CAPITAL

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2023

Banking Regulation, Total Capital [Abstract]

CAPITAL

Capital

Risk-based capital. First Financial and its subsidiary, First Financial Bank, 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 minimum capital requirements can initiate regulatory action.

The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System approved Basel III in order to strengthen the regulatory capital framework for all banking organizations, subject to a phase-in period for certain provisions.  Basel III established and defined quantitative measures to ensure capital adequacy. These measures require First Financial to maintain minimum amounts and ratios of Common equity Tier 1 capital, Total and Tier 1 capital to risk-weighted assets and Tier 1 capital to average assets (Leverage ratio).  

Basel III includes a minimum ratio of Common equity Tier 1 capital to risk-weighted assets of 7.0% and a fully phased-in capital conservation buffer of 2.5% of risk-weighted assets.  Further, the minimum ratio of Tier 1 capital to risk-weighted assets is 8.5% and all banks are subject to a 4.0% minimum leverage ratio, while the required Total risk-based capital ratio is 10.50%. Failure to maintain the required Common equity Tier 1 capital will result in potential restrictions on a bank’s ability to pay dividends, repurchase stock and pay discretionary compensation to its employees. The capital requirements also provide strict eligibility criteria for regulatory capital instruments and change the method for calculating risk-weighted assets in an effort to better identify riskier assets, such as highly volatile commercial real estate and nonaccrual loans.

As of December 31, 2023, First Financial met all capital adequacy requirements to which it was subject. To be categorized as well-capitalized, First Financial must maintain minimum Total risk-based capital, Tier 1 risk-based capital and Tier 1 leverage

ratios as set forth in the table that follows. The Company's most recent regulatory notifications categorized First Financial as "well-capitalized" under the regulatory framework for prompt corrective action. There have been no conditions or events since those notifications that management believes have changed the Company's categorization. Total regulatory capital exceeded the minimum requirement by $416.0 million on a consolidated basis at December 31, 2023.

The following tables present the actual and required capital amounts and ratios as of December 31, 2023 and 2022 under the Basel III Capital Rules. Capital levels required to be considered "well capitalized" are based upon prompt corrective action regulations, as reflected in the Basel III Capital Rules.

	Actual				Minimum capital required - Basel III				PCA requirement to be considered well capitalized
(Dollars in thousands)	Capital amount		Ratio		Capital amount		Ratio		Capital amount		Ratio
December 31, 2023
Common equity tier 1 capital to risk-weighted assets
Consolidated	$	1,568,815	11.73	%	$	936,192	7.00	%	N/A		N/A
First Financial Bank	1,701,338		12.73	%	935,746		7.00	%	$	868,907	6.50	%
Tier 1 capital to risk-weighted assets
Consolidated	1,613,480		12.06	%	1,136,805		8.50	%	N/A		N/A
First Financial Bank	1,701,840		12.73	%	1,136,263		8.50	%	1,069,424		8.00	%
Total capital to risk-weighted assets
Consolidated	1,820,285		13.61	%	1,404,289		10.50	%	N/A		N/A
First Financial Bank	1,743,521		13.04	%	1,403,619		10.50	%	1,336,780		10.00	%
Leverage
Consolidated	1,613,480		9.70	%	665,125		4.00	%	N/A		N/A
First Financial Bank	1,701,840		10.24	%	664,781		4.00	%	830,976		5.00	%

	Actual				Minimum capital required - Basel III				PCA requirement to be considered well capitalized
(Dollars in thousands)	Capital amount		Ratio		Capital amount		Ratio		Capital amount		Ratio
December 31, 2022
Common equity tier 1 capital to risk-weighted assets
Consolidated	$	1,399,420	10.83	%	$	904,626	7.00	%	N/A		N/A
First Financial Bank	1,581,328		12.26	%	903,244		7.00	%	$	838,726	6.50	%
Tier 1 capital to risk-weighted assets
Consolidated	1,443,698		11.17	%	1,098,475		8.50	%	N/A		N/A
First Financial Bank	1,581,900		12.26	%	1,096,796		8.50	%	1,032,278		8.00	%
Total capital to risk-weighted assets
Consolidated	1,691,255		13.09	%	1,356,939		10.50	%	N/A		N/A
First Financial Bank	1,640,671		12.71	%	1,354,865		10.50	%	1,290,348		10.00	%
Leverage
Consolidated	1,443,698		8.89	%	649,636		4.00	%	N/A		N/A
First Financial Bank	1,581,900		9.76	%	648,607		4.00	%	810,759		5.00	%

Share repurchases. The 2022 Repurchase Plan replaced the plan that expired on December 31, 2022 (the 2020 Repurchase Plan). Under the 2022 Repurchase Plan, First Financial did not repurchase any shares during 2023 or 2022. Under the 2020 Repurchase Plan, First Financial repurchased 4,633,355 shares at an average market price of $23.33 during 2021.

Effective January 2024, First Financial's board of directors approved a stock repurchase plan (the 2024 Repurchase Plan), replacing the 2022 Repurchase Plan which became effective in January 2022. The 2024 Repurchase Plan continues for two years and authorizes the purchase of up to 5,000,000 shares of the Company's common stock and will expire in December 2025.