REGULATORY MATTERS

3 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2019

Banking And Thrift [Abstract]

REGULATORY MATTERS

NOTE 8 – REGULATORY MATTERS

Banks and bank holding companies (on a consolidated basis) are subject to regulatory capital requirements administered by federal banking agencies.  Capital adequacy guidelines and, additionally for banks, prompt corrective action regulations, involve quantitative measures of assets, liabilities, and certain off-balance-sheet items calculated under regulatory accounting practices.  Capital amounts and classifications are also subject to qualitative judgments by regulators.  Failure to meet capital requirements can initiate regulatory action.  The final rules implementing Basel Committee on Banking Supervision’s capital guidelines for U.S. banks (Basel III rules) became effective for the Company on January 1, 2015 with full compliance with all of the requirements being phased in over a multi-year schedule, and fully phased in by January 1, 2019.  Beginning in January 2016, the implementation of the capital conservation buffer was effective for the Company starting at the 0.625% level and increasing 0.625% each year thereafter, until it reached 2.5% on January 1, 2019. The capital conservation buffer is designed to absorb losses during periods of economic stress and requires increased capital levels for the purpose of capital distributions and other payments. Failure to meet the full amount of the buffer will result in restrictions on the Company's ability to make capital distributions, including dividend payments and stock repurchases, and to pay discretionary bonuses to executive officers.

Prompt corrective action regulations provide five classifications: well capitalized, adequately capitalized, undercapitalized, significantly undercapitalized, and critically undercapitalized, although these terms are not used to represent overall financial condition.  If adequately capitalized, regulatory approval is required to accept brokered deposits.  If undercapitalized, capital distributions are limited, as are asset growth and acquisitions, and capital restoration plans are required.

As of March 31, 2019, management believes that the Company meets all capital adequacy requirements to which they are subject and the most recent notifications from the federal regulatory agencies categorized Equity Bank as well capitalized under the regulatory framework for prompt corrective action, including the capital conservation buffer.  To be categorized as well capitalized, Equity Bank must maintain minimum total risk-based, Tier 1 risk-based, and Tier 1 leverage ratios as set forth in the table.  There are no conditions or events since that notification that management believes have changed Equity Bank’s category.

The Company’s and Equity Bank’s capital amounts and ratios at March 31, 2019 and December 31, 2018 are presented in the table below.  Ratios provided for Equity Bancshares, Inc. represent the ratios of the Company on a consolidated basis.

	Actual					Minimum Required for Capital Adequacy Under Basel III Phase-In					Minimum Required for Capital Adequacy Under Basel III Fully Phased-In					To Be Well Capitalized Under Prompt Corrective Provisions
	Amount		Ratio			Amount		Ratio			Amount		Ratio			Amount		Ratio
March 31, 2019
Total capital to risk weighted assets
Equity Bancshares, Inc.	$	342,072		11.87	%	$	302,543		10.50	%	$	302,543		10.50	%	$	N/A	N/A
Equity Bank		332,559		11.56	%		302,083		10.50	%		302,083		10.50	%		287,699		10.00	%
Tier 1 capital to risk weighted assets
Equity Bancshares, Inc.		315,732		10.96	%		244,916		8.50	%		244,916		8.50	%	N/A		N/A
Equity Bank		306,219		10.64	%		244,544		8.50	%		244,544		8.50	%		230,159		8.00	%
Common equity Tier 1 capital to risk weighted assets
Equity Bancshares, Inc.		301,398		10.46	%		201,695		7.00	%		201,695		7.00	%	N/A		N/A
Equity Bank		306,219		10.64	%		201,389		7.00	%		201,389		7.00	%		187,004		6.50	%
Tier 1 leverage to average assets
Equity Bancshares, Inc.		315,732		8.37	%		150,970		4.00	%		150,970		4.00	%	N/A		N/A
Equity Bank		306,219		8.12	%		150,809		4.00	%		150,809		4.00	%		188,511		5.00	%
December 31, 2018
Total capital to risk weighted assets
Equity Bancshares, Inc.	$	337,649		11.92	%	$	279,621		9.88	%	$	297,319		10.50	%	$	N/A	N/A
Equity Bank		338,180		11.96	%		279,244		9.88	%		296,918		10.50	%		282,779		10.00	%
Tier 1 capital to risk weighted assets
Equity Bancshares, Inc.		326,195		11.52	%		222,989		7.88	%		240,687		8.50	%	N/A		N/A
Equity Bank		326,726		11.55	%		222,688		7.88	%		240,362		8.50	%		226,223		8.00	%
Common equity Tier 1 capital to risk weighted assets
Equity Bancshares, Inc.		311,935		11.02	%		180,515		6.38	%		198,213		7.00	%	N/A		N/A
Equity Bank		326,726		11.55	%		180,271		6.38	%		197,945		7.00	%		183,806		6.50	%
Tier 1 leverage to average assets
Equity Bancshares, Inc.		326,195		8.60	%		151,731		4.00	%		151,731		4.00	%	N/A		N/A
Equity Bank		326,726		8.62	%		151,590		4.00	%		151,590		4.00	%		189,488		5.00	%

Equity Bank is subject to certain restrictions on the amount of dividends that it may declare without prior regulatory approval.