Off-Balance Sheet Financial Instruments and Guarantees

3 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2024

Off-Balance Sheet Financial Instruments and Guarantees [Abstract]

Off-Balance Sheet Financial Instruments and Guarantees

6.           Off-Balance Sheet Financial Instruments and Guarantees

The Bank is a party to financial instruments with off-balance-sheet risk in the normal course of business to meet the financing needs of its customers. These financial instruments include commitments to extend credit and letters of credit. Those instruments involve, to varying degrees, elements of credit and interest rate risk in excess of the amount recognized in the balance sheets.

The Bank’s exposure to credit loss in the event of nonperformance by the other party to the financial instrument for commitments to extend credit and letters of credit is represented by the contractual amount of those instruments. The Bank uses the same credit policies in making commitments and conditional obligations as it does for on-balance sheet instruments.

A summary of the Bank’s financial instrument commitments is as follows:

(in thousands)	March 31,
	2024		2023
Commitments to grant loans	$	82,423	$	92,602
Unfunded commitments under lines of credit		152,505		166,507
Standby letters of credit		7,126		15,538
	$	242,054	$	274,647

Commitments to extend credit are agreements to lend to a customer as long as there is no violation of any condition established in the contract. Commitments generally have fixed expiration dates or other termination clauses and may require payment of a fee. Since some of the commitments are expected to expire without being drawn upon, the total commitment amount does not necessarily represent future cash requirements. The Bank evaluates each customer’s credit worthiness on a case-by-case basis. The amount of collateral obtained, if deemed necessary by the Bank upon extension of credit, is based on management’s credit evaluation of the customer and generally consists of real estate.

The Bank does not issue any guarantees that would require liability recognition or disclosure, other than its standby letters of credit. Standby letters of credit written are conditional commitments issued by the Bank to guarantee the performance of a customer to a third party. Generally, all letters of credit, when issued, have expiration dates within one year. The credit risk involved in issuing letters of credit is essentially the same as those that are involved in extending loan facilities to customers. The Bank, generally, holds collateral and/or personal guarantees supporting these commitments. Management believes that the proceeds obtained through a liquidation of collateral and the enforcement of guarantees would be sufficient to cover the potential amount of future payments required under the corresponding guarantees.