are made on the basis of the borrower’s ability to make repayment from employment and other income and are secured by real estate whose value tends to be readily ascertainable. In contrast, commercial business loans typically are made on the basis of the borrower’s ability to make repayment from cash flow from its business and are secured by business assets, such as commercial real estate, accounts receivable, equipment and inventory. As a result, the availability of funds for the repayment of commercial business loans is substantially dependent on the success of the business itself. Furthermore, the collateral for commercial business loans may depreciate over time and generally cannot be appraised with as much precision as residential real estate.

Consumer Lending

The Bank offers various secured and unsecured consumer loans, which include personal installment loans, personal lines of credit, automobile loans, and credit card loans. The Bank generally originates its consumer loans within its geographic market area and these loans are largely made to customers with whom the Bank has an existing relationship. Consumer loans generally entail greater risk than residential mortgage loans, particularly in the case of consumer loans which are unsecured or secured by rapidly depreciable assets such as automobiles. In such cases, any repossessed collateral on a defaulted consumer loan may not provide an adequate source of repayment of the outstanding loan balance as a result of the greater likelihood of damage, loss or depreciation. Consumer loan collections are dependent on the borrower’s continuing financial stability, and thus are more likely to be adversely affected by job loss, divorce, illness or personal bankruptcy. Furthermore, the application of various federal and state laws, including federal and state bankruptcy and insolvency laws, may limit the amount which can be recovered on such loans.

The underwriting standards employed by the Bank for consumer loans include a determination of the applicant’s payment history on other debts and an assessment of ability to meet existing obligations and payments on the proposed loan. The stability of the applicant’s monthly income may be determined by verification of gross monthly income from primary employment, and from any verifiable secondary income. Although creditworthiness of the applicant is the primary consideration, the underwriting process also includes an analysis of the value of the security in relation to the proposed loan amount.

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CRITICAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES

The financial statements of the Company are prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (GAAP). The financial information contained within these statements is, to a significant extent, based on measurements of the financial effects of transactions and events that have already occurred. A variety of factors could affect the ultimate value that is obtained when earning income, recognizing an expense, recovering an asset or relieving a liability. In addition, GAAP itself may change from one previously acceptable method to another method. Although the economics of the transactions would be the same, the timing of events that would impact the transactions could change.

Allowance for Loan Losses

The allowance for loan losses is an estimate of the probable losses inherent in the Company’s loan portfolio. As required by GAAP, the allowance for loan losses is accrued when the occurrence of losses is probable and losses can be estimated.  Impairment losses are accrued based on the differences between the loan balance and the value of its collateral, the present value of future cash flows, or the price established in the secondary market. The Company’s allowance for loan losses has three basic components: the general allowance, the specific allowance and the unallocated allowance. Each of these components is determined based upon estimates that can and do change when actual events occur. The general allowance uses historical experience and other qualitative factors to estimate future losses and, as a result, the estimated amount of losses can differ significantly from the actual amount of losses which would be incurred in the future. However, the potential for significant differences is mitigated by continuously updating the loss history and qualitative factor analyses of the Company. The specific allowance is based upon the evaluation of specific impaired loans on which a loss may be realized. Factors such as past due history, ability to pay, and collateral value are used to identify those loans on which a loss may be realized. Each of these loans is then evaluated to determine how much loss is estimated to be realized on its disposition. The sum of the losses on the individual loans becomes the Company’s specific allowance. This process is inherently subjective and actual losses may be greater than or less than the estimated specific allowance. The unallocated allowance accounts for a measure of imprecision in the estimate. Note 1 to the Consolidated Financial Statements presented in Item 8, Financial Statements and Supplementary Data, of the 2020 Form 10-K, provides additional information related to the allowance for loan losses.

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FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS

The Company makes forward looking statements in this report that are subject to risks and uncertainties. These forward looking statements include statements regarding our profitability, liquidity, allowance for loan losses, interest rate sensitivity, market risk, growth strategy, and financial and other goals. The words “believes,” “expects,” “may,” “will,” “should,” “projects,” “contemplates,” “anticipates,” “forecasts,” “intends,” or other similar words or terms are intended to identify forward looking statements. These forward looking statements are subject to significant uncertainties because they are based upon or are affected by factors including:

Because of these uncertainties, actual future results may be materially different from the results indicated by these forward looking statements. In addition, past results of operations do not necessarily indicate future results.

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RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

Net Income

Net income for 2020 was $11.2 million, an increase of $1.4 million or 14.48% from 2019’s net income of $9.8 million. Basic and diluted earnings per share were $3.27 and $2.84 for 2020 and 2019, respectively.

Return on average assets (ROA) measures how efficiently the Company uses its assets to produce net income. Some issues reflected within this efficiency include the Company’s asset mix, funding sources, pricing, fee generation, and cost control. The ROA of the Company, on an annualized basis, was 1.11%, 1.18%, and 1.16% for 2020, 2019, and 2018, respectively.

Return on average equity (ROE) measures the utilization of shareholders’ equity in generating net income. This measurement is affected by the same factors as ROA with consideration to how much of the Company’s assets are funded by the shareholders. The ROE for the Company was 11.03%, 10.60%, and 10.67% for 2020, 2019, and 2018, respectively.

Net Interest Income

Net interest income, the difference between total interest income and total interest expense, is the Company’s primary source of earnings. Net interest income was $35.6 million for 2020 and $31.2 million for 2019, which represents an increase of $4.4 million or 14.13%. Net interest income is derived from the volume of earning assets and the rates earned on those assets as compared to the cost of funds. Total interest income was $38.9 million for 2020 and $35.5 million for 2019, which represents an increase of $3.4 million or 9.74% for 2020. Total interest expense was $3.3 million for 2020 and $4.2 million for 2019, which represents a decrease of $958 thousand or 22.60% in 2020. The increase in total interest income and net interest income during 2020 was driven by the growth in interest-earning assets and decreases in rates paid on deposit accounts driven by market rate decreases. Refer to the table titled “Volume and Rate Analysis” for further detail.

The table titled “Average Balances, Income and Expenses, Yields and Rates” displays the composition of interest earnings assets and interest bearing liabilities and their respective yields and rates for the years ended December 31, 2020, 2019, and 2018.

The net interest margin was 3.76% for 2020, 4.02% for 2019, and 4.07% for 2018. The net interest margin is calculated by dividing tax-equivalent net interest income by total average earnings assets. Tax-equivalent net interest income is calculated by adding the tax benefit on certain securities and loans, whose interest is tax-exempt, to total interest income then subtracting total interest expense. The tax rate used to calculate the tax benefit was 21%. The table titled “Tax-Equivalent Net Interest Income” reconciles net interest income to tax-equivalent net interest income, which is not a measurement under GAAP, for the years ended December 31, 2020, 2019, and 2018.

Net interest income and net interest margin may experience some decline as interest bearing assets continue to be repriced or replaced more rapidly than interest earning liabilities.

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Average Balances, Income and Expenses, Yields and Rates

(dollars in thousands)

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Tax-Equivalent Net Interest Income

(dollars in thousands)

The tax-equivalent yield on earning assets decreased 46 basis points from 2019 to 2020 and increased 14 basis points from 2018 to 2019. The tax-equivalent yield on securities decreased 52 basis points from 2019 to 2020 and decreased eight basis point from 2018 to 2019. The tax-equivalent yield on loans decreased 31 basis points from 2019 to 2020 and increased 20 basis points from 2018 to 2019. The decrease in the yield on earning assets, the loan portfolio and the securities portfolio in 2020 was mainly a result of decreases in interest rates by the Federal Reserve during the first quarter of the year.

The average rate on interest-bearing liabilities decreased 31 basis points from 2019 to 2020 and increased 32 basis points from 2018 to 2019.  The average rate on total interest-bearing deposits decreased 31 basis points from 2019 to 2020 and increased 33 basis points from 2018 to 2019. The average rate on interest bearing deposits decreased due to the decreases in rates paid on deposit accounts driven by market rate decreases. In general, deposit pricing is done in response to monetary policy actions and yield curve changes. Local competition for funds affects the cost of time deposits, which are primarily comprised of certificates of deposit. The Company prefers to rely most heavily on non-maturity deposits, which include NOW accounts, money market accounts, and savings accounts. The average balance of non-maturity interest-bearing deposits increased $70.9 million or 20.54% from $345.0 million during 2019 to $415.9 million in 2020 and $17.0 million or 5.20% from $328.0 million during the year ended December 31, 2018 as compared to the year ending 2019.

The table titled “Volume and Rate Analysis” provides information about the effect of changes in financial assets and liabilities and changes in rates on net interest income. Non-accruing loans are excluded from the average outstanding loans.

Tax-equivalent net interest income increased $4.3 million during 2020. The increase in tax-equivalent net interest income during 2020 is comprised of an increase due to volume of $5.7 million and a decrease due to rate of $1.3 million. The increase in tax-equivalent net interest income during 2020 was affected by the increased volume of taxable loans and taxable securities, offset in part by decreases in the rates earned from interest-earning assets.

Tax-equivalent net interest income increased $1.8 million during 2019. The increase in tax-equivalent net interest income during 2019 is comprised of an increase due to volume of $1.9 million and a decrease due to rate of $149 thousand. The increase in tax-equivalent net interest income during 2019 was affected by the increased volume of taxable loans and taxable securities, offset in part by an increase in the rate paid on interest-bearing liabilities.

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Volume and Rate Analysis (Tax-Equivalent Basis)

(dollars in thousands)