Commitment and Contingencies

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Commitment and Contingencies [Abstract]

COMMITMENT AND CONTINGENCIES

NOTE 23. COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES

In the normal course of business, to meet the financial needs of its customers, the Bank is a party to financial instruments with off-balance sheet risk. These financial instruments include commitments to extend credit and standby letters of credit. 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. Letters of credit are conditional commitments issued by the Bank to guarantee the performance of a customer to a third party. Letters of credit and other commitments generally have fixed expiration dates or other termination clauses and may require payment of a fee. Because many of the letters of credit and commitments are expected to expire without being drawn upon, the total commitment amount does not necessarily represent future cash requirements.

The following table provides information on commitments outstanding for the years ended December 31.

(Dollars in thousands)	December 31, 2021		December 31, 2020
Commitments to extend credit	$	421,088	$	248,607
Letters of credit		8,399		7,944
Total	$	429,487	$	256,551

The Bank has established a reserve for off balance sheet credit exposures. The reserve is established as losses are estimated to have occurred through a loss for off balance sheet credit exposures charged to earnings. Losses are charged against the allowance when management believes the required funding of these exposures is uncollectible. While this evaluation is completed on a regular basis, it is inherently subjective as it requires estimates that are susceptible to significant revision as more information becomes available.

The Company provides banking services to customers who do business in the medical-use cannabis industry. While the growing, processing, and sales of medical-use cannabis is legal in the state of Maryland, such customers engaged in those activities currently violate Federal law. The Company may be deemed to be aiding and abetting illegal activities through the services that it provides to these customers. The strict enforcement of Federal laws regarding medical-use cannabis would likely result in the Company’s inability to continue to provide banking services to these customers and the Company could have legal action taken against it by the Federal government, including imprisonment and fines. There is an uncertainty of the potential impact to the Company’s Consolidated Financial Statements if the Federal government takes actions against the Company. As of December 31, 2021, the Company has not accrued an amount for the potential impact of any such actions.

Following is a summary of the level of business activities with our medical-use cannabis customers:

● Deposit and loan balances at December 31, 2021 were approximately $49.1 million, or 1.6% of total deposits, and $42.3 million, or 2.0% of total gross loans, respectively.

● Interest and noninterest income for the year ended December 31, 2021, were approximately $360 thousand and $363 thousand, respectively

In the normal course of business, Shore Bancshares, Inc. and its Bank subsidiary may become involved in litigation arising from banking, financial, and other activities. Management, after consultation with legal counsel, does not anticipate that the future liability, if any, arising out of current proceedings will have a material effect on the Company’s financial condition, operating results, or liquidity.