Note 15 - Financial Derivatives

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Schedule of Derivative Instruments [Table Text Block]

15.   Financial Derivatives

It is the policy of the Company not to speculate on the future direction of interest rates.  However, the Company enters into financial derivatives in order to seek mitigation of exposure to interest rate risks related to its interest-earning assets and interest-bearing liabilities.  Management believes that these transactions, when properly structured and managed, may provide a hedge against inherent interest rate risk in the Company’s assets or liabilities and against risk in specific transactions.  In such instances, the Company may protect its position through the purchase or sale of interest rate futures contracts for a specific cash or interest rate risk position.  Other hedge transactions may be implemented using interest rate swaps, interest rate caps, floors, financial futures, forward rate agreements, and options on futures or bonds.  Prior to considering any hedging activities, we seek to analyze the costs and benefits of the hedge in comparison to other viable alternative strategies.  All hedges will require an assessment of basis risk and must be approved by the Bank’s Investment Committee.

The Company follows ASC Topic 815 which established accounting and reporting standards for financial derivatives, including certain financial derivatives embedded in other contracts, and hedging activities.  It requires the recognition of all financial derivatives as assets or liabilities in the Company’s Consolidated Balance Sheets and measurement of those financial derivatives at fair value.  The accounting treatment of changes in fair value is dependent upon whether or not a financial derivative is designated as a hedge and if so, the type of hedge.

As of December 31, 2011, we had five interest rate swap agreements with two major financial institutions in the notional amount of $300.0 million for a period of three years.  These interest rate swaps were not structured to hedge against inherent interest rate risks related to our interest-earning assets and interest-bearing liabilities.  These five interest rate swap agreements all matured in the third quarter of 2012.  The net amount accrued on these interest rate swaps and the changes in the market value of these interest rate swaps were recorded as a reduction to other non-interest income in the amount of $288,000 in 2012 compared to $4.9 million in the same period a year ago.

The Company enters into foreign exchange forward contracts and foreign currency option contracts with various counter parties to mitigate the risk of fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates for foreign exchange certificates of deposit, foreign exchange contracts, or foreign currency option contracts entered into with our clients. These contracts are not designated as hedging instruments and are recorded at fair value in our condensed consolidated balance sheets. Changes in the fair value of these contracts as well as the related foreign exchange certificates of deposit, foreign exchange contracts or foreign currency option contracts are recognized immediately in net income as a component of non-interest income. Period end gross positive fair values are recorded in other assets and gross negative fair values are recorded in other liabilities.  At December 31, 2012, the notional amount of option contracts totaled $209,000 with a net negative fair value of $2,000. Spot and forward contracts in the total notional amount of $188.1 million had a positive fair value of $2.9 million at December 31, 2012.  Spot and forward contracts in the total notional amount of $133.7 million had a negative fair value of $1.6 million at December 31, 2012. At December 31, 2011, the notional amount of option contracts totaled $4.3 million with a net positive fair value of $29,000.  Spot and forward contracts in the total notional amount of $238.6 million had a positive fair value, in the amount of $2.2 million, at December 31, 2011.  Spot and forward contracts in the total notional amount of $128.2 million had a negative fair value, in the amount of $486,000, at December 31, 2011.