Organization

12 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2023

Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]

Organization

ORGANIZATION

Nature of operations

Carver Bancorp, Inc. (on a stand-alone basis, the “Company” or “Registrant”), was incorporated in May 1996 and its principal wholly-owned subsidiaries are Carver Federal Savings Bank (the “Bank” or “Carver Federal”) and Alhambra Holding Corp., an inactive Delaware corporation. Carver Federal's wholly-owned subsidiaries are CFSB Realty Corp., Carver Community Development Corporation (“CCDC”) and CFSB Credit Corp., which is currently inactive. The Bank has a real estate investment trust, Carver Asset Corporation ("CAC"), that was formed in February 2004.

“Carver,” the “Company,” “we,” “us” or “our” refers to the Company along with its consolidated subsidiaries. The Bank was chartered in 1948 and began operations in 1949 as Carver Federal Savings and Loan Association, a federally-chartered mutual savings and loan association. The Bank converted to a federal savings bank in 1986. On October 24, 1994, the Bank converted from a mutual holding company structure to stock form and issued 2,314,375 shares of its common stock, par value $0.01 per share. On October 17, 1996, the Bank completed its reorganization into a holding company structure (the “Reorganization”) and became a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company.

Carver Federal’s principal business consists of attracting deposit accounts through its branches and investing those funds in mortgage loans and other investments permitted by federal savings banks. The Bank has seven branches located throughout the City of New York that primarily serve the communities in which they operate.

In September 2003, the Company formed Carver Statutory Trust I (the “Trust”) for the sole purpose of issuing trust preferred securities and investing the proceeds in an equivalent amount of floating rate junior subordinated debentures of the Company. In accordance with Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) 810, “Consolidation,” Carver Statutory Trust I is unconsolidated for financial reporting purposes. On September 17, 2003, Carver Statutory Trust I issued 13,000 shares, liquidation amount $1,000 per share, of floating rate capital securities.  Gross proceeds from the sale of these trust preferred debt securities of $13 million, and proceeds from the sale of the trust's common securities of $0.4 million, were used to purchase approximately $13.4 million aggregate principal amount of the Company's floating rate junior subordinated debt securities due 2033.  The trust preferred debt securities are redeemable at par quarterly at the option of the Company beginning on or after September 17, 2008, and have a mandatory redemption date of September 17, 2033. Cash distributions on the trust preferred debt securities are cumulative and payable at a floating rate per annum resetting quarterly with a margin of 3.05% over the three-month LIBOR. During the second quarter of fiscal year 2017, the Company applied for and was granted regulatory approval to settle all outstanding debenture interest payments through September 2016. Such payments were made in September 2016. Interest on the debentures had been deferred beginning with the December 2016 payment, per the terms of the agreement, which permit such deferral for up to twenty consecutive quarters, as the Company is prohibited from making payments without prior regulatory approval. During the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2021, the Company applied for and was granted regulatory approval to settle all outstanding debenture interest payments through June 2021. Full payment was made on June 16, 2021. The Company deferred the September 17, 2021 interest payment, but has since had discussions with the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia regarding future quarterly payments. A streamlined process has been developed for the Company to request regulatory approval to make debenture interest payments. On December 16, 2021, the Company paid the deferred interest that was due on September 17, 2021 and the regular quarterly interest payment due on December 17, 2021. All quarterly interest payments subsequent to the June 2021 payment up to and including the June 2023 payment have been made. The interest rate was 7.96% and the total amount of deferred interest was $44 thousand at March 31, 2023.

    Carver may rely on dividends from Carver Federal to pay cash dividends to its stockholders and to engage in share repurchase programs. In recent years, Carver has been successful in obtaining cash independently through its capital raising efforts, which may include cash from government grants or below market-rate loans. Under the prior Formal Agreement, the OCC regulated all capital distributions, including dividend payments, by Carver Federal to Carver, and the FRB regulates dividends paid by Carver. As the subsidiary of a savings and loan association holding company, Carver Federal must file a notice or an application (depending on the proposed dividend amount) with the OCC (and a notice with the FRB) prior to the declaration of each capital distribution. The OCC will disallow any proposed dividend that, among other reasons, would result in Carver Federal’s failure to meet the OCC minimum capital requirements. Carver has suspended Carver’s regular quarterly cash dividend on its common stock.

Regulation

On October 23, 2015, the Board of Directors of the Company adopted resolutions requiring, among other things, written approval from the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia prior to the declaration or payment of dividends, any increase in debt by the Company, or the redemption of Company common stock.

On May 24, 2016, the Bank entered into a Formal Agreement ("the Agreement") with the OCC to undertake certain compliance-related and other actions. As a result of the Agreement, the Bank was required to obtain the approval of the OCC prior to effecting any change in its directors or senior executive officers, paying dividends and entering into any "golden parachute payments" as that term is defined under 12 U.S.C. § 1828(k) and 12 C.F.R. Part 359. As a result of the Formal Agreement, Carver was issued an Individual Minimum Capital Ratio ("IMCR") letter by the OCC, which requires the Bank to maintain minimum regulatory capital levels of 9% for its Tier 1 leverage ratio and 12% for its total risk-based capital ratio. The Agreement was terminated on January 18, 2023. The IMCR remains in effect.

The Company continues to be subject to similar requirements that the Bank was subject to under the Agreement. The Company must provide notice to the FRB prior to effecting any change in its directors or senior executive officers. The Company is also subject to restrictions on golden parachute and indemnification payments, as set forth in 12 C.F.R. Part 359. Written approval of the Federal Reserve Bank is required prior to (1) the declaration or payment of dividends by the Company to its stockholders, (2) the declaration or payment of dividends by the Bank to the Company, (3) any distributions of interest or principal by the Company on subordinated debentures or trust preferred securities, (4) any purchases or redemptions of the Company's stock and (5) the Company incurring, increasing or guaranteeing certain long-term debt outside the ordinary course of business. These limitations could affect our operations and financial performance.