OFF-BALANCE SHEET RISK

The Company is a party to financial instruments with off-balance sheet risk in the normal course of business to meet the financing needs of its customers. These financial instruments include commitments to extend credit and standby letters of credit. These instruments involve, to varying degrees, elements of credit, interest rate, or liquidity risk in excess of the amount recognized in the Consolidated Balance Sheet. The contract amounts of these instruments express the extent of involvement the Company has in particular classes of financial instruments.

The Company’s exposure to credit loss from nonperformance by the other party to the financial instruments for commitments to extend credit and standby letters of credit is represented by the contractual amount of these instruments. The Company uses the same credit policies in making commitments and conditional obligations as it does for on-balance sheet instruments. The Company may require collateral or other security to support financial instruments with off-balance sheet credit risk.

Financial instruments whose contract amounts represent credit risk are as follows at December 31, 2014 and 2013:



(In Thousands)	2014		2013
Commitments to extend credit	$	235,940	$	185,415
Standby letters of credit	7,490		4,379

Commitments to extend credit are legally binding agreements to lend to customers. Commitments generally have fixed expiration dates or other termination clauses and may require payment of fees. Since many of the commitments are expected to expire without being drawn upon, the total commitment amounts do not necessarily represent future liquidity requirements. The Company evaluates each customer’s credit worthiness on a case-by-case basis. The amount of collateral obtained, if deemed necessary by the Company, on an extension of credit is based on management’s credit assessment of the counterparty.

Standby letters of credit represent conditional commitments issued by the Company to guarantee the performance of a customer to a third party. These instruments are issued primarily to support bid or performance related contracts. The coverage period for these instruments is typically a one year period with an annual renewal option subject to prior approval by management. Fees earned from the issuance of these letters are recognized upon expiration of the coverage period. For secured letters of credit, the collateral is typically Bank deposit instruments or customer business assets.