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Current Accounting Developments and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies (Policies)

3 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2023

East West Bancorp, Inc. is a registered bank holding company that offers a full range of banking services to individuals and businesses through its subsidiary bank, East West Bank and its subsidiaries (“East West Bank” or the “Bank”). The unaudited interim Consolidated Financial Statements in this Form 10-Q include the accounts of East West, East West Bank and East West’s subsidiaries. Intercompany transactions and accounts have been eliminated in consolidation. As of March 31, 2023, East West also has six wholly-owned subsidiaries that are statutory business trusts (the “Trusts”). In accordance with FASB Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) Topic 810, Consolidation, the Trusts are not included on the Consolidated Financial Statements.

Basis of Presentation

The unaudited interim Consolidated Financial Statements are presented in accordance with U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (“GAAP”), applicable guidelines prescribed by regulatory authorities and general practices in the banking industry. While the unaudited interim Consolidated Financial Statements reflect all adjustments that, in the opinion of management, are necessary for fair presentation, they primarily serve to update the most recently filed annual report on Form 10-K, and may not include all the information and notes necessary to constitute a complete set of financial statements. Accordingly, they should be read in conjunction with the audited Consolidated Financial Statements and notes thereto included in the Company’s 2022 Form 10-K.

Recent Accounting Pronouncements

Loan Modifications — Certain loans are modified in the normal course of business for competitive reasons or in conjunction with the Company’s loss mitigation activities. Upon the adoption of ASU 2022-02, the Company applies the general loan modification guidance provided in ASC 310-20 to all loan modifications, including modifications made for borrowers experiencing financial difficulty. Under the general loan modification guidance, a modification is treated as a new loan only if the following two conditions are met: (1) the terms of the new loan are at least as favorable to the Company as the terms for comparable loans to other customers with similar collection risks; and (2) modifications to the terms of the original loan are more than minor. If either condition is not met, the modification is accounted for as the continuation of the existing loan with any effect of the modification treated as a prospective adjustment to the loan’s effective interest rate. A modification may vary by program and by borrower-specific characteristics, and may include rate reductions, principal forgiveness, term extensions, and payment delays, and is intended to minimize the company’s economic loss and to avoid foreclosure or repossession of collateral. The Company applies the same credit loss methodology it uses for similar loans that were not modified.

Balance Sheet Offsetting

The Company’s resale and repurchase agreements are transacted under legally enforceable master repurchase agreements that, in the event of default by the counterparty, provide the Company the right to liquidate securities held and to offset receivables and payables with the same counterparty. The Company nets resale and repurchase transactions with the same counterparty on the Consolidated Balance Sheet when it has a legally enforceable master netting agreement and the transactions are eligible for netting under ASC 210-20-45-11, Balance Sheet Offsetting Repurchase and Reverse Repurchase Agreements. Collateral received includes securities and loans that are not recognized on the Consolidated Balance Sheet. Collateral pledged consists of securities that are not netted on the Consolidated Balance Sheet against the related collateralized liability.

Variable Interest Entities

Variable Interest EntitiesThe majority of both the investments in affordable housing partnerships and tax credit and other investments discussed above are variable interest entities (“VIEs”) where the Company is a limited partner in these partnerships, and an unrelated third party is typically the general partner or managing member who has control over the significant activities of these investments. While the Company’s interest in some of the investments may exceed 50% of the outstanding equity interests, the Company does not consolidate these structures due to the general partner’s or managing member’s ability to manage the entity, which is indicative of the general partner’s or managing member’s power over the entity. The Company’s maximum exposure to loss in connection with these partnerships consists of the unamortized investment balance and any tax credits claimed that may become subject to recapture.

Goodwill

The Company’s goodwill impairment test is performed annually, as of December 31, or more frequently as events occur or circumstances change that would more-likely-than-not reduce the fair value of a reporting unit below its carrying value.

Litigation

Litigation — The Company is a party to various legal actions arising in the ordinary course of its business. In accordance with ASC 450, Contingencies, the Company accrues reserves for outstanding lawsuits, claims and proceedings when a loss contingency is probable and can be reasonably estimated. The Company estimates the amount of loss contingencies using current available information from legal proceedings, advice from legal counsel and available insurance coverage. Due to the inherent subjectivity of the assessments and unpredictability of the outcomes of the legal proceedings, any amounts accrued or included in this aggregate amount may not represent the ultimate loss to the Company from the legal proceedings in question.

Credit Quality Indicators

All loans are subject to the Company’s credit review and monitoring process. For the commercial loan portfolio, loans are risk rated based on an analysis of the borrower’s current payment performance or delinquency, repayment sources, financial and liquidity factors, including industry and geographic considerations. For the consumer loan portfolio, payment performance or delinquency is typically the driving indicator for risk ratings.

The Company utilizes internal credit risk ratings to assign each individual loan a risk rating of 1 through 10:

•Pass — loans risk rated 1 through 5 are assigned an internal risk rating category of “Pass.” Loans risk rated 1 are typically loans fully secured by cash. Pass loans have sufficient sources of repayment to repay the loan in full, in accordance with all terms and conditions.

•Special mention — loans assigned a risk rating of 6 have potential weaknesses that warrant closer attention by management; these are assigned an internal risk rating category of “Special Mention.”

•Substandard — loans assigned a risk rating of 7 or 8 have well-defined weaknesses that may jeopardize the full and timely repayment of the loan; these are assigned an internal risk rating category of “Substandard.”

•Doubtful — loans assigned a risk rating of 9 have insufficient sources of repayment and a high probability of loss; these are assigned an internal risk rating category of “Doubtful.”

•Loss — loans assigned a risk rating of 10 are uncollectible and of such little value that they are no longer considered bankable assets; these are assigned an internal risk rating category of “Loss.”

Loan exposures categorized as criticized consist of special mention, substandard, doubtful and loss categories. The Company reviews the internal risk ratings of its loan portfolio on a regular basis, and adjusts the ratings based on changes in the borrowers’ financial status and the collectability of the loans.

Allowance for Credit Losses

The Company has a current expected credit losses framework for all financial assets measured at amortized cost and certain off-balance sheet credit exposures. The Company’s allowance for credit losses, which includes both the allowance for loan losses and the allowance for unfunded credit commitments, is calculated with the objective of maintaining a reserve sufficient to absorb losses inherent in our credit portfolios. The measurement of the allowance for credit losses is based on management’s best estimate of lifetime expected credit losses, and periodic evaluation of the loan portfolio, lending-related commitments, and other relevant factors.

The allowance for credit losses is deducted from the amortized cost basis of a financial asset or a group of financial assets so that the balance sheet reflects the net amount the Company expects to collect. Amortized cost is the principal balance outstanding, net of purchase premiums and discounts, deferred fees and costs, and escrow advances. Subsequent changes in expected credit losses are recognized in net income as a provision for, or a reversal of, credit loss expense.

The allowance for credit losses estimation involves procedures to consider the unique risk characteristics of the portfolio segments. The majority of the Company’s credit exposures that share risk characteristics with other similar exposures are collectively evaluated. The collectively evaluated loans include performing loans and unfunded credit commitments. If an exposure does not share risk characteristics with other exposures, the Company generally estimates expected credit losses on an individual basis.

Allowance for Collectively Evaluated Loans

The allowance for collectively evaluated loans consists of a quantitative component that assesses the different risk factors considered in our models and a qualitative component that considers risk factors external to the models. Each of these components are described below.

Quantitative Component — The Company applies quantitative methods to estimate loan losses by considering a variety of factors such as historical loss experience, the current credit quality of the portfolio, and an economic outlook over the life of the loan. The Company incorporates forward-looking information using macroeconomic scenarios, which include variables that are considered key drivers of increases and decreases in credit losses. The Company utilizes a probability-weighted, multiple-scenario forecast approach. These scenarios may consist of a base forecast representing management's view of the most likely outcome, combined with downside or upside scenarios reflecting possible worsening or improving economic conditions. The quantitative models incorporate a probability-weighted calculation of these macroeconomic scenarios over a reasonable and supportable forecast period. If the life of loans extends beyond the reasonable and supportable forecast period, the Company will consider historical experience or long-run macroeconomic trends over the remaining lives of the loans to estimate the allowance for loan losses.

There were no changes to the overall model methodology or the reasonable and supportable forecast period and reversion to the historical loss experience method for the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022.

The following table provides key credit risk characteristics and macroeconomic variables that the Company uses to estimate the expected credit losses by portfolio segment:

Portfolio Segment

Risk Characteristics

Macroeconomic Variables

C&I

Age, size and spread at origination, and risk rating

Volatility Index and BBB yield to 10-year U.S. Treasury spread

CRE, Multifamily residential, and Construction and land

Delinquency status, maturity date, collateral value, property type, and geographic location

Unemployment rate, Gross Domestic Product (“GDP”), and U.S. Treasury rates

Single-family residential and HELOCs

FICO score, delinquency status, maturity date, collateral value, and geographic location

Unemployment rate, GDP, and home price index

Other consumer

Loss rate approach

Immaterial (1)

(1)Macroeconomic variables are included in the qualitative estimate.

Allowance for Loan Losses for the Commercial Loan Portfolio

The Company’s C&I lifetime loss rate model estimates the loss rate expected over the life of a loan. This loss rate is applied to the amortized cost basis, excluding accrued interest receivable, to determine expected credit losses. The lifetime loss rate model’s reasonable and supportable period spans 11 quarters, thereafter, immediately reverting to the historical average loss rate, expressed through the loan-level lifetime loss rate.

To generate estimates of expected loss at the loan level for CRE, multifamily residential, and construction and land loans, projected probabilities of default (“PDs”) and loss given defaults (“LGDs”) are applied to the estimated exposure at default, considering the term and payment structure of the loan. The forecast of future economic conditions returns to long-run historical economic trends within the reasonable and supportable period.

In order to estimate the life of a loan under both models, the contractual term of the loan is adjusted for estimated prepayments based on historical prepayment experience.

Allowance for Loan Losses for the Consumer Loan Portfolio

For single-family residential and HELOC loans, projected PDs and LGDs are applied to the estimated exposure at default, considering the term and payment structure of the loan, to generate estimates of expected loss at the loan level. The forecast of future economic conditions returns to long-run historical economic trends after the reasonable and supportable period. To estimate the life of a loan for the single-family residential and HELOC portfolios, the contractual term of the loan is adjusted for estimated prepayments based on historical prepayment experience. For other consumer loans, the Company uses a loss rate approach.

Qualitative Component — The Company also considers the following qualitative factors in the determination of the collectively evaluated allowance if these factors have not already been captured by the quantitative model. Such qualitative factors may include, but are not limited to:

— loan growth trends;

— the volume and severity of past due financial assets, and the volume and severity of adversely classified financial assets;

— the Company’s lending policies and procedures, including changes in lending strategies, underwriting standards, collection, write-off, and recovery practices;

— knowledge of a borrower’s operations;

— the quality of the Company’s credit review system;

— the experience, ability and depth of the Company’s management and associates;

— the effect of other external factors such as the regulatory and legal environments, or changes in technology;

— actual and expected changes in international, national, regional, and local economic and business conditions in which the Company operates; and

— risk factors in certain industry sectors not captured by the quantitative models.

The magnitude of the impact of these factors on the Company’s qualitative assessment of the allowance for credit losses changes from period to period according to changes made by management in its assessment of these factors. The extent to which these factors change may be dependent on whether they are already reflected in quantitative loss estimates during the current period and the extent to which changes in these factors diverge from period to period.

While the Company’s allowance methodologies strive to reflect all relevant credit risk factors, there continues to be uncertainty associated with, but not limited to, potential imprecision in the estimation process due to the inherent time lag of obtaining information and normal variations between expected and actual outcomes. The Company may hold additional qualitative reserves that are designed to provide coverage for losses attributable to such risk.

Allowance for Individually Evaluated Loans

When a loan no longer shares similar risk characteristics with other loans, such as in the case of certain nonaccrual loans, the Company estimates the allowance for loan losses on an individual loan basis. The allowance for loan losses for individually evaluated loans is measured as the difference between the recorded value of the loans and their fair value. For loans evaluated individually, the Company uses one of three different asset valuation measurement methods: (1) the fair value of collateral less costs to sell; (2) the present value of expected future cash flows; or (3) the loan's observable market price. If an individually evaluated loan is determined to be collateral dependent, the Company applies the fair value of the collateral less costs to sell method. If an individually evaluated loan is determined not to be collateral dependent, the Company uses the present value of future cash flows or the observable market value of the loan.

•Collateral-Dependent Loans — The allowance of a collateral-dependent loan is limited to the difference between the recorded value and fair value of the collateral less cost of disposal or sale.