Main Session I – High Performance Idea Exchange
Facilitated by Brad Guenther, Management Consulting, RSM US LLP
The High Performance Idea Exchange provides an open forum for senior lending and senior credit officers to discuss the opportunities and challenges facing community banks today. Facilitated by an industry expert, the session allows attendees to actively contribute and determine the topics of discussion. This unique format gives participants the chance to shape the session dialogue and fosters the free exchange of information among peers. Ideas shared typically focus on hot topics in the industry, including the various loan strategies, risk management tactics, services and products that have proven successful for today’s community banks. This session will:
- Consider ways to promote and encourage more innovation in the lending area for enhanced profitability
- Share ideas to increase earnings and compete effectively in the current lending environment
- Provide an opportunity for attendees to develop knowledge in areas of utmost importance to today’s lending and credit executives
Main Session II – High Performance Idea Exchange
Facilitated by John Hurlock, President, SMARTER Risk Management
The plateauing of interest rates at a new, higher level, is impacting the ability to find qualified borrowers and possibly the strength of your loan portfolio. Increased margins are being offset by higher costs and the potential for increased problem loans. In addition, new lending is flattening for some financial institutions.
Things to consider:
- How will changing the reserving process (to CECL) affect your lending?
- How have you changed the types of loans you are making? Have you restructured your loan portfolio? Have you tightened you credit standards?
- What new products and services are you offering?
- Are you acquiring loans from FinTechs or other third party providers? Will you change this in 2023?
- What technologies are you deploying?
- Do you think delinquencies and defaults will increase? Which portfolios are you monitoring?
- How have you modified your CRE stress test? Are you stressing more portfolios?
- How do you think the regulatory exam will be different in 2023?
- Will you be changing your staffing mix to beef up the Special Assets function?
General Session – Economic Update
Facilitated by Dr. Ed Seifried
Dr. Ed Seifried will address the following topics during his Fall 2023 Economic Update: the highest Fed Funds rate in years, a banking crisis, the serious threat of an economic downturn, and inflation that seems impervious to rate hikes. As the summer of 2023 gets into full swing, inflation measures, especially the Fed’s favorite, Core Personal Consumption Expenditure (PCE), remains stubbornly high, well above the stated target rate of 2.0%. As our beleaguered loan customers with variable rate credit facilities endured higher and higher rates over the last year, Dr. Ed will try to determine if those rates will march higher still as the Fed’s war against inflation continues deep into 2023.
Another major issue is the threat of a recession. While the Fed is currently forecasting slow growth, but no recession, other forecasts are not as positive. The yield curve has been steeply inverted for months, and if historical relationship holds true in this cycle, the yield curve inversion indicates a 75-80% chance of a recession in the next twelve months. Dr. Ed will also review the latest economic indicators and point out and discuss those that should be important to bankers in this troubled period.