UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 10-K

x ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2020

OR

o TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15 (d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the transition period from ________ to ________

Commission File Number: 000-31225

Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc.

, Inc.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in charter)
Tennessee		62-1812853
(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation)		(I.R.S. Employer Identification No.)
150 Third Avenue South, Suite 900,	Nashville,	TN	37201
(Address of principal executive offices)			(Zip Code)

Registrant's telephone number, including area code:   (615) 744-3700

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12 (b) of the Act:

Title of Each Class	Trading Symbol	Name of Exchange on which Registered
Common Stock, par value $1.00	PNFP	The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC
Depositary Shares (each representing 1/40th interest in a share of 6.75% Fixed-Rate Non-Cumulative Perpetual Preferred Stock, Series B)	PNFPP	The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC

Securities registered to Section 12(g) of the Act:

None

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. Yes x No o

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act. Yes o No x

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes x No o

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically, if any, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files). Yes x No o

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, or a smaller reporting company.  See the definitions of "accelerated filer," "large accelerated filer" and "smaller reporting company" in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.  (Check one):

Large Accelerated Filer ☒                            Accelerated Filer ☐    

Non-accelerated Filer  ☐                            Smaller reporting company ☐

(do not check if you are a smaller reporting company)                Emerging growth company ☐

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. o

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed a report on and attestation to its management’s assessment of the effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (15 U.S.C. 7262(b)) by the registered public accounting firm that prepared or issued its audit report. ☒

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Act). Yes o   No x

State the aggregate market value of the voting and non-voting common equity held by non-affiliates computed by reference to the price at which the common equity was last sold, or the average bid and asked price of such common equity as of the last business day of the registrant's most recently completed second fiscal quarter: $3,092,217,712 as of June 30, 2020.

APPLICABLE ONLY TO CORPORATE REGISTRANTS

Indicate the number of shares outstanding of each of the registrant's classes of common stock, as of the latest practicable date: 75,991,557 shares of common stock as of February 22, 2021.

DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE

Portions of the Definitive Proxy Statement for the Annual Meeting of Shareholders, scheduled to be held April 20, 2021 are incorporated by reference into Part III of this Form 10-K.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

	Page No.
PART I
ITEM 1. BUSINESS	4
ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS	21
ITEM 1B. UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS	50
ITEM 2. PROPERTIES	50
ITEM 3. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS	50
ITEM 4.  MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES	50
PART II	51
ITEM 5. MARKET FOR REGISTRANT'S COMMON EQUITY, RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS AND ISSUER PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES	51
ITEM 6. SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA	52
ITEM 7.  MANAGEMENT'S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS	54
ITEM 7A. QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK	90
ITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA	91
ITEM 9.  CHANGES IN AND DISAGREEMENTS WITH ACCOUNTANTS ON ACCOUNTING AND FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE	150
ITEM 9A. CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES	150
ITEM 9B. OTHER INFORMATION	150
PART III	151
ITEM 10. DIRECTORS, EXECUTIVE OFFICERS AND CORPORATE GOVERNANCE	151
ITEM 11. EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION	151
ITEM 12.  SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS AND MANAGEMENT AND RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS	151
ITEM 13.  CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS, RELATED TRANSACTIONS AND DIRECTOR INDEPENDENCE	151
ITEM 14. PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTANT FEES AND SERVICES	151
ITEM 15. EXHIBITS AND FINANCIAL STATEMENT SCHEDULES	152
ITEM 16. FORM 10-K SUMMARY	154
SIGNATURES	155

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FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. The words "expect," "anticipate," "intend," "may," "should," "plan," "believe," "seek," "estimate" and similar expressions are intended to identify such forward-looking statements, but other statements not based on historical information may also be considered forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause the actual results to differ materially from the statements, including, but not limited to: (i) further deterioration in the financial condition of borrowers of Pinnacle Bank and its subsidiaries or BHG resulting in significant increases in loan losses and provisions for those losses and, in the case of BHG, substitutions; (ii) the further effects of the emergence of widespread health emergencies or pandemics, including the magnitude and duration of the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on general economic and financial market conditions and on Pinnacle Financial's and its customers' business, results of operations, asset quality and financial condition; (iii) the speed with which the COVID-19 vaccines can be widely distributed, those vaccines' efficacy against the virus and public acceptance of the vaccines; (iv) the ability to grow and retain low-cost core deposits and retain large, uninsured deposits, including during times when Pinnacle Bank is seeking to lower rates it pays on deposits; (v) the inability of Pinnacle Financial, or entities in which it has significant investments, like BHG, to maintain the long-term historical growth rate of its, or such entities', loan portfolio; (vi) changes in loan underwriting, credit review or loss reserve policies associated with economic conditions, examination conclusions, or regulatory developments; (vii) effectiveness of Pinnacle Financial's asset management activities in improving, resolving or liquidating lower-quality assets; (viii) the impact of competition with other financial institutions, including pricing pressures and the resulting impact on Pinnacle Financial’s results, including as a result of compression to net interest margin; (ix) adverse conditions in the national or local economies including in Pinnacle Financial's markets throughout Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Virginia,  particularly in commercial and residential real estate markets; (x) fluctuations or differences in interest rates on loans or deposits from those that Pinnacle Financial is modeling or anticipating, including as a result of Pinnacle Bank's inability to better match deposit rates with the changes in the short-term rate environment, or that affect the yield curve; (xi) the results of regulatory examinations; (xii) Pinnacle Financial's ability to identify potential candidates for, consummate, and achieve synergies from, potential future acquisitions; (xiii) difficulties and delays in integrating acquired businesses or fully realizing costs savings and other benefits from acquisitions; (xiv) BHG's ability to profitably grow its business and successfully execute on its business plans; (xv) risks of expansion into new geographic or product markets; (xvi) any matter that would cause Pinnacle Financial to conclude that there was impairment of any asset, including goodwill or other intangible assets; (xvii) the ineffectiveness of Pinnacle Bank's hedging strategies, or the unexpected counterparty failure or hedge failure of the underlying hedges; (xviii) reduced ability to attract additional financial advisors (or failure of such advisors to cause their clients to switch to Pinnacle Bank), to retain financial advisors (including as a result of the competitive environment for associates) or otherwise to attract customers from other financial institutions; (xix) deterioration in the valuation of other real estate owned and increased expenses associated therewith; (xx) inability to comply with regulatory capital requirements, including those resulting from changes to capital calculation methodologies, required capital maintenance levels or regulatory requests or directives, particularly if Pinnacle Bank's level of applicable commercial real estate loans were to exceed percentage levels of total capital in guidelines recommended by its regulators; (xxi) approval of the declaration of any dividend by Pinnacle Financial's board of directors; (xxii) the vulnerability of Pinnacle Bank's network and online banking portals, and the systems of parties with whom Pinnacle Bank contracts, to unauthorized access, computer viruses, phishing schemes, spam attacks, human error, natural disasters, power loss and other security breaches; (xxiii) the possibility of increased compliance and operational costs as a result of increased regulatory oversight (including by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau), including oversight of companies in which Pinnacle Financial or Pinnacle Bank have significant investments, like BHG, and the development of additional banking products for Pinnacle Bank's corporate and consumer clients;  (xxiv) the risks associated with Pinnacle Financial and Pinnacle Bank being a minority investor in BHG, including the risk that the owners of a majority of the equity interests in BHG decide to sell the company if not prohibited from doing so by Pinnacle Financial or Pinnacle Bank; (xxv) changes in state and federal legislation, regulations or policies applicable to banks and other financial service providers, like BHG, including regulatory or legislative developments; (xxvi) the availability of and access to capital; (xxvii) adverse results (including costs, fines, reputational harm, inability to obtain necessary approvals and/or other negative effects) from current or future litigation, regulatory examinations or other legal and/or regulatory actions, including as a result of Pinnacle Bank's participation in and execution of government programs related to the COVID-19 pandemic; and (xxviii) general competitive, economic, political and market conditions. A more detailed description of these and other risks is contained in "Item 1A. Risk Factors" below. Many of such factors are beyond Pinnacle Financial's ability to control or predict, and readers are cautioned not to put undue reliance on such forward-looking statements. Pinnacle Financial disclaims any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements contained in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

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PART I

Unless this Form 10-K indicates otherwise or the context otherwise requires, the terms "we," "our," "us," "the firm," "Pinnacle Financial Partners," "Pinnacle" or "Pinnacle Financial" as used herein refer to Pinnacle Financial Partners, Inc., and its subsidiaries, including Pinnacle Bank, which we sometimes refer to as "our bank subsidiary" or "our bank" and its other subsidiaries.  References herein to the fiscal years 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020 mean our fiscal years ended December 31, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020, respectively.

ITEM 1.  BUSINESS

OVERVIEW

Pinnacle Financial Partners is a financial holding company headquartered in Tennessee, with approximately $34.9 billion in total assets as of December 31, 2020. The holding company is the parent company of Pinnacle Bank, a Tennessee state-chartered bank, and owns 100% of the capital stock of Pinnacle Bank. The firm started operations on October 27, 2000, in Nashville, Tennessee, and has since grown through a combination of acquisitions and organic growth to 114 offices, including 48 in Tennessee, 36 in North Carolina, 20 in South Carolina, 9 in Virginia and one in Georgia.

The firm operates as a community bank in 12 primarily urban markets and their surrounding communities. As an urban community bank, Pinnacle provides the personalized service most often associated with smaller banks while offering many of the sophisticated products and services, such as investments and treasury management, more typically found at much larger banks. This approach has enabled Pinnacle Bank to attract clients from the regional and national banks in all its markets. As a result, Pinnacle Bank has grown steadily in market share rankings in many of its markets, according to the 2020 FDIC Summary of Deposits data.

The FDIC Summary of Deposits data as of June 30, 2020 is as follows:

Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA)	Deposit Rank	PNFP Deposit Market Share
Nashville-Davidson-Murfreesboro-Franklin, TN	1	16.95%
Knoxville, TN	4	10.59%
Chattanooga, TN-GA	4	10.60%
Memphis, TN-MS-AR	6	3.13%
Greensboro-High Point, NC	4	11.03%
Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC	7	0.36%
Raleigh-Cary, NC	13	1.40%
Charleston-North Charleston, SC	8	4.17%
Greenville-Anderson, SC	12	1.47%
Roanoke, VA	3	9.08%
Winston-Salem, NC	3	7.66%

COVID-19 PANDEMIC

The rapid spread of the novel coronavirus, COVID-19, throughout the United States and the rest of the world in 2020 impacted nearly every aspect of our business and operations in 2020. From the closure of many of our offices and an increased reliance on associates working and serving clients remotely, to the Federal Reserve lowering short-term interest rates late in the first quarter of 2020 to near historic lows and the United States government approving unprecedented levels of economic stimulus and relief programs, including the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act (“CARES Act”) and its Paycheck Protection Program (“PPP”), we were forced to take a number of unprecedented actions in 2020.

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic and its economic impact to our customers we implemented a short-term modification program in accordance with interagency regulatory guidance to provide temporary payment relief to those borrowers directly impacted by COVID-19 who were not more than 30 days past due at the time of the modification. This program allowed for a deferral of payments for 90 days, which we could extend for an additional 90 days, for a maximum of 180 days on a cumulative and successive basis. Pursuant to interagency guidance, these short-term deferrals were not deemed to meet the criteria for reporting as troubled debt restructurings (“TDRs”).

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In addition to the short-term modification program we implemented, Section 4013 of the CARES Act and bank regulatory interagency guidance gave entities temporary relief from the accounting and disclosure requirements for TDRs indicating that a lender could modify the terms of a loan that was less than 30 days past due as of December 31, 2019 where the borrower had been impacted by COVID-19 and conclude that those modifications were not troubled debt restructurings. We believe we have followed the guidance under the CARES Act and the interagency guidance related to these loan modifications.

In 2020, we also expended significant resources and energy to extend loans to new and existing customers pursuant to the PPP, a CARES Act program designed to aid small- and medium-sized businesses, sole proprietors and other self-employed persons through federally guaranteed loans distributed through banks. These loans were intended to guarantee eight to 24 weeks of payroll and other costs to provide support to participating businesses and increase the ability of these businesses to retain workers. Through December 31, 2020, we had obtained approvals for approximately 15,000 clients totaling approximately $2.5 billion in approved loans under the PPP.

For more information regarding the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our financial condition and results of operations as of and for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2020 see “Risk Factors – Risks Related to Our Business – COVID-19 Risks” and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations – Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic” elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

ACQUISITIONS

In July 2016, Pinnacle Financial completed the acquisition of Avenue Financial Holdings, Inc. ("Avenue") for an aggregate of $20.9 million in cash (including payments related to fractional shares) and 3,760,326 shares of Pinnacle Financial's common stock valued at approximately $182.5 million. Additionally, at the time of merger there were 257,639 unexercised stock options that were exchanged for cash equal to $20.00 per share less the option's exercise price. This consideration totaled approximately $987,000, including all applicable payroll taxes. The Avenue merger increased our presence in the Nashville MSA.

In June 2017, Pinnacle Financial completed the acquisition of BNC Bancorp ("BNC") for an aggregate of 27,687,100 shares of Pinnacle Financial's common stock valued at $1.9 billion and approximately $129,000 in cash (related to fractional shares). Included in the shares of common stock issued were 136,890 shares of unvested restricted stock that Pinnacle Financial assumed and which continued to vest over their original contractual terms. The fair value of these awards was $9.2 million, with $5.4 million attributable to services provided by the recipients prior to the merger, that accordingly was included as merger consideration. This acquisition expanded our operations into the Carolinas and Virginia.

On July 2, 2019, Pinnacle Bank acquired all of the outstanding stock of Advocate Capital, Inc. (Advocate Capital) for a cash price of $59.0 million. Advocate Capital is a finance firm headquartered in Nashville, TN which supports the financial needs of legal firms through both case expense financing and working capital lines of credit. At the acquisition date, Advocate Capital's net assets were recorded at a fair value of approximately $45.6 million, consisting mainly of loans receivable. Advocate Capital's $134.3 million of indebtedness was also paid off in connection with consummation of the acquisition.

In February 2015, Pinnacle Bank acquired a 30% membership interest in Bankers Healthcare Group, LLC ("BHG"), a company which primarily is engaged in the business of making term loans to healthcare practices, for $75.0 million in cash. On March 1, 2016, Pinnacle Financial and Pinnacle Bank entered into an agreement to acquire 8.55% and 10.45%, respectively, of the outstanding membership interests in BHG for $114.0 million, payable in a mix of cash and stock consideration. The cash consideration was $74.1 million and the stock consideration was 860,470 shares of Pinnacle Financial's common stock, with a fair value of $39.9 million on the date of acquisition.

On March 1, 2016, Pinnacle Financial, Pinnacle Bank and the other members of BHG entered into an Amended and Restated Limited Liability Company Agreement of BHG (the BHG LLC Agreement) that provides for, among other things, the following terms: (i) the inability of any member of BHG to transfer its ownership interest in BHG without the consent of the other members of BHG until March 1, 2021, other than transfers to family members, trusts or affiliates of the transferring member, in connection with the acquisition of Pinnacle Financial or Pinnacle Bank or as a result of a change in applicable law that forces Pinnacle Financial and/or Pinnacle Bank to divest their ownership interests in BHG; (ii) co-sale rights for Pinnacle Financial and Pinnacle Bank in the event the other members of BHG decide to sell all or a portion of their ownership interests after March 1, 2021; and (iii) a right of first refusal for BHG and the other members of BHG in the event that Pinnacle Financial and/or Pinnacle Bank were to sell all or a portion of their ownership interests after March 1, 2021, except in connection with a transfer of their ownership interests to an affiliate or in connection with the acquisition of Pinnacle Financial or Pinnacle Bank (or a merger in which Pinnacle Financial or Pinnacle Bank is not the surviving entity). On February 2, 2021, the BHG LLC Agreement was amended and restated to, among other things, permit the members of BHG other than Pinnacle Financial or Pinnacle Bank to transfer equity interests in BHG to various family members and trusts.

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PRODUCTS AND SERVICES

Lending Services

We offer a full range of lending products, including commercial, real estate and consumer loans to individuals, businesses and professional entities.  We compete for these loans with competitors who are also well established in our geographic markets as well as other non-depository institution lenders that are subject to less regulation than we are.

Pinnacle Bank's loan approval policies provide for various levels of officer lending authority. When the total amount of loans to a single borrower exceeds an individual officer's lending authority, officers with higher lending authority determine whether to approve any new loan requests or renewals of existing loans.  Loans to directors and executive officers subject to Regulation O of the FDIC's rules and regulations require approval of the board, and, certain extensions of credit, including loans above certain amounts require approval of a committee of the board.

Pinnacle Bank's lending activities are subject to a variety of lending limits imposed by federal and state law. Differing limits apply based on the type of loan or the nature of the borrower, including the borrower's relationship to Pinnacle Bank. In general, however, at December 31, 2020, we were able to loan any one borrower a maximum amount equal to approximately $488.9 million, for loans that meet certain additional collateral guidelines. These legal limits will increase or decrease as Pinnacle Bank's capital increases or decreases as a result of its earnings or losses, the injection of additional capital, payments of dividends, acquisitions, or for other reasons. Pinnacle Bank has internal loan limits ranging from $15 million to $60 million, dependent upon the internal risk rating of a loan, all of which limits are well below the legal lending limit of the bank. Pinnacle Bank currently has 58 relationships in excess of the $60 million internal loan limit.

The principal economic risk associated with each category of loans that Pinnacle Bank has made or may in the future make is the creditworthiness of the borrower. General economic factors affecting a commercial or consumer borrower's ability to repay include interest, inflation and unemployment rates, as well as other factors affecting a borrower's assets, clients, suppliers and employees.  Many of Pinnacle Bank's commercial loans are made to small- to medium-sized businesses that are sometimes less able to withstand competitive, economic and financial pressures than larger borrowers. During periods of economic weakness, like those we experienced in 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, these businesses may be more adversely affected than other enterprises and may cause increased levels of nonaccrual or other problem loans, loan charge-offs and higher provision for loan losses.

Pinnacle Bank's commercial clients borrow for a variety of purposes. The terms of these loans (which include equipment loans and working capital loans) will vary by purpose and by type of any underlying collateral. Commercial loans may be unsecured or secured by accounts receivable or by other business assets. Pinnacle Bank also makes a variety of commercial real estate loans, including both investment properties and business loans secured by real estate.

Pinnacle Bank also makes a variety of loans secured and unsecured to individuals for personal, family, investment and household purposes, including installment and term loans, lines of credit, residential first mortgage loans, home equity loans and home equity lines of credit. We also offer credit cards for consumers and businesses directly as well as through the marketing efforts of BHG.

Through Advocate Capital we make loans to law firms to finance case expenses and the firms working capital needs. These loans are typically secured by the borrower's receivables and include guaranties by certain individual partners of the firm.

Deposit Services

Pinnacle Bank seeks to establish a broad base of core deposits, including savings, checking, noninterest-bearing checking, interest-bearing checking, money market and certificate of deposit accounts, including access to products offered through various CDARS programs. While Pinnacle is focused on attracting operating accounts and other core deposits and lowering our cost of funds, rates paid on such deposits vary among banking markets and deposit categories due to different terms and conditions, individual deposit size, services rendered and rates paid by competitors on similar deposit products. We act as a depository for a number of state and local governments and government agencies or instrumentalities. Such public fund deposits are often subject to competitive bid and in many cases must be secured by pledging a portion of our investment securities or a letter of credit.

To attract deposits, Pinnacle Bank has typically employed a reputation management plan in its current geographic markets primarily based on relationship banking and features a broad product line and competitive rates and services. The primary sources of deposits are businesses, their owners and individuals interested in a comprehensive relationship with their financial institution located in those geographic markets. Pinnacle Bank traditionally has obtained these deposits primarily through personal solicitation by its financial advisors and leadership team, although its use of advertising has increased in recent years, primarily due to its partnerships with the Tennessee Titans NFL football team and the Memphis Grizzlies NBA basketball team.

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Pinnacle Bank also offers its targeted commercial clients a comprehensive array of treasury management and remote deposit services, which allow electronic deposits to be made from the client's place of business. Our treasury management services include, among other products, online wire origination, enhanced ACH origination services, positive pay, zero balance and sweep accounts, automated bill pay services, electronic receivables processing, lockbox processing, merchant card acceptance services, small business and commercial credit cards and corporate purchasing cards.

Investment, Trust and Insurance Services

Pinnacle Bank contracts with Raymond James Financial Services, Inc. ("RJFS"), a registered broker-dealer and investment adviser, to offer and sell various securities and other financial products to the public through associates who are employed by both Pinnacle Bank and RJFS. RJFS is a subsidiary of Raymond James Financial, Inc.

Pinnacle Bank offers, through RJFS, non-FDIC insured investment products to help clients achieve their financial objectives within their risk tolerances. The brokerage and investment advisory program offered by RJFS complements Pinnacle Bank's general banking business and further supports its business philosophy and strategy of delivering to our clients a comprehensive array of products and services that meet their financial needs. Pursuant to its contract, RJFS is primarily responsible for the compliance monitoring of dual employees of RJFS and Pinnacle Bank. Additionally, Pinnacle Bank has developed its own compliance-monitoring program in an effort to further ensure that associates deliver these products in a manner consistent with the various regulations governing such activities. Pinnacle Bank receives a percentage of commission credits and fees generated by the program. Pinnacle Bank remains responsible for various expenses associated with the program, including furnishings, equipment and promotional expenses and general personnel costs, including commissions paid to licensed brokers.

Pinnacle Bank also maintains a trust team that provides fiduciary and investment management services for individual and commercial clients. Account types include personal trust, endowments, foundations, individual retirement accounts, pensions and custody.

Additionally, Pinnacle Wealth Advisors, a registered investment advisor, provides investment advisory services to its clients. Miller Loughry Beach Insurance Services, Inc. and HPB Insurance Group, Inc., each insurance agency subsidiaries of Pinnacle Bank, provide insurance products, particularly in the property and casualty area, to their respective clients.

M&A Advisory and Securities Offering Services

PNFP Capital Markets, Inc. launched in 2015. As a broker-dealer, this team offers corporate clients merger and acquisition advisory services, private debt, equity and mezzanine placement services and other selected middle-market advisory services.

Other Banking Services

Given client demand to access banking and investment services easily, Pinnacle Bank also offers a broad array of convenience-centered products and services, including 24-hour telephone and online banking, mobile banking, debit and credit cards, direct deposit, remote deposit capture and mobile deposit options. We also offer cash management services for businesses. Additionally, Pinnacle Bank is associated with a nationwide network of automated teller machines of other financial institutions that clients are able to use throughout our footprint. In many cases, Pinnacle Bank reimburses its clients for any fees that may be charged for using the nationwide ATM network, providing greater convenience as compared to regional competitors. 

Competitive Conditions

We face substantial competition in all areas of our operations from a variety of different competitors, many of whom are larger and have more financial resources than we do. Such competitors primarily include national, regional, and internet banks within the various markets in which we operate though we also compete with smaller community banks that seek to offer service levels similar to ours. We also face competition from many others types of institutions, including, without limitation, savings and loans associations, credit unions, finance companies, brokerage firms, insurance companies, and other financial intermediaries.

The financial services industry is becoming even more competitive as a result of legislative, regulatory and technological changes and continued consolidation. Banks, securities firms, and insurance companies can operate as affiliates under the umbrella of a financial holding company, which can offer virtually any type of financial service, including banking, securities underwriting, insurance (both agency and underwriting), and merchant banking. Also, technology has lowered barriers to entry and made it possible for nonbanks to offer products and services traditionally provided by banks, such as automatic transfer and automatic payment systems. Many of our nonbank competitors have fewer regulatory constraints and may have lower cost structures. Additionally, due to their size, many competitors may be able to achieve economies of scale and, as a result, may be able to develop and offer a broader range of products and services as well as better pricing for those products and services than we can. Continued consolidation in the financial services industry, due in part to the regulatory changes made under the Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief and Consumer Protection Act,

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including the increased asset threshold for required stress testing, as discussed below under "Supervision and Regulation - The Dodd-Frank Act," has contributed to increases in the number of large competitors we face in our markets. Finally, our competitors may choose to offer lower interest rates and pay higher deposit rates than we do.

We believe that the most important criteria to our bank's targeted clients when selecting a bank is their desire to receive exceptional and personal customer service while being able to enjoy convenient access to a broad array of financial products offered by a financial institution with an ability to meet the changing needs of a sophisticated client base. Additionally, when presented with a choice, we believe that many of our bank's targeted clients would prefer to deal with an institution that favors local decision making as opposed to where many important decisions regarding a client's financial affairs are made outside of the local community.

Employees and Human Capital

From our beginning, we have focused on building a firm where our associates are excited because we believe excited associates lead to engaged clients and that engaged clients contribute to enriched shareholders. Our hiring philosophy has always been to create the best place to work in our markets. That started with our initial offices in our hometown of Nashville. From there we have branched out across our home state of Tennessee and into some of the best markets in the Southeast. Our hiring philosophy is simple – we aim to hire successful, experienced bankers in each of our markets that share our desire to build a team-oriented firm where our associates win together. In our company, all non-commissioned associates have one set of performance goals under our annual cash incentive plan and nearly every associate in our company is annually awarded equity-based compensation. We believe our unique culture and its resulting high levels of associate engagement and retention rates allow us to be better than our competitors in meeting the needs of our clients.

We are engaging with our associates on a regular basis to assess job satisfaction and we use the information from these surveys to improve our ability to attract, develop, and retain talented associates who drive client engagement. All associates joining Pinnacle, including those joining as a result of an acquisition, participate in a three-day orientation that focuses on culture. Consulting firm Great Place to Work and FORTUNE magazine recognized us as one of the 100 Best Companies to Work For in 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020. Prior to this eligibility, these organizations named us among best workplaces in the United States on their Best Small & Medium Workplaces list in 2012, 2013 and 2014. American Banker has also recognized Pinnacle Bank as one of the top 20 "Best Banks to Work For" in the country every year from 2013 to 2020. Additionally, we were inducted into the Nashville Business Journal's "Best Places to Work" Hall of Fame in 2013 after winning the award for 10 consecutive years. We were also awarded the “Best Place to Work” among mid-sized companies by the Memphis Business Journal in 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020. And we were named a Top Workplace among mid-sized companies by the Knoxville News Sentinel in 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020. Several of Pinnacle’s newer markets in the Carolinas and Virginia began competing in (and winning) “best workplace” awards in 2019 and continued to do so in 2020. All of these honors place heavy emphasis on anonymous surveys of associates in the judging criteria. We believe these awards illustrate that our culture is strong, and our financial returns illustrate that the focus on culture is a winning business strategy. As of December 31, 2020, we employed 2,634.0 full-time equivalent associates.

None of our associates are represented by a union, collective bargaining agreement or similar arrangement, and we have not experienced any labor disputes or strikes arising from any organized labor groups. We aim to create a great place to work for all of our associates. We believe that a strong and diverse team is critical to our success and are committed to being more vocal and focused in our efforts on creating a great place to work for all guided by the foundational elements of our diversity and inclusion policy, namely that all people deserve a great place to work and do business and every community deserves an equal opportunity for economic prosperity. Over 67% of the Company’s associates were women and 14% were minorities. Among the Company’s 126-person Leadership Team, women make up approximately 33% of these associates, up from 13% in 2010 while minorities account for 5% of the Leadership Team members, up from less than 1% in 2010. Beginning in 2020, a senior leadership team made up of a subset of these Leadership Team members was formed. Presently, the senior leadership team consists of 12 associates, two of whom are women, one of whom is also a minority and one male that is a minority. Though we are proud of the work we have done in this area, we understand that more work remains to be done and we have implemented many programs designed to achieve a more diverse and inclusive team, including enhanced training programs and development of a multi-year strategy to focus on enhancing our associates’ diversity and inclusion awareness. This diversity and inclusion awareness enhancement program includes a number of initiatives that are underway to build broader networks with diversity agencies and community organizations as we look to locate and develop future diverse associates and leaders. In 2020, we also named our first diversity and inclusion officer to lead our coordinated efforts on diversity and inclusion.

Serving the needs of all of the members of our communities also remains an important part of our strategy. For years, we have focused our community investment efforts on giving within four categories that we believe improve the quality of life of the citizens in our communities: education, health and human services, economic development and the arts. We also empower our associates to serve the causes about which they are most passionate and in 2020, our associates volunteered over 21,000 hours of their time to help organizations across our footprint.

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OTHER INFORMATION

Investment Securities

In addition to loans, Pinnacle Bank has investments primarily in United States treasury and agency securities, agency sponsored mortgage-backed securities, corporate bonds and state and municipal securities. No investment in any of those instruments exceeds any applicable limitation imposed by law or regulation. The risk committee of the board of directors reviews the investment portfolio on an ongoing basis in order to ensure that the investments conform to Pinnacle Bank's asset liability management policy as set by the board of directors.

Asset and Liability Management

Our Asset Liability Management Committee ("ALCO"), composed of senior managers of Pinnacle Bank, manages Pinnacle Bank's assets and liabilities and strives to provide a stable, optimized net interest income and margin, adequate liquidity and ultimately a suitable after-tax return on assets and return on equity. ALCO conducts these management functions within the framework of written policies that Pinnacle Bank's board of directors has adopted.  ALCO works to maintain an acceptable position between rate sensitive assets and rate sensitive liabilities. The Risk Committee of the board of directors oversees the ALCO function on an ongoing basis.

Available Information

We file reports with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"), including annual reports on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and current reports on Form 8-K. The SEC maintains an Internet site at www.sec.gov that contains the reports, proxy and information statements, and other information we have filed or furnished with the SEC.

Our website address is www.pnfp.com. Please note that our website address is provided as an inactive textual reference only. We make available free of charge through our website, the annual report on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, current reports on Form 8-K, and all amendments to those reports as soon as reasonably practicable after such material is electronically filed with or furnished to the SEC.  The information provided on our website is not part of this report, and is therefore not incorporated by reference unless such information is otherwise specifically referenced elsewhere in this report.

We have also posted our Corporate Governance Guidelines, Corporate Code of Conduct for directors, officers and employees, and the charters of our Audit Committee, Human Resources and Compensation Committee, Executive Committee, Risk Committee and Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee of our board of directors in the Investor Relations section of our website at www.pnfp.com. We will make any legally required disclosures regarding amendments to, or waivers of, provisions of our Corporate Code of Conduct, Corporate Governance Guidelines or current committee charters on our website. Our corporate governance materials are available free of charge upon request to our Corporate Secretary, Pinnacle Financial Partners, Inc., 150 Third Avenue South, Suite 900, Nashville, Tennessee 37201.

SUPERVISION AND REGULATION

Both Pinnacle Financial and Pinnacle Bank as well as many of their subsidiaries are subject to extensive state and federal banking laws and regulations that impose restrictions on and provide for general regulatory oversight of Pinnacle Financial's and Pinnacle Bank's and these subsidiaries’ operations. These laws and regulations are generally intended to protect depositors and borrowers, not shareholders.

Pinnacle Financial

Pinnacle Financial is a bank holding company under the federal Bank Holding Company Act of 1956 that has elected to become a "financial holding company" thereunder. As a result, it is subject to the supervision, examination, and reporting requirements of the Bank Holding Company Act and the regulations of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System ("Federal Reserve").

Acquisition of Banks. The Bank Holding Company Act requires every bank holding company to obtain the Federal Reserve's prior approval before:

•Acquiring direct or indirect ownership or control of any voting shares of any bank if, after the acquisition, the bank holding company will directly or indirectly own or control more than 5% of the bank's voting shares;

•Acquiring all or substantially all of the assets of any bank; or

•Subject to certain exemptions, merging or consolidating with any other bank holding company.

Additionally, the Bank Holding Company Act provides that the Federal Reserve may not approve any of these transactions if it would

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substantially lessen competition or otherwise function as a restraint of trade, or result in or tend to create a monopoly, unless the anticompetitive effects of the proposed transaction are clearly outweighed by the public interest in meeting the convenience and needs of the communities to be served. The Federal Reserve is also required to consider the financial and managerial resources and future prospects of the bank holding companies and banks concerned; the effectiveness of the applicant in combating money laundering; the convenience and needs of the communities to be served; and the extent to which the proposal would result in greater or more concentrated risk to the United States banking or financial system.

Under the Bank Holding Company Act, as amended by the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act ("Dodd-Frank Act"), if well capitalized and well managed, a bank holding company located in Tennessee may purchase a bank located outside of Tennessee. Conversely, a well capitalized and well managed bank holding company located outside of Tennessee may purchase a bank located inside Tennessee. In each case, however, state law restrictions may be placed on the acquisition of a bank that has only been in existence for a limited amount of time or will result in specified concentrations of deposits. For example, Tennessee law currently prohibits a bank holding company from acquiring control of a Tennessee-based financial institution until the target financial institution has been in operation for three years.

Change in Bank Control. Subject to various exceptions, the Federal Change in Bank Control Act, together with related regulations, require Federal Reserve approval prior to any person or company acquiring "control" of a bank holding company. Control is conclusively presumed to exist if an individual or company acquires 25% or more of any class of voting securities of the bank holding company. Control is rebuttably presumed to exist if a person or company acquires 10% or more, but less than 25%, of any class of voting securities and either:

•The bank holding company has registered securities under Section 12 of the Exchange Act; or

•No other person owns a greater percentage of that class of voting securities immediately after the transaction.

Pinnacle Financial's common stock is registered under Section 12 of the Exchange Act. The regulations provide a procedure for challenge of the rebuttable control presumption.

Permitted Activities. Bank holding companies generally are prohibited, except in certain statutorily prescribed instances including exceptions for financial holding companies, from acquiring direct or indirect ownership or control of 5% or more of any class of the outstanding voting shares of any company that is not a bank or bank holding company and from engaging directly or indirectly in activities other than those of banking, managing or controlling banks, or furnishing services to its subsidiaries. However, subject to prior notice or Federal Reserve approval, bank holding companies may engage in, or acquire shares of companies engaged in, activities determined by the Federal Reserve to be so closely related to banking or managing or controlling banks as to be a proper incident thereto. The Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act of 1999 amended the Bank Holding Company Act and expanded the activities in which bank holding companies and affiliates of banks are permitted to engage. The Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act eliminated many federal and state law barriers to affiliations among banks and securities firms, insurance companies, and other financial service providers, and provided that holding companies which elected to become financial holding companies, as Pinnacle Financial has done, could engage in activities that are:

•Financial in nature;

•Incidental to a financial activity (as determined by the Federal Reserve in consultation with the Secretary of the U.S. Treasury); or

•Complementary to a financial activity and do not pose a substantial risk to the safety or soundness of depository institutions or the financial system generally (as determined by the Federal Reserve).

The Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act identifies the following activities as financial in nature:

•Lending, trust and other banking activities;

•Insuring, guaranteeing, or indemnifying against loss or harm, or providing and issuing annuities, and acting as principal, agent, or broker for these purposes, in any state;

•Providing financial, investment, or advisory services;

•Issuing or selling instruments representing interests in pools of assets permissible for a bank to hold directly;

•Underwriting, dealing in or making a market in securities;

•Activities that the Federal Reserve has determined to be so closely related to banking or managing or controlling banks as to be a proper incident to banking or managing or controlling banks;

•Activities permitted outside of the United States that the Federal Reserve has determined to be usual in connection with banking or other financial operations abroad;

•Merchant banking, including through securities or insurance affiliates; and

•Insurance company portfolio investments.

The Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act also authorizes the Federal Reserve, in consultation with the Secretary of the U.S. Treasury, to determine activities in addition to those listed above that are financial in nature or incidental or complementary to such financial

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activity. In determining whether a particular activity is financial in nature or incidental or complementary to a financial activity, the Federal Reserve must consider (1) the purpose of the Bank Holding Company Act and the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, (2) changes or reasonably expected changes in the marketplace in which financial holding companies compete and in the technology for delivering financial services, and (3) whether the activity is necessary or appropriate to allow financial holding companies to effectively compete with other financial service providers and to efficiently deliver information and services. Pinnacle Financial became a financial holding company effective as of February 17, 2016.

To maintain financial holding company status, a financial holding company and all of its depository institution subsidiaries must be "well capitalized" and "well managed" and, except in limited circumstances, in satisfactory compliance with the Community Reinvestment Act, as discussed in the section captioned “Community Reinvestment Act” below. A depository institution subsidiary is considered to be "well capitalized" if it satisfies the requirements for this status discussed in the section captioned "Capital Adequacy" below. A depository institution subsidiary is considered "well managed" if it received a composite rating and management rating of at least "satisfactory" in its most recent examination. A financial holding company's status will also depend upon it maintaining its status as "well capitalized" and "well managed" under applicable Federal Reserve regulations. If a financial holding company ceases to meet these capital and management requirements, the Federal Reserve's regulations provide that the financial holding company must enter into an agreement with the Federal Reserve to comply with all applicable capital and management requirements. Until the financial holding company returns to compliance, the Federal Reserve may impose limitations or conditions on the conduct of its activities, and the company may not commence any of the broader financial activities permissible for financial holding companies or acquire a company engaged in such financial activities without prior approval of the Federal Reserve. If the company does not return to compliance within 180 days, the Federal Reserve may require divestiture of the holding company's depository institutions or alternatively the holding company may be required to cease to engage in the activities that it is engaged in that a bank holding company is not permitted to engage in without being a financial holding company.

In order for a financial holding company to commence any new activity permitted by the Bank Holding Company Act or to acquire a company engaged in any new activity permitted by the Bank Holding Company Act, each insured depository institution subsidiary of the financial holding company must have received a rating of at least "satisfactory" in its most recent examination under the Community Reinvestment Act.

Despite prior approval, the Federal Reserve may order a financial holding company or its subsidiaries to terminate any of these activities or to terminate its ownership or control of any subsidiary when it has reasonable cause to believe that the financial holding company's continued ownership, activity or control constitutes a serious risk to the financial safety, soundness, or stability of any of its bank subsidiaries or if there is a failure to maintain certain capital or management standards.

Support of Subsidiary Institutions. Pinnacle Financial is required to act as a source of financial and managerial strength for its bank subsidiary, Pinnacle Bank, and to commit resources to support Pinnacle Bank. This support can be required at times when it would not be in the best interest of Pinnacle Financial's shareholders or creditors to provide it. In the event of Pinnacle Financial's bankruptcy, any commitment by it to a federal bank regulatory agency to maintain the capital of Pinnacle Bank would be assumed by the bankruptcy trustee and entitled to a priority of payment.

Pinnacle Bank

Pinnacle Financial owns one bank - Pinnacle Bank. Pinnacle Bank is a state bank chartered under the laws of the State of Tennessee that is not a member of the Federal Reserve. As a result, it is subject to the supervision, examination and reporting requirements and the regulations of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation ("FDIC") and Tennessee Department of Financial Institutions ("TDFI"). The TDFI has the authority to approve or disapprove mergers, the issuance of preferred stock and capital notes, the establishment of branches and similar corporate actions. The TDFI regularly examines state banks like Pinnacle Bank and in connection with its examinations may identify matters necessary to improve a bank's operation in accordance with principles of safety and soundness. The FDIC also has examination powers with respect to state, non-member banks like Pinnacle Bank. Any matters identified in such examinations are required to be appropriately addressed by the bank. Pinnacle Bank is also subject to numerous state and federal statutes and regulations that will affect its business, activities and operations.

Branching. While the TDFI has authority to approve branch applications, state banks are required by the State of Tennessee to adhere to branching laws applicable to state chartered banks in the states in which they are located. With prior regulatory approval, Tennessee law permits banks based in the state to either establish new or acquire existing branch offices throughout Tennessee. As a result of the Dodd-Frank Act, Pinnacle Bank and any other national or state-chartered bank generally may branch across state lines to the same extent as banks chartered in the state where the branch is located.

FDIC Insurance. Deposits in Pinnacle Bank are insured by the FDIC up to $250,000 subject to applicable limitations. To offset the cost of this insurance, the FDIC has adopted a risk-based assessment system for insured depository institutions that takes into account the risks attributable to different categories and concentrations of an insured depository institution’s assets and liabilities. An institution’s assessment rate depends on the category to which it is assigned and certain adjustments specified by the FDIC, with less

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risky institutions paying lower assessments. Under the Dodd-Frank Act, the FDIC has adopted regulations that base deposit insurance assessments on total assets less capital rather than deposit liabilities and include off-balance sheet liabilities of institutions and their affiliates in risk-based assessments. After an institution's average assets exceed $10 billion over four quarters as ours have, the assessment rate increases compared to institutions at lower average asset levels. In addition, for larger institutions, like Pinnacle Bank, the FDIC uses a performance score and a loss-severity score that are used to calculate an initial assessment rate. In calculating these scores, the FDIC uses a bank’s capital level and supervisory ratings and certain financial measures to assess an institution’s ability to withstand asset-related stress and funding-related stress. The FDIC has the ability to make discretionary adjustments to the total score based upon significant risk factors that are not adequately captured in the calculations. Continued increases in our FDIC insurance premiums could have an adverse effect on Pinnacle Bank’s and Pinnacle Financial’s results of operations.

The FDIC may terminate its insurance of an institution's deposits if it finds that the institution has engaged in unsafe and unsound practices, is in an unsafe or unsound condition to continue operations, or has violated any applicable law, regulation, rule, order or condition imposed by the FDIC.

General Enforcement Authority of Regulators

Bank holding companies (including those that have elected to be financial holding companies) and insured banks also may be subject to potential enforcement actions of varying levels of severity by the federal regulators for unsafe or unsound practices in conducting their business, or for violation of any law, rule, regulation, condition imposed in writing by any applicable agency or term of a written agreement with that agency. In more serious cases, enforcement actions may include the issuance of directives to increase capital; the issuance of formal and informal agreements; the imposition of civil monetary penalties; the issuance of a cease and desist order that can be judicially enforced; the issuance of removal and prohibition orders against officers, directors, and other institution-affiliated parties; the termination of the bank’s deposit insurance; the appointment of a conservator or receiver for the bank; and the enforcement of such actions through injunctions or restraining orders based upon a judicial determination that the agency would be harmed if such equitable relief was not granted.

Capital Adequacy

The Federal Reserve has established a risk-based and a leverage measure of capital adequacy for bank holding companies. Pinnacle Bank is also subject to risk-based and leverage capital requirements adopted by the FDIC, which are substantially similar to those adopted by the Federal Reserve for bank holding companies. The risk-based capital standards are designed to make regulatory capital requirements more sensitive to differences in risk profiles among banks and bank holding companies, to account for off-balance-sheet exposure, and to minimize disincentives for holding liquid assets. Assets and off-balance-sheet items, such as letters of credit and unfunded loan commitments, are assigned to broad risk categories, each with appropriate risk weights. The resulting capital ratios represent capital as a percentage of total risk-weighted assets and off-balance-sheet items. Tennessee state banks are required to have the capital structure that the TDFI deems adequate, and the Commissioner of the TDFI as well as federal regulators may require a state bank (or its holding company in the case of federal regulators) to increase its capital structure to the point deemed adequate by the Commissioner or such other federal regulator before granting approval of a branch application, merger application or charter amendment.

The Dodd-Frank Act contains a number of provisions dealing with capital adequacy of insured depository institutions and their holding companies, and for the most part these provisions have resulted in insured depository institutions and their holding companies being subject to more stringent capital requirements than before passage of the act. Under the Dodd-Frank Act, federal regulators have established minimum Tier 1 leverage and risk-based capital requirements for, among other entities, banks and bank holding companies on a consolidated basis. These minimum requirements require that a bank holding company maintain a ratio of Tier 1 capital to average assets, less goodwill, other intangible assets and other required deductions ("Tier 1 leverage ratio") of not less than 4% and a total capital ratio of not less than 8%.

In July 2013, the Federal Reserve and the FDIC approved final rules that substantially amended the regulatory capital rules applicable to Pinnacle Bank and Pinnacle Financial, effective January 1, 2015. The final rules implement the regulatory capital reforms of the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision reflected in "Basel III: A Global Regulatory Framework for More Resilient Banks and Banking Systems" (Basel III) and changes required by the Dodd-Frank Act.

Under these rules, the leverage and risk-based capital ratios of bank holding companies may not be lower than the leverage and risk-based capital ratios for insured depository institutions. The final capital rules implementing Basel III include minimum risk-based capital and leverage ratios for banks and their holding companies. Moreover, these rules refined the definition of what constitutes "capital" for purposes of calculating those ratios, including the definitions of Tier 1 capital and Tier 2 capital. Total capital consists of two components, Tier 1 capital and Tier 2 capital. Tier 1 capital generally consists of common stock (plus related surplus) and retained earnings, minority interests in the equity accounts of consolidated subsidiaries and noncumulative perpetual preferred stock and related surplus, less goodwill and other specified intangible assets and other regulatory deductions. A portion of Pinnacle Financial's and Pinnacle Bank's recorded investment in BHG, which is a minority interest in an unconsolidated entity, is subject to specified

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deductions. Tier 2 capital generally consists of perpetual preferred stock and related surplus not meeting the Tier 1 capital definition, qualifying subordinated debt, qualifying mandatorily convertible debt securities, and a limited amount of loan loss reserves. The Dodd-Frank Act also excludes trust preferred securities issued after May 19, 2010 from being included in Tier 1 capital unless the issuing company is a bank holding company with less than $500 million in total assets. Trust preferred securities issued prior to that date will continue to count as Tier 1 capital for bank holding companies with less than $15.0 billion in total assets on that date unless the company's assets thereafter exceed $15.0 billion as a result of a merger or acquisition. The trust preferred securities issued by Pinnacle Financial or entities it has acquired previously qualified as Tier 1 capital, but no longer qualify as Tier 1 capital under the Dodd-Frank Act and Basel III as a result of our total assets exceeding $15.0 billion as a result of the BNC merger. For a bank holding company to be considered "well-capitalized," it must maintain a Tier 1 capital ratio of at least 8%, a total capital ratio of at least 10%, and not be subject to a written agreement, order or directive to maintain a specific capital level.

The minimum capital level requirements applicable to bank holding companies and banks subject to the federal regulators' capital rules are: (i) a Tier 1 common equity (“CET1”) capital ratio of 4.5%; (ii) a Tier 1 risk-based capital ratio of 6%; (iii) a total risk-based capital ratio of 8%; and (iv) a Tier 1 leverage ratio of 4% for all institutions. The rules also established a "capital conservation buffer" of 2.5% (to consist of CET1 capital) above the regulatory minimum capital ratios that has resulted in the following minimum ratios: (i) a CET1 capital ratio of 7%, (ii) a Tier 1 capital ratio of 8.5%, and (iii) a total capital ratio of 10.5%. The phase-in of the capital conservation buffer requirement was fully implemented in January 2019. An institution will be subject to limitations on paying dividends, engaging in share repurchases and paying discretionary bonuses if capital levels fall below minimum levels plus the buffer amounts. These limitations establish a maximum percentage of eligible retained income that could be utilized for such actions.

Under the Basel III capital rules, CET1 consists of common stock and paid in capital and retained earnings. CET1 is reduced by goodwill, certain intangible assets, net of associated deferred tax liabilities, deferred tax assets that arise from tax credit and net operating loss carryforwards, net of any valuation allowance, and certain other items specified in the Basel III capital rules. The Basel III capital rules also provide for a number of deductions from and adjustments to CET1. These include, for example, the requirement that mortgage servicing rights, deferred tax assets arising from temporary differences that could not be realized through net operating loss carrybacks and significant investments in non-consolidated financial entities be deducted from CET1 to the extent that any one such category exceeds 10% of CET1 or all such categories in the aggregate exceed 15% of CET1.

The final rules allow banks and their holding companies with less than $250 billion in assets a one-time opportunity to opt-out of a requirement to include unrealized gains and losses in accumulated other comprehensive income in their capital calculation. Pinnacle Financial and Pinnacle Bank each opted out of this requirement.

Pinnacle Financial must qualify as "well capitalized," among other requirements, in order for it to engage in certain acquisitions or be eligible for expedited treatment of certain regulatory applications, including those related to mergers and acquisitions. For Pinnacle Financial to qualify as "well capitalized," for these purposes it must have a Tier 1 risk-based capital ratio of at least 6% and a total risk-based capital ratio of at least 10% and not be subject to a written agreement, order or directive to maintain a specific capital level.

Failure to meet statutorily mandated capital requirements or more restrictive ratios separately established for a depository institution or its holding company by its regulators could subject a bank or bank holding company to a variety of enforcement remedies, including issuance of a capital directive, the termination of deposit insurance by the FDIC, a prohibition on accepting or renewing brokered deposits, limitations on the rates of interest that the institution may pay on its deposits and other restrictions on its business.

Additionally, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Improvement Act of 1991 ("FDICIA") establishes a system of prompt corrective action (“PCA”) to resolve the problems of undercapitalized financial institutions. Under this system, the federal banking regulators have established five capital categories (well-capitalized, adequately capitalized, undercapitalized, significantly undercapitalized and critically undercapitalized) into one of which all institutions are placed. Federal banking regulators are required to take various mandatory supervisory actions and are authorized to take other discretionary actions with respect to institutions in the three undercapitalized categories. The severity of the action depends upon the capital category in which the institution is placed. Generally, subject to a narrow exception, the banking regulator must appoint a receiver or conservator within a specified period for an institution that is critically undercapitalized. The federal banking agencies have specified by regulation the relevant capital level for each category.

Under FDIC regulations, a state regulated bank which is not a member of the Federal Reserve (a state non-member bank) like Pinnacle Bank is "well capitalized" under PCA if it has a Tier 1 leverage ratio of 5% or better, a CET1 capital ratio of 6.5% or better, a Tier 1 risk-based capital ratio of 8% or better, a total risk-based capital ratio of 10% or better, and is not subject to a regulatory agreement, order or directive to maintain a specific level for any capital measure. A state non-member bank is considered "adequately capitalized" if it has a Tier 1 leverage ratio of at least 4%, a CET1 capital ratio of 4.5% or better, a Tier 1 risk-based capital ratio of at least 6.0%, a total risk-based capital ratio of at least 8.0% and does not meet the definition of a well-capitalized bank. Lower levels of capital result in a bank being considered undercapitalized, significantly undercapitalized and critically undercapitalized.

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State non-member banks are required to be "well capitalized" in order to take advantage of expedited procedures on certain applications, such as those related to the opening of branches and mergers, and to accept and renew brokered deposits without further regulatory approval.

An institution that is categorized as undercapitalized, significantly undercapitalized, or critically undercapitalized is required to submit an acceptable capital restoration plan to its appropriate federal banking agency. In addition, a bank holding company must guarantee that a subsidiary depository institution meets its capital restoration plan, subject to various limitations. The controlling holding company's obligation to fund a capital restoration plan is limited to the lesser of 5% of an undercapitalized subsidiary's assets or the amount required to meet regulatory capital requirements. An undercapitalized institution is also generally prohibited from increasing its average total assets, making acquisitions, establishing any branches or engaging in any new line of business, except under an accepted capital restoration plan or with FDIC approval. The FDIC is required to resolve a bank when its ratio of tangible equity to tangible assets reaches 2%. The regulations also establish procedures for downgrading an institution into a lower capital category based on supervisory factors other than capital.

The Basel III capital rules prescribe a standardized approach for risk weightings that expand the risk-weighting categories from the four Basel I-derived categories (0%, 20%, 50% and 100%) to a much larger and more risk-sensitive number of categories, depending on the nature of the assets, generally ranging from 0% for U.S. government and agency securities, to 600% for certain equity exposures, and resulting in higher risk weights for a variety of asset categories. Specific changes to the rules impacting Pinnacle Financial’s and Pinnacle Bank’s determination of risk-weighted assets include, among other things:

•applying a 150% risk weight instead of a 100% risk weight for certain high volatility commercial real estate acquisition, development and construction loans;

•assigning a 150% risk weight to the unsecured portion of non-residential mortgage loans that are 90 days past due or otherwise on nonaccrual status;

•providing for a 20% credit conversion factor for the unused portion of a commitment with an original maturity of one year or less that is not unconditionally cancellable (previously set at 0%);

•providing for a risk weight, generally not less than 20% with certain exceptions, for securities lending transactions based on the risk weight category of the underlying collateral securing the transaction;

•providing for a 600% risk weight on certain equity exposures; and

•eliminating the 50% cap on the risk weight for OTC derivatives.

In December 2017, the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision published the last version of the Basel III accord, generally referred to as “Basel IV.” The Basel Committee stated that a key objective of the revisions incorporated into the framework is to reduce excessive variability of risk-weighted assets (“RWA”), which will be accomplished by enhancing the robustness and risk sensitivity of the standardized approaches for credit risk and operational risk, which will facilitate the comparability of banks’ capital ratios; constraining the use of internally modeled approaches; and complementing the risk-weighted capital ratio with a finalized leverage ratio and a revised and robust capital floor. Under the Basel framework, these standards will generally be effective on January 1, 2022, with an aggregate output floor phasing in through January 1, 2027. Under the current U.S. capital rules, operational risk capital requirements and a capital floor apply only to advanced approaches institutions, and not to Pinnacle Financial or Pinnacle Bank. The impact of Basel IV on us will depend on the manner in which it is implemented by the federal bank regulators.

In February 2019, the federal bank regulatory agencies issued a final rule (the “2019 CECL Rule”) that revised certain capital regulations to account for changes to credit loss accounting under U.S. GAAP. The 2019 CECL Rule included a transition option that allows banking organizations to phase in, over a three-year period, the day-one adverse effects of adopting a new accounting standard related to the measurement of current expected credit losses (“CECL”) on their regulatory capital ratios (three-year transition option). In March 2020, the federal bank regulatory agencies issued an interim final rule that maintains the three-year transition option of the 2019 CECL Rule and also provides banking organizations that were required under U.S. GAAP (as of January 2020) to implement CECL before the end of 2020 the option to delay for two years an estimate of the effect of CECL on regulatory capital, relative to the incurred loss methodology’s effect on regulatory capital, followed by a three-year transition period (five-year transition option). We elected to adopt the five-year transition option. Accordingly, a CECL transitional amount totaling $73.4 million has been added back to CET1 as of December 31, 2020. The CECL transitional amount includes $31.8 million related to the cumulative effect of adopting CECL and $41.6 million related to the estimated incremental effect of CECL since adoption.

At December 31, 2020, Pinnacle Bank's CET1 capital ratio was 11.4%, Tier 1 risk-based capital ratio was 11.4%, total risk-based capital ratio was 12.7% and Tier 1 leverage ratio was 9.1%, compared to 11.2%, 11.2%, 12.2% and 10.5% at December 31, 2019, respectively. At December 31, 2020, Pinnacle Financial's CET1 capital ratio was 10.0%, Tier 1 risk-based capital ratio was 10.9%, total risk-based capital ratio was 14.3% and Tier 1 leverage ratio was 8.6%, compared to 9.7%, 9.7%, 13.2% and 9.1% at December 31, 2019, respectively. All of these ratios exceeded regulatory minimums and those required by Basel III and FDICIA (including after application of any capital conservation buffer) to be considered well capitalized. More information concerning Pinnacle Financial's and Pinnacle Bank's regulatory ratios at December 31, 2020 is included in Note 19 to the "Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements" included elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

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Capital Planning

Banking organizations must have appropriate capital planning processes, with proper oversight from the board of directors. Accordingly, pursuant to a separate, general supervisory letter from the Federal Reserve, bank holding companies are expected to conduct and document comprehensive capital adequacy analyses prior to the declaration of any dividends (on common stock, preferred stock, trust preferred securities or other Tier 1 capital instruments), capital redemptions or capital repurchases. Moreover, the federal banking agencies have adopted a joint agency policy statement, noting that the adequacy and effectiveness of a bank’s interest rate risk management process and the level of its interest rate exposures are critical factors in the evaluation of the bank’s capital adequacy. A bank with material weaknesses in its interest rate risk management process or high levels of interest rate exposure relative to its capital will be directed by the relevant federal banking agencies to take corrective actions.

In November 2018, Pinnacle Financial announced that its board of directors authorized a share repurchase program for up to $100.0 million of Pinnacle Financial’s outstanding common stock, and in October 2019 the board approved an additional $100.0 million of repurchase authorization. The initial repurchase program expired on March 31, 2020, and the additional $100.0 million authorization expired on December 31, 2020. Pinnacle Financial suspended its repurchase program at the end of the first quarter of 2020 and it remained suspended until its expiration at December 31, 2020 due to uncertainties surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic. In aggregate, Pinnacle Financial repurchased approximately 2.5 million shares of its common stock at an aggregate cost of $132.9 million under its prior share repurchase programs.

In January 2021, Pinnacle Financial announced that its board of directors had authorized a repurchase program for up to $125.0 million of its outstanding common stock. The repurchase program announced on January 19, 2021 is scheduled to expire upon the earlier of Pinnacle Financial’s repurchase of shares of its outstanding common stock having an aggregate purchase price of $125.0 million and March 31, 2022. Repurchases of shares of Pinnacle Financial’s common stock will be made in accordance with applicable laws and may be made at management’s discretion from time to time in the open market, through privately negotiated transactions or otherwise.

Payment of Dividends

Pinnacle Financial is a legal entity separate and distinct from Pinnacle Bank. Though Pinnacle Financial had cash and cash equivalents of $275.9 million as of December 31, 2020, the principal source of Pinnacle Financial's cash flow, including cash flow to pay interest to its holders of subordinated debentures and subordinated notes, and any dividends payable to common shareholders and holders of its preferred stock, are dividends that Pinnacle Bank pays to Pinnacle Financial as its sole shareholder. Under Tennessee law, Pinnacle Financial is not permitted to pay dividends if, after giving effect to such payment, it would not be able to pay its debts as they become due in the usual course of business or its total assets would be less than the sum of its total liabilities plus any amounts needed to satisfy any preferential rights if it were dissolving. In addition, in deciding whether or not to declare a dividend of any particular size, Pinnacle Financial's board of directors must consider its and Pinnacle Bank's current and prospective capital, liquidity, and other needs.

In addition to state law limitations on Pinnacle Financial's ability to pay dividends, the Federal Reserve imposes limitations on Pinnacle Financial's ability to pay dividends. As noted above, effective January 1, 2016, Federal Reserve regulations limit dividends, stock repurchases and discretionary bonuses to executive officers if Pinnacle Financial's regulatory capital is below the level of regulatory minimums plus the applicable capital conservation buffer. Additionally, it is Federal Reserve policy that bank holding companies generally should pay dividends on common stock only out of net income available to common shareholders over the past year and only if the prospective rate of earnings retention appears consistent with the organization's current and expected future capital needs, asset quality and overall financial condition. Federal Reserve policy also provides that a bank holding company should inform the Federal Reserve reasonably in advance of declaring or paying a dividend that exceeds earnings for the period for which the dividend is being paid or that could result in a material adverse change to the bank holding company's capital structure. See "Capital Adequacy" above.

Statutory and regulatory limitations also apply to Pinnacle Bank's payment of dividends to Pinnacle Financial. Pinnacle Bank is required by Tennessee law to obtain the prior approval of the Commissioner of the TDFI for payments of dividends if the total of all dividends declared by its board of directors in any calendar year will exceed (1) the total of Pinnacle Bank's net income for that year, plus (2) Pinnacle Bank's retained net income for the preceding two years. As of December 31, 2020, Pinnacle Bank could pay dividends to Pinnacle Financial of up to $788.3 million. Generally, federal regulatory policy encourages holding company debt to be serviced by subsidiary bank dividends or additional equity rather than debt issuances. Pinnacle Financial had available cash balances of approximately $275.9 million at December 31, 2020.

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The payment of dividends by Pinnacle Bank and Pinnacle Financial may also be affected by other factors, such as the requirement to maintain adequate capital above statutory and regulatory requirements imposed on Pinnacle Bank or Pinnacle Financial by their regulators. The federal banking agencies have indicated that paying dividends that deplete a depository institution's capital base to an inadequate level would be an unsafe and unsound banking practice. Under the FDICIA, a depository institution may not pay any dividend if payment would cause it to become undercapitalized or if it already is undercapitalized.

During the fourth quarter of 2013, Pinnacle Financial initiated a quarterly common stock dividend in the amount of $0.08 per share. The board of directors of Pinnacle Financial has increased the dividend amount per share over time. The most recent increase occurred on January 19, 2021, when the board of directors increased the dividend to $0.18 per share. During the year ended December 31, 2020, Pinnacle Financial paid $49.4 million in net dividends to its common shareholders. On January 19, 2021, our board of directors declared a $0.18 per share quarterly cash dividend to common shareholders which approximated $14.0 million in aggregate dividend payments and will be paid on February 26, 2021 to common shareholders of record as of the close of business on February 5, 2021.

During the second quarter of 2020, Pinnacle Financial issued 9.0 million depositary shares, each representing a 1/40th interest in a share of its 6.75% fixed rate non-cumulative, perpetual preferred stock, Series B (Series B Preferred Stock) in a registered public offering to both retail and institutional investors. During the year ended December 31, 2020, Pinnacle Financial paid $7.6 million in dividends on its Series B Preferred Stock. On January 19, 2021, our board of directors approved a quarterly dividend of approximately $3.8 million, or $16.88 per share (or $0.422 per depositary share), on the Series B Preferred Stock payable on March 1, 2021 to shareholders of record at the close of business on February 14, 2021. This dividend equates to a $0.422 per share dividend on our depositary shares.

The amount and timing of all future dividend payments, if any, including on the Series B Preferred Stock, is subject to our board's discretion and will depend on our earnings, capital position, financial condition and other factors, including new regulatory capital requirements, as they become known to us. If we fail to pay dividends on our Series B Preferred Stock, we will be prohibited from paying dividends on our common stock.

Restrictions on Transactions with Affiliates

Both Pinnacle Financial and Pinnacle Bank are subject to the provisions of Section 23A of the Federal Reserve Act. Section 23A places limits on the amount of:

•A bank's loans or extensions of credit, including purchases of assets subject to an agreement to repurchase, to or for the benefit of affiliates;

•A bank's investment in affiliates;

•Assets a bank may purchase from affiliates, except for real and personal property exempted by the Federal Reserve;

•The amount of loans or extensions of credit to third parties collateralized by the securities or obligations of affiliates;

•Transactions involving the borrowing or lending of securities and any derivative transaction that results in credit exposure to an affiliate; and

•A bank's guarantee, acceptance or letter of credit issued on behalf of an affiliate.

The total amount of the above transactions is limited in amount, as to any one affiliate, to 10% of a bank's capital and surplus and, as to all affiliates combined, to 20% of a bank's capital stock and surplus. In addition to the limitation on the amount of these transactions, each of the above transactions must also meet specified collateral requirements. Pinnacle Bank must also comply with other provisions designed to avoid the taking of low-quality assets.

Pinnacle Financial and Pinnacle Bank are also subject to the provisions of Section 23B of the Federal Reserve Act which, among other things, prohibits an institution from engaging in the above transactions with affiliates unless the transactions are on terms substantially the same, or at least as favorable to the institution or its subsidiaries, as those prevailing at the time for comparable transactions with nonaffiliated companies.

Pinnacle Bank is also subject to restrictions on extensions of credit to its executive officers, directors, principal shareholders and their related interests. These extensions of credit must be made on substantially the same terms, including interest rates and collateral, as those prevailing at the time for comparable transactions with third parties, and must not involve more than the normal risk of repayment or present other unfavorable features.

Community Reinvestment Act and Fair Lending

The Community Reinvestment Act (“CRA”) requires that, in connection with examinations of financial institutions within their respective jurisdictions, the Federal Reserve and the FDIC shall evaluate the record of each financial institution in meeting the credit needs of its local communities, including low- and moderate-income neighborhoods consistent with safe and sound operations of the institutions. These facts are also considered in evaluating mergers, acquisitions, and applications to open a branch or facility. Failure to

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adequately meet these criteria could impose additional requirements and limitations on Pinnacle Bank. Additionally, banks are required to publicly disclose the terms of various Community Reinvestment Act-related agreements. Pinnacle Bank received a satisfactory CRA rating from its primary federal regulator on its most recent regulatory examination.

In December 2019, the FDIC and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (“OCC”) jointly proposed rules that would significantly change existing CRA regulations. The proposed rules are intended to increase bank activity in low- and moderate-income communities where there is significant need for credit, more responsible lending, greater access to banking services, and improvements to critical infrastructure. The proposals change four key areas: (i) clarifying what activities qualify for CRA credit; (ii) updating where activities count for CRA credit; (iii) providing a more transparent and objective method for measuring CRA performance; and (iv) revising CRA-related data collection, record keeping, and reporting. However, the Federal Reserve Board did not join in that proposed rulemaking. In May 2020, the OCC issued its final CRA rule, effective October 1, 2020. The FDIC has not finalized the revisions to its proposed CRA rule. In September 2020, the Federal Reserve Board issued an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (“ANPR”) that invites public comment on an approach to modernize the regulations that implement the CRA by strengthening, clarifying, and tailoring them to reflect the current banking landscape and better meet the core purpose of the CRA. The ANPR seeks feedback on ways to evaluate how banks meet the needs of low- and moderate-income communities and address inequities in credit access. As such, we will continue to evaluate the impact of any changes to the regulations implementing the CRA and their impact to our financial condition, results of operations, and/or liquidity, which cannot be predicted at this time.

Pinnacle Bank is also subject to fair lending requirements and reporting obligations involving its home mortgage lending operations. Fair lending laws prohibit discrimination in the provision of banking services, and bank regulators have increasingly focused on the enforcement of these laws. Fair lending laws include the Equal Credit Opportunity Act of 1974 and the Fair Housing Act of 1968, which prohibit discrimination in credit and residential real estate transactions on the basis of prohibited factors including, among others, race, color, national origin, gender and religion. Pinnacle Bank may be liable, either through administrative enforcement or private civil actions, for policies that result in a disparate treatment of or have a disparate impact on a protected class of applicants or borrowers. If a pattern or practice of lending discrimination is alleged by a regulator, then that agency may refer the matter to the U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”) for investigation. Pursuant to a Memorandum of Understanding, the DOJ and Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”) have agreed to share information, coordinate investigations and generally commit to strengthen their coordination efforts. Pinnacle Bank is required to have a fair lending program that is of sufficient scope to monitor the inherent fair lending risk of the institution and that appropriately remediates issues which are identified.

Cybersecurity and Data Privacy

State and federal banking regulators have issued various policy statements and, in some cases, regulations, emphasizing the importance of technology risk management and supervision. For example, in December 2020, the federal banking agencies issued a notice of proposed rulemaking that would require banking organizations to notify their primary federal regulator within 36 hours of becoming aware of a "computer-security" incident or a "notification event". This notice of proposed rulemaking and the earlier such policy statements and regulations indicate that financial institutions should design multiple layers of security controls to establish lines of defense and to ensure that their risk management processes also address the risk posed by compromised customer credentials, including security measures to reliably authenticate customers accessing internet-based services of the financial institution. A financial institution’s management is expected to maintain sufficient business continuity planning processes to ensure the rapid recovery, resumption and maintenance of the institution’s operations after a cyber-attack involving destructive malware. A financial institution is expected to develop appropriate processes to enable recovery of data and business operations and address rebuilding network capabilities and restoring data if the institution or its critical service providers fall victim to this type of cyber-attack.

Federal statutes and regulations, including the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act and the Right to Financial Privacy Act of 1978, limit Pinnacle Financial’s and Pinnacle Bank’s ability to disclose non-public information about consumers, customers and employees to nonaffiliated third parties. Specifically, the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act requires disclosure of our privacy policies and practices relating to sharing non-public information and enables retail customers to opt out of the institution’s ability to share information with unaffiliated third parties under certain circumstances. The Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act also requires Pinnacle Financial and Pinnacle Bank to implement a comprehensive information security program that includes administrative, technical and physical safeguards to ensure the security and confidentiality of customer records and information and, if applicable state law is more protective of customer privacy than the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, financial institutions, including Pinnacle Bank, will be required to comply with such state law. An increasing number of state laws and regulations have been enacted in recent years to implement privacy and cybersecurity standards and regulations, including data breach notification and data privacy requirements. Other nations in which our customers do business, such as the European Union, have adopted similar requirements. This trend of state-level and international activity is expected to continue to expand, requiring continual monitoring of developments in the states and nations in which our customers are located and ongoing investments in our information systems and compliance capabilities.

Other laws and regulations impact Pinnacle Financial’s and Pinnacle Bank’s ability to share certain information with affiliates and non-affiliates for marketing and/or non-marketing purposes. These regulations affect how consumer information is transmitted through diversified financial companies and conveyed to outside vendors. In connection with the regulations governing the privacy of consumer financial information, the federal banking agencies, including the FDIC, have adopted guidelines for establishing

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information security standards and programs to protect such information. In addition, Pinnacle Bank has established a privacy policy that it believes promotes compliance with the federal requirements.

Other Consumer Laws and Regulations

Interest and other charges collected or contracted for by Pinnacle Bank are subject to state usury laws and federal laws concerning interest rates. For example, under the Service Members Civil Relief Act, a lender is generally prohibited from charging an annual interest rate in excess of 6% on any obligations for which the borrower is a person on active duty with the United States military.

Pinnacle Bank's loan operations are also subject to federal laws applicable to credit transactions, such as the:

•Federal Truth-In-Lending Act, governing disclosures of credit terms and costs to consumer borrowers, giving consumers the right to cancel certain credit transactions, and defining requirements for servicing consumer loans secured by a dwelling;

•Home Mortgage Disclosure Act of 1975, requiring financial institutions to provide information to enable the public and public officials to determine whether a financial institution is fulfilling its obligation to help meet the housing needs of the community it serves;

•Fair Credit Reporting Act of 1978, governing the use and provision of information to credit reporting agencies;

•Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, governing the manner in which consumer debts may be collected by collection agencies;

•Service Members Civil Relief Act, governing the repayment terms of, and property rights underlying, secured obligations of persons in active military service;

•Rules and regulations of the various federal agencies charged with the responsibility of implementing the federal laws;

•Electronic Fund Transfers Act, which regulates fees and other terms of electronic funds transactions;

•Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act of 2003, which permanently extended the national credit reporting standards of the Fair Credit Reporting Act, and permits consumers, including our customers, to opt out of information sharing among affiliated companies for marketing purposes and requires financial institutions, including banks, to notify a customer if the institution provides negative information about the customer to a national credit reporting agency or if the credit that is granted to the customer is on less favorable terms than those generally available; and

•Real Estate Settlement and Procedures Act of 1974, which affords consumers greater protection pertaining to federally related mortgage loans by requiring, among other things, improved and streamlined loan estimate forms including clear summary information and improved disclosure of yield spread premiums.

Pinnacle Bank's deposit operations are subject to the:

•Right to Financial Privacy Act, which imposes a duty to maintain confidentiality of consumer financial records and prescribes procedures for complying with administrative subpoenas of financial records;

•Electronic Fund Transfers Act and Regulation E issued by the Federal Reserve to implement that act, which govern automatic deposits to and withdrawals from deposit accounts and customers' rights and liabilities (including with respect to the permissibility of overdraft charges) arising from the use of automated teller machines and other electronic banking services.

•Truth in Savings Act, which requires depository institutions to disclose the terms of deposit accounts to consumers;

•Expedited Funds Availability Act, which requires financial institutions to make deposited funds available according to specified time schedules and to disclose funds availability policies to consumers; and

•Check Clearing for the 21st Century Act ("Check 21"), which is designed to foster innovation in the payments system and to enhance its efficiency by reducing some of the legal impediments to check truncation. Check 21 created a new negotiable instrument called a substitute check and permits, but does not require banks to truncate original checks, process check information electronically, and deliver substitute checks to banks that wish to continue receiving paper checks.

Pinnacle Bank's loan and deposit operations are both subject to the Bank Secrecy Act (“BSA”) which governs how banks and other firms report certain currency transactions and maintain appropriate safeguards against "money laundering" activities as discussed in the section captioned “Anti-Terrorism Legislation and Anti-Money Laundering” below.

Examination and enforcement by the state and federal banking agencies, including the CFPB (as described in more detail below), and other such enforcement authorities, for non-compliance with consumer protection laws and their implementing regulations have increased and become more intense. Due to these heightened regulatory concerns, including increased enforcement of the CRA by the federal banking agencies, and the powers and authority of the CFPB, Pinnacle Bank and its affiliates may incur additional compliance costs or be required to expend additional funds for investments in their local community.

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Anti-Terrorism Legislation and Anti-Money Laundering

Pursuant to the Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism (“USA PATRIOT”) Act of 2001, as amended, financial institutions are subject to prohibitions against specified financial transactions and account relationships as well as enhanced due diligence and "know your customer" standards in their dealings with foreign financial institutions and foreign customers.

A major focus of governmental policy on financial institutions has been aimed at combating money laundering and terrorist financing. BSA and its implementing regulations and parallel requirements of the federal banking regulators require Pinnacle Bank to maintain a risk-based anti-money laundering (“AML”) program reasonably designed to prevent and detect money laundering and terrorist financing and to comply with the recordkeeping and reporting requirements of the BSA, including the requirement to report suspicious activity. The USA PATRIOT Act substantially broadened the scope of AML laws and regulations by imposing significant new compliance and due diligence obligations on financial institutions, creating new crimes and penalties and expanding the extra-territorial jurisdiction of the United States. Financial institutions, including banks, are required under final rules implementing Section 326 of the USA PATRIOT Act to establish procedures for collecting standard information from customers opening new accounts and verifying the identity of these new account holders within a reasonable period of time. Financial institutions are also prohibited from entering into specified financial transactions and account relationships and must take certain steps to assist government agencies in detecting and preventing money laundering and to report certain types of suspicious transactions. In May 2016, Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (“FinCEN”) issued rules under the BSA requiring financial institutions to identify the beneficial owners who own or control certain legal entity customers at the time an account is opened and to update their AML compliance programs, to include risk-based procedures for conducting ongoing customer due diligence. We have implemented procedures designed to comply with these requirements. In January 2021, the Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2020 ("AMLA"), which amends the BSA, was enacted as part of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021. Among other things, the AMLA codifies a risk-based approach to anti-money laundering compliance for financial institutions; requires the development of standards for evaluating technology and internal processes for BSA compliance; and expands enforcement and investigation-related authority, including increasing available sanctions for certain BSA violations and instituting BSA whistleblower incentives and protections.

Pinnacle Bank currently has policies and procedures in place designed to comply with the USA PATRIOT Act, the BSA and the other regulations targeting terrorism and money laundering and Pinnacle Financial's management is currently evaluating those changes that it will need to make to these policies and procedures to comply with the AMLA and those regulations that are issued by the federal banking regulators thereunder. Federal banking regulators are required, when reviewing bank holding company acquisition and bank merger applications, to consider the effectiveness of the AML activities of the applicants. Material deficiencies in AML compliance, and non-compliance with related requirements such as the U.S. economic and trade sanctions regimes, can result in public enforcement actions by the bank regulatory agencies and other government agencies, including the imposition of civil money penalties and supervisory restrictions on growth and expansion. Such enforcement actions could also have serious financial, legal and reputational consequences for Pinnacle Financial and Pinnacle Bank including causing applicable bank regulatory authorities not to approve merger or acquisition transactions when regulatory approval is required or to prohibit such transactions even if approval is not required.

The Office of Foreign Assets Control

The Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”), which is an office in the U.S. Department of the Treasury, is responsible for helping to ensure that U.S. entities do not engage in transactions with “enemies” of the United States, as defined by various Executive Orders and Acts of Congress. OFAC publishes lists of names of persons and organizations suspected of aiding, harboring or engaging in terrorist acts; owned or controlled by, or acting on behalf of target countries, and narcotics traffickers. If a bank finds a name on any transaction, account or wire transfer that is on an OFAC list, it must freeze or block the transactions on the account. Pinnacle Bank has appointed a compliance officer to oversee the inspection of its accounts and the filing of any notifications. Pinnacle Bank actively checks high‑risk OFAC areas such as new accounts, wire transfers and customer files. These checks are performed using software that is updated each time a modification is made to the lists provided by OFAC and other agencies of Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons. Failure to comply with these sanctions could have serious financial, legal and reputational consequences, including causing applicable bank regulatory authorities not to approve merger or acquisition transactions when regulatory approval is required or to prohibit such transactions even if approval is not required. Regulatory authorities have imposed cease and desist orders and civil money penalties against institutions found to be violating these obligations.

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The Dodd-Frank Act

New regulations and statutes are regularly proposed that contain wide-ranging proposals for altering the structures, regulations and competitive relationships of the nation's financial institutions. In 2010, the U.S. Congress passed the Dodd-Frank Act, which includes significant consumer protection provisions related to, among other things, residential mortgage loans that have increased, and are likely to further increase, our regulatory compliance costs. The Dodd-Frank Act also imposes other restrictions on our operations, including restrictions on the types of investments that bank holding companies and banks can make. Failure to comply with the requirements of the Dodd-Frank Act would negatively impact our results of operations and financial condition and could limit our growth or expansion activities. While we cannot predict what effect any presently contemplated or future changes in the laws or regulations or their interpretations would have on us, such changes could be materially adverse to our investors.

Interchange Fees. The Dodd-Frank Act included provisions (known as the "Durbin Amendment") which restrict interchange fees to those which are "reasonable and proportionate" for certain debit card issuers and limits the ability of networks and issuers to restrict debit card transaction routing. The Federal Reserve issued final rules implementing the Durbin Amendment on June 29, 2011. In the final rules, interchange fees for debit card transactions were capped at $0.21 plus five basis points (plus $0.01 for fraud loss) in order to be eligible for a safe harbor such that the fee is conclusively determined to be reasonable and proportionate. The interchange fee restrictions contained in the Durbin Amendment, and the rules promulgated thereunder, only apply to debit card issuers with $10 billion or more in total consolidated assets, like Pinnacle Bank. The implications of the Durbin Amendment first became applicable to us on July 1, 2017.

The Volcker Rule Section 13 of the Bank Holding Company Act and its implementing regulations, commonly referred to as the “Volcker Rule,” prohibit banking entities from engaging in proprietary trading, and prohibits certain interests in, or relationships with, hedge funds or private equity funds. The Volcker Rule applies to Pinnacle Financial, Pinnacle Bank and their affiliates.

In October 2019, the federal banking agencies responsible for implementing the Volcker Rule finalized amendments to their regulations to tailor the Volcker Rule’s compliance requirements to the size and scope of a banking entity’s trading activities, clarify certain key provision in the Volcker Rule and modify the information that companies are required to provide these agencies. In June 2020, these agencies finalized additional modifications to their regulations expanding the ability of banking entities to make investments in certain types of private equity funds. These amendments became effective on October 1, 2020.

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The Dodd-Frank Act also created the CFPB, which took over responsibility for enforcing the principal federal consumer protection laws, such as the Truth in Lending Act, the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, the Service Members Civil Relief Act, the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act and the Truth in Saving Act, among others, on July 21, 2011. We are subject to oversight by the CFPB.

The CFPB has broad rulemaking authority for a wide range of consumer financial laws that apply to all banks including, among other things, the authority to prohibit "unfair, deceptive, or abusive" acts and practices. Abusive acts or practices are defined as those that (1) materially interfere with a consumer's ability to understand a term or condition of a consumer financial product or service, or (2) take unreasonable advantage of a consumer's (a) lack of financial savvy, (b) inability to protect himself in the selection or use of consumer financial products or services, or (c) reasonable reliance on a covered entity to act in the consumer's interests. The CFPB has the authority to investigate possible violations of federal consumer financial law, hold hearings and commence civil litigation. The CFPB can issue cease-and-desist orders against banks and other entities that violate consumer financial laws. The CFPB may also institute a civil action against an entity in violation of federal consumer financial law in order to impose a civil penalty or an injunction. The CFPB has been active in bringing enforcement actions related to consumer financial protection laws and obtaining the forms of relief described above, and we expect the CFPB’s oversight and enforcement to increase over the next few years.

The rules issued by the CFPB will have a long-term impact on our business, including our mortgage loan origination and servicing activities. Compliance with these rules will increase our overall regulatory compliance costs. On July 1, 2017, the CFPB took over conducting on-site consumer examinations from the FDIC for all regulations that transferred under their supervision.

Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief, and Consumer Protection Act. On May 24, 2018, President Trump signed into law the Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief, and Consumer Protection Act (the “Growth Act”). The Growth Act alters some of the provisions of the Dodd-Frank Act. Certain of these provisions, to which we became subject once our total assets exceeded $10 billion, are set out below, along with the changes made to such provisions under the Growth Act.

Under the Dodd-Frank Act, publicly traded bank holding companies with $10 billion or more in total assets like Pinnacle Financial were required to establish a risk committee responsible for oversight of enterprise-wide risk management practices. Pinnacle Financial established a risk committee on February 7, 2017. The Growth Act raised the minimum asset threshold triggering the requirement to establish a risk committee from $10 billion to $50 billion. As a result, Pinnacle Financial is no longer required to maintain its standalone risk committee though it expects it will continue to do so.

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Pursuant to the Dodd-Frank Act, any banking organization, including whether a bank holding company or a depository institution, with more than $10 billion in total consolidated assets and regulated by a federal financial regulatory agency was required to conduct annual company-run stress tests to ensure it had sufficient capital during periods of economic downturn. Pinnacle Financial’s and Pinnacle Bank’s first stress tests were due in July 2018. The Growth Act raised the asset threshold at which companies are required to conduct the stress tests from $10 billion to $250 billion. While we are no longer required to annually conduct stress tests under the Dodd-Frank Act, we expect to continue to perform stress tests from time to time in connection with our capital planning process and to monitor our capital consistent with the safety and soundness expectations of the federal regulators.

While the Economic Growth Act provides some regulatory relief for mid-sized bank holding companies like us, most provisions of the Dodd-Frank Act and its implementing regulations remain in place and will continue to result in additional operating and compliance costs that could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operation.

Securities Registration and Listing

Pinnacle Financial’s securities are registered under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), and listed on the Nasdaq Global Select Market. As such, Pinnacle Financial is subject to the information, proxy solicitation, insider trading, corporate governance, and other requirements and restrictions of the Exchange Act, as well as the Marketplace Rules and other requirements promulgated by the Nasdaq Stock Market, LLC.

As a public company, Pinnacle Financial is also subject to the accounting oversight and corporate governance requirements of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, including, among other things, required executive certification of financial presentations, increased requirements for board audit committees and their members, and enhanced requirements relating to disclosure controls and procedures and internal control over financial reporting.

Insurance Agencies

Each of Miller Loughry Beach and HPB Insurance Group is subject to licensing requirements and extensive regulation under the laws of the various states in which it conducts its insurance agency business. These laws and regulations are primarily for the protection of policyholders. In all jurisdictions, the applicable laws and regulations are subject to amendment or interpretation by regulatory authorities. Generally, those authorities are vested with relatively broad discretion to grant, renew and revoke licenses and approvals and to implement regulations. Licenses may be denied or revoked for various reasons, including for regulatory violations or upon conviction for certain crimes. Possible sanctions that may be imposed for violation of regulations include the suspension of individual employees, limitations on engaging in a particular business for a specified period of time, revocation of licenses, censures and fines.

Effect of Governmental Monetary Policies

Our earnings are affected by domestic economic conditions and the monetary and fiscal policies of the United States government and its agencies. The Federal Reserve's monetary policies have had, and are likely to continue to have, an important impact on the operating results of commercial banks through the Federal Reserve's statutory power to implement national monetary policy in order, among other things, to curb inflation or combat a recession. The Federal Reserve, through its monetary and fiscal policies, affects the levels of bank loans, investments and deposits through its control over the issuance of United States government securities, its regulation of the discount rate applicable to member banks and its influence over reserve requirements to which member banks are subject. We cannot predict the nature or impact of future changes in monetary and fiscal policies.

Proposed Legislation and Regulatory Action

New regulations and statutes are regularly proposed that contain wide-ranging provisions for altering the structures, regulations and competitive relationships of the nation’s financial institutions. We cannot predict whether or in what form any proposed regulation or statute will be adopted or the extent to which our business may be affected by any new regulation or statute or change in applicable rules or regulations. Even if modifications are enacted to existing or proposed regulations, including raising certain assets thresholds above those currently in place, we may continue to face enhanced scrutiny from our regulators who may expect us to continue to comply with the current, more stringent requirements as part of their safety and soundness and compliance examinations and general oversight of our operations.

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ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS

Investing in our common stock involves various risks which are particular to our company, our industry and our market areas. If any of the following risks were to occur, we may not be able to conduct our business as currently planned and our results of operations and financial condition could be materially and negatively impacted. These matters could cause the trading price of our common stock to decline in future periods.

Summary Risk Factors

Our business is subject to a number of risks, including risks that may prevent us from achieving our business objectives or may adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations, cash flows, and prospects. These risks are discussed more fully below and include, but are not limited to, risks related to:

COVID-19 Risks

•The COVID-19 pandemic is adversely affecting our business and the businesses of a significant percentage of our customers.

•Our participation in the PPP may expose us to financial liability, credit losses, compliance costs or reputational damage.

Interest Rate Risks

•Our net interest margin, and consequently our net earnings, are significantly affected by interest rate levels.

•The performance of our investment securities portfolio is subject to fluctuation due to changes in interest rates and market conditions, including credit deterioration of the issuers of individual securities.

•Changes to LIBOR may adversely affect the holders of, the market value of, and the interest expense paid on our subordinated debt and may affect certain of our loans.

Credit and Lending Risks

•We have a concentration of credit exposure to borrowers in certain industries, and we also target small to medium-sized businesses.

•Our ability to grow our loan portfolio may be limited by, among other things, economic conditions, competition within our market areas, and our ability to hire and retain experienced bankers.

•Changes in accounting standards may change the way we calculate our Allowance for Credit Losses.

•If our Allowance for Credit Losses is not sufficient to cover losses inherent in our loan or securities portfolios, our results of operations and financial condition will be negatively impacted.

•Our accounting estimates and risk management processes rely on analytical and forecasting models.

•Environmental liability associated with commercial lending could result in losses.

•We depend on the accuracy and completeness of information about customers.

•We may be subject to claims and litigation asserting lender liability.

Liquidity and Capital Risks

•Liquidity risk could impair our ability to fund our operations and jeopardize our financial condition.

•Our ability to maintain required capital levels and adequate sources of funding and liquidity could be impacted by changes in the capital markets and deteriorating economic and market conditions.

Operational and Market Risks

•Negative developments in the U.S. and local economy may adversely impact our results in the future.

•Our operations are principally geographically concentrated in certain markets in the southeastern United States, and changes in local economic conditions impact our profitability.

•Our business may suffer if there are significant declines in the value of real estate.

•BHG’s results of operations have become a larger portion of our results of operations, and challenges in BHG’s business that negatively affect its results would now more significantly impact our results.

•A decline in our stock price or expected future cash flows, or a material adverse change in our results of operations or prospects, could result in impairment of our goodwill.

•Our selection of accounting policies and methods may affect our reported financial results.

•We currently invest in bank owned life insurance and may continue to do so in the future.

•The fair values of our investments in private companies and venture capital funds are likely to fluctuate and the value that we ultimately realize on those investments may vary materially.

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•An ineffective risk management framework could have a material adverse effect on our strategic planning and our ability to mitigate risks and/or losses and could have adverse regulatory consequences.

•We are dependent on our IT and telecommunications systems and third-party servicers, and systems failures, interruptions or breaches of security could have an adverse effect on our financial condition.

•Our business reputation and relationships are important and any damage to them could have a material adverse effect on our business.

•We face substantial competition and are subject to certain regulatory constraints not applicable to some of our competitors, which may decrease our growth or profits.

•The implementation of other new lines of business or new products and services may subject us to additional risk.

•Inability to retain senior management and key employees or to attract new experienced financial services professionals could adversely affect our business.

•We are subject to regulatory oversight and certain litigation, and our expenses related to this oversight and litigation may adversely affect our results.

•Our business is dependent on technology, and an inability to invest in technological improvements may adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition.

•The soundness of other financial institutions could adversely affect us.

•We may be subject to claims and litigation pertaining to fiduciary responsibility.

•Natural disasters may adversely affect us.

•If we fail to maintain an effective system of internal control over financial reporting, we may not be able to accurately report our financial results.

Risks Related to Acquisition Activity

•Our acquisitions and future expansion may result in additional risks.

•We may face risks with respect to future acquisitions.

Regulatory and Compliance Risks

•National or state legislation or regulation may increase our expenses and reduce earnings.

•We are subject to various statutes and regulations that may impose additional costs or limit our ability to take certain actions.

•We must maintain adequate regulatory capital to support our business objectives.

•Pinnacle Financial is required to act as a source of financial and managerial strength for Pinnacle Bank in times of stress.

•Non-compliance with the USA PATRIOT Act, the Bank Secrecy Act or other laws and regulations could result in fines or sanctions against us or restrict our ability to make acquisitions.

Risks Relating to Our Securities

•The price of our capital stock may be volatile or may decline.

•Our ability to declare and pay dividends is limited.

•We may issue additional common stock or other equity securities in the future which could dilute the ownership interest of existing shareholders.

•The Series B Preferred Stock constitutes an equity security and ranks junior to all of our and our subsidiaries’ existing indebtedness and will rank junior to our and our subsidiaries’ future indebtedness.

•The Series B Preferred Stock and the depositary shares representing the Series B Preferred Stock effectively rank junior to any existing and all future liabilities of our subsidiaries.

•Dividends on the Series B Preferred Stock are non-cumulative and discretionary.

•The holders of the Series B Preferred Stock (and underlying depositary shares) have limited voting rights.

•Holders of Pinnacle Financial’s junior subordinated debentures have rights that are senior to those of Pinnacle Financial’s shareholders.

•Pinnacle Financial and Pinnacle Bank have issued subordinated indebtedness the holders of which have rights that are senior to those of Pinnacle Financial’s shareholders.

•We and/or the holders of certain types of our securities could be adversely affected by unfavorable ratings from rating agencies.

•Our common stock and the depositary shares underlying our Series B Preferred Stock have less liquidity than many other stocks quoted on a national securities exchange.

•Our corporate organizational documents and the provisions of Tennessee law to which we are subject contain certain provisions that could have an anti-takeover effect.

•An investment in our common stock or depositary shares is not an insured deposit and is not guaranteed by the FDIC.

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Risks Related to Our Business

COVID-19 Risks

The COVID-19 pandemic is adversely affecting our business and the businesses of a significant percentage of our customers as well as certain of our third-party vendors and service providers, and the adverse impacts on our business, financial position, capital, liquidity, results of operations and prospects could be significant.

The spread of COVID-19 has created a global public health crisis that has resulted in uncertainty, volatility and deterioration in financial markets and in governmental, commercial and consumer activity including in the United States, where we conduct substantially all of our activity. COVID-19 has had an adverse impact on the markets in which we operate and on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

To combat the spread of COVID-19, federal, state and local governments have taken a variety of actions that have materially and adversely affected the businesses and lives of our customers. These actions have included orders closing non-essential businesses and restricting movement of individuals through the issuance of safer-at-home orders and other guidance encouraging individuals to observe strict social distancing measures. At times, the actions being taken by governmental authorities have not always been coordinated or consistent across states or even within states and the impact of those actions across our markets may be uneven. These actions, together with the independent actions of individuals and businesses aimed at slowing the spread of the virus, have resulted in extensive economic disruption and rapid declines in certain consumer and commercial activity. Many businesses have experienced and are continuing to experience significant declines in revenue and there have been, and continue to be, elevated unemployment rates throughout our markets with corresponding negative effects on consumer spending and behavior. Whether the efforts to stop the spread of COVID-19 will be successful is unknown at this time as cases, hospitalizations and deaths in some of our markets remain elevated and in recent weeks new variants or mutations of the virus have begun to emerge that in some cases are more contagious than the original virus, and continued spread of the disease or continuation of higher levels of cases, hospitalizations and deaths during 2021 will further negatively impact the businesses and lives of our customers and our results of operations.

In March 2020, the Federal Open Market Committee reduced the target Federal funds rate by 150 basis points and for a portion of March 2020 the 10-year treasury bond rate fell to below 1.00% for the first time in history. These actions, and other actions being taken by governmental and regulatory agencies affecting monetary policy in response to the unprecedented challenges resulting from the spread of COVID-19, have negatively impacted our net interest margin and our results and are likely to continue to negatively impact our net interest margin and our results in 2021.

As a result of COVID-19, many of our borrowers, particularly those that operate in the restaurant, entertainment, hospitality and retail sectors, but also other businesses as well, including owners of commercial real estate properties and hotels, are experiencing varying degrees of financial distress, which is expected to continue, over the coming months. As a result, these borrowers may have difficulty paying, on a timely basis, interest and principal payments on their loans and the value of collateral securing these obligations may be adversely impacted as well. Though we have worked with borrowers to modify their loans under our short-term deferral program and under Section 4013 of the CARES Act, these borrowers may still be experiencing distress. As a result, these borrowers may have difficulty satisfying their obligations to us. Disruptions to our customers’ businesses, together with volatility in the stock market, could also result in declines to our wealth management revenues.

The economic pressures and uncertainties arising from the COVID-19 pandemic have resulted in specific changes in consumer and business spending and borrowing and saving habits, affecting the demand for loans and other products and services we offer, and these changes are likely to persist until the pandemic subsides. These economic pressures may be more severe, and changes in behavior more pronounced, if additional government stimulus programs are not timely approved, or approved at all, or if they do not provide sufficient relief when approved. Consumers affected by COVID-19 may continue to demonstrate changed behavior even after the crisis is over. For example, consumers may decrease discretionary spending on a permanent or long-term basis and, certain industries may take longer to recover (particularly those that rely on travel or large gatherings) as consumers may be hesitant to return to full social interaction. We lend to customers operating in such industries including restaurants, hotels/lodging, entertainment, retail and commercial real estate, among others, that have been significantly impacted by COVID-19 and we are continuing to monitor these customers closely. The changes in behaviors driven by COVID-19, particularly if those changes continue after the pandemic is over, also present heightened liquidity risks, for example, arising from increased demand for our products and services (such as elevated levels of draws on credit facilities) or decreased demand for our products and services (such as idiosyncratic, or broad-based, market or other developments that lead to deposit outflows).

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Like our borrowers, BHG’s borrowers have been similarly affected by COVID-19. Many of BHG’s borrowers are medical or dental practices that were particularly impacted by safer-at-home orders that effectively caused those practices’ revenues to decline materially as a result of elective procedures being prohibited, cancelled or delayed or individuals’ decisions to postpone non-emergency procedures, even as restrictions on elective procedures are relaxed. Though these borrowers' businesses have improved recently, increased levels of cases and renewed government mandated closures and restrictions could again negatively impact these borrowers' businesses. For those loans that BHG has sold through its auction platform, BHG may at its sole discretion, in response to a request from a purchaser of a loan, agree to substitute a performing loan for one that has become past due more than 90 days. If requests for substitutions increase, and BHG opts to provide the substitution. BHG’s credit losses may likewise increase and its results of operations would be adversely impacted.

COVID-19’s economic disruption has also impacted many states and municipalities. As a result, many states and municipalities are facing a strain on resources and a reduction in tax collections and some of these have sought assistance from the Federal government to cover the cost of resource depletion and tax shortfalls. The ability of states and municipalities to fund shortfalls could have an adverse effect on their ability to sustain debt maintenance obligations which would negatively impact the value of our municipal bond portfolio if we hold bonds issued by those states or municipalities.

Bank regulatory agencies have been (and are expected to continue to be) very proactive in responding to both market and supervisory concerns arising from the COVID-19 pandemic as well as the potential impact on customers, especially borrowers. As shown during and following the financial crisis, periods of economic and financial disruption and stress have, in the past, resulted in increased scrutiny of banking organizations. We are closely monitoring the potential for new laws and regulations impacting lending and funding practices as well as capital and liquidity standards including changes resulting from changes in leadership of these regulatory agencies. Such changes could require us to maintain significantly more capital, with common equity as a more predominant component, or manage the composition of our assets and liabilities to comply with formulaic liquidity requirements. Furthermore, provisions of the CARES Act allowed, but did not require, the FDIC to guarantee deposit obligations of banks in non-interest-bearing transaction accounts through December 31, 2020. Participation in any similar guarantee program authorized in subsequent legislation may result in fees and other assessments as the FDIC determines and may include special assessments. Other provisions of the CARES Act as well as actions taken by bank regulators, such as potential relief for working with borrowers who are distressed as a result of the effects of COVID-19, could similarly impact aggregate deposit insurance expense.

As we have sought to protect the health and safety of our employees and customers during the pandemic, we have taken numerous actions to modify our business operations, including restricting employee travel, directing a significant percentage of our employees that were able to do so to work from home, closing the lobbies of many of our branches, and in some cases the branch itself, and implementing our business continuity plans and protocols. We may take further actions in the future either of our own volition or as a result of government orders or directives. Though we believe we have been able to adequately service our clients under these restrictions, we cannot provide any assurances that our ability to do so wouldn’t be negatively impacted if additional restrictions are necessary or imposed on us in the future, including if key employees of ours or a significant number of our associates become ill as a result of contracting the virus. Given our preference for hiring experienced lenders the average age of an associate of ours may be higher than many of our peers and those of our associates who are of an age that puts them in a higher risk category may be more susceptible to contracting the virus. We rely on the services of various key vendors and business partners to service our clients and if those companies’ businesses or workforces are impacted in ways similar to those that may impact our business, our ability to service our customers could be impacted.

The economic uncertainty caused by COVID-19’s spread and the efforts of government and non-governmental authorities and the behavior of individuals seeking to slow its spread, caused our provision expense for credit losses to increase materially in 2020 and may contribute to further elevated levels of provision expense through the duration of the pandemic and any recovery period following its end. Increased provision levels would negatively impact our capital levels which may impact our ability to pay dividends or cause us to need to access the capital markets to support our capital needs. We have also taken efforts to increase our on-balance sheet liquidity and those efforts have caused, and may continue to cause, our net interest margin to be adversely impacted.

COVID-19 has not yet been contained and could affect significantly more households and businesses. Given the speed and unpredictable nature with which the pandemic is evolving, and the ongoing and fluid nature of the country’s response to it, it is difficult for us to accurately estimate the length and severity of the economic disruption being caused by COVID-19 or when normal economic and operating conditions will resume. As a result, the extent to which our results of operations, provision expense, capital levels, liquidity ratios and published credit ratings will be impacted is difficult to predict, and depends on, among other things, new information that may emerge concerning the scope, duration and severity of the COVID-19 pandemic, actions taken by governmental authorities and other parties in response to the pandemic, the speed with which the vaccines for COVID-19 can be widely distributed, those vaccines’ efficacy against the virus and public acceptance of the vaccines. The adverse impact of COVID-19 on the markets in which we operate and on our business, financial condition and results of operations is expected to remain elevated until the pandemic subsides.

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Our participation in the PPP may expose us to financial liability, credit losses, compliance costs or reputational damage.

Under the CARES Act, Congress created the PPP and authorized the Treasury to implement rules regarding the program. Funding under the original loan program expired on August 8, 2020. A second round of PPP funding was approved on December 27, 2020 under the Coronavirus Relief Act. Banks, like us, and non-bank lenders, including BHG, facilitated funding under the original program, and are facilitating funding currently under the second round of the program, on behalf of the SBA for borrowers that were or are eligible participants. We also remain in the process of receiving and processing requests from our customers for forgiveness of their obligations under their original PPP loans. We and other lenders under the PPP, may face criticism from customers or others that are seeking forgiveness or applying for funding, which may be related to challenges we and others have faced due to inconsistent, constantly changing and incomplete rules and guidance adopted by the SBA and Treasury under the PPP. This criticism could cause reputational damage to us and there is a possibility that customers or others may threaten and pursue legal action against banks and other lenders like us and BHG under the program.

Among other regulatory requirements, PPP loans are subject to forbearance of loan payments for a ten-month period to the extent that loans are not eligible for forgiveness. If PPP borrowers fail to qualify for loan forgiveness, including by failing to use the funds appropriately in order to qualify for forgiveness under the program, we and BHG have a greater risk of holding these loans at unfavorable interest rates. In addition, because of the short time period between the passing of the CARES Act and the implementation of the PPP, there is ambiguity in the laws, rules, and guidance regarding the operation of the PPP, which exposes us and BHG to risks relating to noncompliance with the PPP. There is risk that the SBA or another governmental entity could conclude there is a deficiency in the manner in which we or BHG have originated, funded, or serviced PPP loans, which may or may not be related to the ambiguity in the CARES Act or the rules and guidance promulgated by the SBA and the Treasury regarding the operation of the PPP. In the event of such deficiency, the SBA may deny its liability under the guaranty, reduce the amount of the guaranty, or, if it has already made payment under the guaranty, seek recovery of any loss related to the deficiency from us or BHG.

Since the commencement of the PPP, several banks have been subject to litigation regarding the process and procedures that such banks followed in accepting and processing applications for the PPP. We and BHG may be exposed to the risk of similar litigation, from both customers and non-customers that contacted us or BHG regarding obtaining PPP loans with respect to the processes and procedures we or BHG used in processing applications for the PPP. Legal proceedings related to our or BHG’s participation in the PPP if not resolved in a manner that is favorable to us, or BHG, may result in significant financial liability to us or BHG, or adversely affect our, or BHG’s results of operations, financial condition or reputation. In addition, litigation can be costly, regardless of outcome. Any financial liability, litigation costs, or reputational damage caused by PPP-related litigation could have a material adverse impact on our or BHG's reputation, business, financial condition, and results of operations.

In addition, we may be subject to regulatory scrutiny regarding our processing of PPP applications or forgiveness requests or our origination or servicing of PPP loans. While the SBA has said that in many instances, banks may rely on the certifications of borrowers regarding their eligibility for PPP loans, we do have several obligations under the PPP, and if the SBA found that we did not meet those obligations, the remedies the SBA may seek against us are unknown but may include not guarantying the PPP loans resulting in credit exposure to borrowers who may be unable to repay their loans. The PPP may also attract significant interest from federal and state enforcement authorities, oversight agencies, regulators, and Congressional committees. State Attorneys General and other federal and state agencies may assert that they are not subject to the provisions of the CARES Act or the Coronavirus Relief Act and the PPP regulations entitling us to rely on borrower certifications, and take more aggressive action against us for alleged violations of the provisions governing our participation in the PPP.

Interest Rate Risks

Our net interest margin, and consequently our net earnings, are significantly affected by interest rate levels.

Our profitability is dependent to a large extent on net interest income, which is the difference between interest income earned on loans and investment securities and interest expense paid on deposits, other borrowings, subordinated debentures and subordinated notes. The absolute level of interest rates as well as changes in interest rates or that affect the yield curve may affect our level of interest income, the largest component of our gross revenue, as well as the level of our interest expense. Interest rate fluctuations are caused by many factors which, for the most part, are not under our control. For example, national monetary policy plays a significant role in the determination of interest rates. Additionally, competitor pricing and the resulting negotiations that occur with our customers also impact the rates we collect on loans and the rates we pay on deposits. In addition, changes in the method of determining the London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR) or other reference rates, or uncertainty related to such potential changes, may adversely affect the value of reference rate-linked debt securities that we hold or issue, which could further impact our interest rate spread.

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Changes in the level of interest rates also may negatively affect our ability to originate loans, the value of our assets and our ability to realize gains from the sale of our assets, all of which could ultimately affect our results of operations and financial condition. A decline in the market value of our assets may limit our ability to borrow additional funds. As a result, we could be required to sell some of our loans and investments under adverse market conditions, upon terms that are not favorable to us, in order to maintain our liquidity. If those sales are made at prices lower than the amortized costs of the investments, we will incur losses. Following changes in the general level of interest rates, our ability to maintain a positive net interest spread is dependent on our ability to increase (in a rising rate environment) or maintain or minimize the decline in (in a falling rate environment) our loan offering rates, minimize increases on our deposit rates in a rising rate environment or promptly reduce the rates we pay on deposits in a falling rate environment, and maintain an acceptable level and mix of funding. Although we have implemented strategies we believe will reduce the potential effects of changes in interest rates on our net interest income, these strategies may not always be successful, and, in the case of certain hedging strategies, could materially and adversely impact our results of operations if short term interest rates move in a direction that is different than the direction we anticipated at the time we initiated the strategy. Accordingly, changes in levels of market interest rates could materially and adversely affect our net interest income and our net interest margin, asset quality, loan origination volume, liquidity, and overall profitability. We cannot assure you that we can minimize our interest rate risk.

An important component of our ability to mitigate pressures of a down rate environment will be our ability to reduce the rates we pay on deposits, including core deposits. If we are unable to reduce these rates, because of competitive pricing pressures in our markets, liquidity purposes or otherwise, our net interest margin will be negatively impacted. In addition, as our growth in earning assets outpaced growth in our core deposits prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, we had to increase our reliance on noncore funding. Though our reliance on non-core funding has diminished as a result of increased customer deposits during the pandemic, we may experience increased reliance on non-core funding sources as the effects of the pandemic begin to wane.

These funding sources may be more rate sensitive than our core depositors, and, accordingly, we may be limited in our ability to reduce the rates we pay on these funds while maintaining on-balance sheet liquidity levels consistent with our policies, which would negatively impact our net interest margin. We seek to limit the amount of non-core funding we utilize to support our growth. If we are unable to grow our core funding at rates that are sufficient to match or exceed our loan growth we may be required to slow our loan growth.

As interest rates change, we expect that we will periodically experience “gaps” in the interest rate sensitivities of our assets and liabilities, meaning that either our interest-bearing liabilities (usually deposits and borrowings) will be more sensitive to changes in market interest rates than our interest-earning assets (usually loans and investment securities), or vice versa. In either event, if market interest rates should move contrary to our position, this “gap” may work against us, and our results of operations and financial condition may be negatively affected. We attempt to manage our risk from changes in market interest rates by adjusting the rates, maturity, repricing characteristics, and balances of the different types of our interest-earning assets and interest-bearing liabilities and by utilizing hedging strategies to reduce the impact of changes in rates. Interest rate risk management techniques are not exact. As discussed above, from time to time we have repositioned a portion of our investment securities portfolio in an effort to better position our balance sheet for potential changes in short-term rates. We employ the use of models and modeling techniques to quantify the levels of risks to net interest income, which inherently involve the use of assumptions, judgments, and estimates. While we strive to ensure the accuracy of our modeled interest rate risk profile, there are inherent limitations and imprecisions in this determination and actual results may differ.

We have entered into certain hedging transactions including interest rate swaps and interest rate floors, which are designed to lessen elements of our interest rate exposure. In addition, we have utilized fixed-to-floating rate cash flow hedges to manage interest rate exposure for our wholesale borrowings portfolio. This hedging strategy converted the LIBOR-based variable interest rate on forecasted borrowings to a fixed interest rate and was used in an effort to protect us from floating interest rate variability in a rising rate environment. In the event that interest rates do not change in the manner that we anticipate at the times we institute our hedging strategies or at the pace that we anticipated, such transactions may materially and adversely affect our results of operations.

Hedging creates certain risks for us, including the risk that the other party to the hedge transaction will fail to perform (counterparty risk, which is a type of credit risk), and the risk that the hedge will not fully protect us from loss as intended (hedge failure risk). Unexpected counterparty failure or hedge failure could have a significant adverse effect on our liquidity and earnings.

The performance of our investment securities portfolio is subject to fluctuation due to changes in interest rates and market conditions, including credit deterioration of the issuers of individual securities.

Changes in interest rates can negatively affect the performance of most of our investment securities. Interest rate volatility can reduce unrealized gains or increase unrealized losses in our portfolio. Interest rates are highly sensitive to many factors including monetary policies, domestic and international economic, social and political issues, including trade disputes and global health pandemics, and other factors beyond our control. Fluctuations in interest rates can materially affect both the returns on and market value of our investment securities. Additionally, actual investment income and cash flows from investment securities that carry prepayment risk, such as mortgage-backed securities and callable securities, may materially differ from those anticipated at the time of investment or subsequently as a result of changes in interest rates and market conditions.

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Our investment securities portfolio consists of several securities whose trading markets are “not active.” As a result, we utilize alternative methodologies for pricing these securities that include various estimates and assumptions. There can be no assurance that we can sell these investment securities at the price derived by these methodologies, or that we can sell these investment securities at all, which could have an adverse effect on our financial condition, results of operations and liquidity.

We monitor the financial position of the various issuers of investment securities in our portfolio, including each of the state and local governments and other political subdivisions where we have exposure. To the extent we have securities in our portfolio from issuers who have experienced a deterioration of financial condition, or who may experience future deterioration of financial condition, the value of such securities may decline and could result in an other-than-temporary impairment charge, which could have an adverse effect on our financial condition, results of operations and liquidity.

In addition, from time to time we may restructure portions of our investment securities portfolio as part of our asset liability management strategies, and may incur losses, which may be material, in connection with any such restructuring.

Changes to LIBOR may adversely affect the holder of, the market value of, and the interest expense paid on our subordinated notes and our subordinated debentures and related trust preferred securities, and may affect certain of our loans.

On July 27, 2017, the Financial Conduct Authority, which regulates LIBOR, announced that it intends to stop persuading or compelling banks to submit rates for the calculation of LIBOR to the LIBOR administrator after 2021. The announcement indicates that the continuation of LIBOR on the current basis cannot and will not be guaranteed after 2021. It is impossible to predict whether and to what extent banks will continue to provide LIBOR submissions to the LIBOR administrator, whether LIBOR will cease to be published or supported during or after 2021 or whether any additional reforms to LIBOR may be enacted in the United Kingdom or elsewhere; however, it does appear highly likely that LIBOR will be discontinued or modified by the end of 2021. Given consumer protection, litigation, and reputation risks, the bank regulatory agencies have indicated that entering into new contracts that use LIBOR as a reference rate after December 31, 2021, would create safety and soundness risks and that they will examine bank practices accordingly. Therefore, the agencies encouraged banks to cease entering into new contracts that use LIBOR as a reference rate as soon as practicable and in any event by December 31, 2021. At this time, no consensus exists as to what rate or rates may become accepted alternatives to LIBOR and it is impossible to predict the effect of any such alternatives on the value of securities based on LIBOR such as our subordinated notes and our subordinated debentures and related trust preferred securities. In particular, regulators, industry groups and certain committees (e.g., the Alternative Reference Rates Committee) have, among other things, published recommended fall-back language for LIBOR-linked financial instruments, identified recommended alternatives for certain LIBOR rates (e.g., AMERIBOR or the Secured Overnight Financing Rate as the recommended alternative to U.S. Dollar LIBOR), and proposed implementations of the recommended alternatives in floating rate instruments. At this time, it is not possible to predict whether these specific recommendations and proposals will be broadly accepted, whether they will continue to evolve, and what the effect of their implementation may be on the markets for floating-rate financial instruments. Uncertainty as to the nature of such potential changes, alternative reference rates, the replacement or disappearance of LIBOR or other reforms may adversely affect the value of and the return on our subordinated notes and our subordinated debentures and related trust preferred securities, as well as the interest we pay on those securities.

At December 31, 2020, approximately 36.3% of our total loan portfolio was indexed to 30-day, 90-day, 180-day and one-year LIBOR. Many of our loan agreements that are indexed to LIBOR include provisions that do not require us to default to any alternative index recommendations but instead allow us, in our sole discretion, to designate an alternative interest rate index in the event that LIBOR should become unavailable or unstable. While we believe these provisions within our loan agreements address the potential future unavailability of LIBOR, there can be no assurance that such provisions will be effective or that they, or our actions in this respect, will not be challenged by our borrowers.

Credit and Lending Risks

We have a concentration of credit exposure to borrowers in certain industries, and we also target small to medium-sized businesses.

We have meaningful credit exposures to borrowers in certain businesses, including commercial and residential building lessors, new home builders and hotel and motel owners and/or operators. Certain industries, particularly hotel and motel operators, experienced adversity during 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, and, as a result, an increased level of borrowers in these industries were unable to perform under their loan agreements with us, resulting in modifications of these loans, or suffered loan downgrades which negatively impacted our results of operations. If the negative economic impact of the pandemic extends deep into 2021 or beyond, these industry or other concentrations could result in increased deterioration in credit quality, past dues, loan charge offs and collateral value declines, which could cause our results of operations and financial condition to be negatively impacted. Furthermore, any of our large credit exposures that deteriorate unexpectedly could cause us to have to make significant additional credit loss provisions, negatively impacting our results of operations and financial condition.

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A substantial focus of our marketing and business strategy is to serve small to medium-sized businesses in our market areas. As a result, a relatively high percentage of our loan portfolio consists of commercial loans primarily to small to medium-sized businesses. At December 31, 2020, our commercial and industrial loans accounted for approximately 35.9% of our total loans. Additionally, approximately 35.0% of our commercial real-estate loans at December 31, 2020 are owner-occupied commercial real estate loans, which are loans to businesses secured by the businesses’ real estate. We expect to seek to expand the amount of these two types of loans in our portfolio during 2021. During periods of lower economic growth or challenging economic periods like those resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, small to medium-sized businesses may be impacted more severely and more quickly than larger businesses. Consequently, the ability of such businesses to repay their loans may deteriorate, and in some cases this deterioration may occur quickly, which would adversely impact our results of operations and financial condition.

Real estate construction and development loans are also an important part of our business. This type of lending is generally considered to have relatively high credit risks because the principal is concentrated in a limited number of loans with repayment dependent on the successful completion and operation of the related real estate project. Real estate industry pricing dynamics in the geographical markets in which we operate can vary from year to year, and with respect to construction, can vary between project funding and project completion. Asset values to which we underwrite loans can fluctuate from year to year and impact collateral values and the ability of our borrowers to repay their loans. Like regulatory guidelines on commercial real estate loans, federal regulators have issued guidance that imposes additional restrictions on banks with construction and development loans in excess of 100% of total risk-based capital. If our level of these loans was to exceed these guidelines, our ability to make additional loans in this segment would be limited.

Weakness in residential real estate market prices as well as demand could result in price reductions in home and land values adversely affecting the value of collateral securing some of the construction and development loans that we hold. Should we experience the return of adverse economic and real estate market conditions similar to those we experienced from 2008 through 2010 we may again experience increases in non-performing loans and other real estate owned, increased losses and expenses from the management and disposition of non-performing assets, increases in provision for credit losses, and increases in operating expenses as a result of the allocation of management time and resources to the collection and work out of loans, all of which would negatively impact our financial condition and results of operations.

We make loans to portfolio companies of private equity firms and other loans that qualify as highly leveraged transactions. In certain instances these loans may deteriorate and that deterioration may occur quickly. If the private equity sponsor is unwilling or unable to provide necessary support we may suffer losses on these loans that could materially and adversely affect our results of operations.

Our ability to grow our loan portfolio may be limited by, among other things, economic conditions, competition within our market areas, the timing of loan repayments, our ability to grow our core deposits, our ability to hire experienced bankers and seasonality.

Our ability to improve our results of operations is dependent upon, among other things, growing our loan portfolio and increasing net interest income. While we believe that our strategy to grow our loan portfolio is sound and our growth targets are achievable over an extended period of time, competition within our market areas is significant, particularly for borrowers whose businesses were less negatively impacted by the challenging economic conditions of the pandemic. We compete with both large regional and national financial institutions, who are sometimes able to offer more attractive interest rates and other financial terms than we choose to offer, and smaller community-based financial institutions who seek to offer a similar level of service to that which we offer. This competition can make loan growth challenging, particularly if we are unwilling to price loans at levels that would cause unacceptable levels of compression of our net interest margin or if we are unwilling to structure a loan in a manner that we believe results in a level of risk to us that we are not willing to accept.

Our ability to grow our loan portfolio is also dependent on our ability to fund loan growth. We primarily seek to fund our loan growth through stable, core deposits, but at times our ability to attract core deposits in amounts sufficient to fund our loan growth has been limited by competitive pressures in our markets and our business model that focuses principally on serving small to medium-sized businesses and their owners rather than a broad retail distribution strategy. As a result, at times our funding sources have consisted of greater amounts of non-core funding.

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Larger banks, with a more developed retail footprint, and non-banks, who are able to operate with greater flexibility and lower cost structures due to less regulatory oversight, are better able to attract lower-cost retail deposits than we can, which at times causes us to utilize a larger percentage of noncore funding to fund our loan growth. Though we have grown our core deposits meaningfully during the COVID-19 pandemic, if we are unable to retain or attract core deposits at sufficient levels as the economic disruption from the pandemic lessens to fund our loan growth and our percentage of noncore funding rises to levels that approach our policy limits, we may need to modify our growth plans, liquidate certain assets, participate loans to correspondents or execute other actions to allow for us to return to an acceptable level of noncore funding within a reasonable amount of time, any one of which actions could adversely affect our results of operations, particularly during periods of time when our net interest margin is experiencing compression. Moreover, loan growth throughout the year can fluctuate due in part to seasonality of the businesses of our borrowers and potential borrowers and the timing on loan repayments, particularly those of our borrowers with significant relationships with us, resulting from, among other things, excess levels of liquidity.

Much of our organic loan growth that we have experienced in recent years (and a key part of our loan growth strategy in 2021 and beyond) was the result not of strong loan demand but rather of our ability to attract experienced financial services professionals who have been able to attract customers from other financial institutions. Inability to retain these key personnel (including key personnel of the businesses we have acquired) or to continue to attract experienced lenders with established books of business (including, in either case, as a result of competitive compensation and other hiring and retention pressures), at all or at the pace we have anticipated, could negatively impact our growth because of the loss of these individuals’ skills and customer relationships and/or the potential difficulty of promptly replacing them. Moreover, if these advisors we hire are unable to cause their customers to move their relationships to us in the time periods that we are targeting or at all, or if we are unable to retain such business, our loan growth may be negatively affected, which could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition.

Changes in accounting standards may change the way we calculate our Allowance for Credit Losses.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board and the SEC may change the financial accounting and reporting standards, or the interpretation of those standards, that govern the preparation of our external financial statements from time to time. The impact of these changes or the application thereof on our financial condition and operations can be difficult to predict. For example, the FASB adopted a new accounting standard that became effective for Pinnacle Bank beginning January 1, 2020. This standard, referred to as current expected credit loss, or CECL, requires financial institutions to determine periodic estimates of lifetime expected credit losses on financial assets, including loans, and recognize the expected credit losses through provision for credit losses. CECL changed the current method of provisioning for loan losses, which has required us to increase our allowance for credit losses, and is increasing the types and amounts of data we need to collect and review to determine the appropriate level of our allowance for credit losses. In addition, the adoption of CECL may result in more volatility in the level of our allowance for credit losses. An increase, to the extent material, in our allowance for credit losses or expenses incurred to determine the appropriate level of the allowance for credit losses could have a material adverse effect on our capital levels, financial condition and results of operations. A reduction in our capital levels could subject us to a variety of enforcement remedies available to the federal regulatory authorities and would negatively impact our ability to pursue acquisitions or other expansion opportunities if we are unable to satisfactorily raise additional capital.

If our Allowance for Credit Losses is not sufficient to cover losses inherent in our loan or securities portfolios, our results of operations and financial condition will be negatively impacted.

We maintain allowances for credit losses on loans, securities and off-balance sheet credit exposures. If loan customers with significant loan balances individually or in the aggregate fail to repay their loans, our results of operations, financial condition and capital levels will suffer. We make various assumptions and judgments about the expected losses in our loan portfolio, including the creditworthiness of our borrowers and the value of any collateral securing the loans. Utilizing objective and subjective factors, we maintain an allowance for credit losses, established through a provision for credit losses charged to expense, to cover our estimate of the current expected credit losses in our loan and securities portfolios. In determining the size of this allowance, we utilize estimates based on analyses of volume and types of loans, internal loan classifications, trends in classifications, volume and trends in delinquencies, nonaccruals and charge-offs, loss experience of various loan categories, national and local economic conditions, including unemployment statistics, industry and peer bank loan quality indications, and other pertinent factors and information. Actual losses are difficult to forecast, especially if those losses stem from factors beyond our historical experience or are otherwise inconsistent with our credit quality assessments. If our assumptions are inaccurate, our current allowance may not be sufficient to cover potential credit losses, and additional provisions may be necessary which would negatively impact our results of operations and financial condition.

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In addition, federal and state regulators periodically review our loan portfolio and may require us to increase our allowance for credit losses or recognize loan charge-offs. Their conclusions about the quality of a particular borrower or our entire loan portfolio may be different than ours. Any increase in our allowance for credit losses or loan charge offs as required by these regulatory agencies could have a negative effect on our results of operations and financial condition. Moreover, additions to the allowance may be necessary based on changes in economic and real estate market conditions, new information regarding existing loans, identification of additional problem loans, accounting rule changes (like those that contributed to increases levels of provision expense in 2020 as a result of our adopting CECL and other factors, both within and outside of our management’s control. These additions may require increased provision expense which would negatively impact our results of operations and financial condition.

Our accounting estimates and risk management processes rely on analytical and forecasting models and tools.

The processes we use to estimate expected credit losses, calculate our allowance for credit losses and measure the fair value of financial instruments, as well as the processes used to estimate the effects of changing interest rates and other measures of our financial condition and results of operations, depend upon the use of analytical and forecasting models and tools. These models and tools reflect assumptions that may not be accurate, particularly in times of market stress or other unforeseen circumstances. Even if these assumptions are accurate, the models and tools may prove to be inadequate or inaccurate because of other flaws in their design or their implementation. Any such failure in our analytical or forecasting models and tools could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Environmental liability associated with commercial lending could result in losses.

In the course of business, Pinnacle Bank may acquire, through foreclosure, or deed in lieu of foreclosure, properties securing loans it has originated or purchased which are in default. Particularly in commercial real estate lending, there is a risk that hazardous substances could be discovered on these properties. In this event, Pinnacle Financial, or Pinnacle Bank, might be required to remove these substances from the affected properties at our sole cost and expense. The cost of this removal could substantially exceed the value of affected properties. We may not have adequate remedies against the prior owner or other responsible parties and could find it difficult or impossible to sell the affected properties. These events could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.

We have acquired a number of retail banking facilities and other real properties, any of which may contain hazardous or toxic substances. If hazardous or toxic substances are found, we may be liable for remediation costs, as well as for personal injury and property damage. Environmental laws may require us to incur substantial expenses and may materially reduce the affected property’s value or limit our ability to use or sell the affected property. In addition, future laws or more stringent interpretations or enforcement policies with respect to existing laws may increase our exposure to environmental liability.

We depend on the accuracy and completeness of information about customers.

In deciding whether to extend credit or enter into certain transactions, we rely on information furnished by or on behalf of customers, including financial statements, credit reports, tax returns and other financial information. We may also rely on representations of those customers or other third parties, such as independent auditors, as to the accuracy and completeness of that information. Reliance on inaccurate or misleading personal information, financial statements, credit reports, tax returns or other financial information, including information falsely provided as a result of identity theft, could have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We may be subject to claims and litigation asserting lender liability.

From time to time, and particularly during periods of economic stress, customers, including real estate developers and consumer borrowers, may make claims or otherwise take legal action pertaining to performance of our responsibilities. These claims are often referred to as “lender liability” claims and are sometimes brought in an effort to produce or increase leverage against us in workout negotiations or debt collection proceedings. Lender liability claims frequently assert one or more of the following allegations: breach of fiduciary duties, fraud, economic duress, breach of contract, breach of the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing, and similar claims. Whether customer claims and legal action related to the performance of our responsibilities are founded or unfounded, if such claims and legal actions are not resolved in a favorable manner, they may result in significant financial liability and/or adversely affect our market reputation, products and services, as well as potentially affecting customer demand for those products and services. Any financial liability or reputation damage could have a material adverse effect on our business, which, in turn, could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition, results of operations and liquidity.

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Liquidity and Capital Risks

Liquidity risk could impair our ability to fund our operations and jeopardize our financial condition.

Liquidity represents an institution’s ability to provide funds to satisfy demands from depositors, borrowers and other creditors by either converting assets into cash or accessing new or existing sources of incremental funds. Liquidity risk arises from the possibility that we may be unable to satisfy current or future funding requirements and needs.

The objective of managing liquidity risk is to ensure that our cash flow requirements resulting from depositor, borrower and other creditor demands as well as our operating cash needs, are met, and that our cost of funding such requirements and needs is reasonable. We maintain an asset/liability and interest rate risk policy and a liquidity and funds management policy, including a contingency funding plan that, among other things, include procedures for managing and monitoring liquidity risk. Generally we rely on deposits, repayments of loans and cash flows from our investment securities as our primary sources of funds. Our principal deposit sources include consumer, commercial and public funds customers in our markets. We have used these funds, together with wholesale deposit sources such as brokered deposits, along with Federal Home Loan Bank of Cincinnati (“FHLB Cincinnati”) advances, federal funds purchased and other sources of short-term and long-term borrowings, including subordinated indebtedness, to make loans, acquire investment securities and other assets and to fund continuing operations.

An inability to maintain or raise funds in amounts necessary to meet our liquidity needs could have a substantial negative effect, individually or collectively, on Pinnacle Financial's and Pinnacle Bank's liquidity. Our access to funding sources in amounts adequate to finance our activities, or on terms attractive to us, could be impaired by factors that affect us specifically or the financial services industry in general. For example, factors that could detrimentally impact our access to liquidity sources include a decrease in the level of our business activity due to a market downturn or adverse regulatory action against us, increased levels of indebtedness, a reduction in our published credit ratings, any damage to our reputation or any other decrease in depositor or investor confidence in our creditworthiness and business. Our access to liquidity could also be impaired by factors that are not specific to us, such as severe volatility or disruption of the financial markets or negative views and expectations about the prospects for the financial services industry as a whole. Any such event or failure to manage our liquidity effectively could affect our competitive position, increase our borrowing costs and the interest rates we pay on deposits, limit our access to the capital markets, cause our regulators to criticize our operations and have a material adverse effect on our results of operations or financial condition.

Deposit levels may be affected by a number of factors, including demands by customers, rates paid by competitors (particularly as it relates to brokered deposits and other noncore deposits), general interest rate levels, returns available to customers on alternative investments, government programs, general economic and market conditions and other factors. Loan repayments are a relatively stable source of funds but are subject to the borrowers’ ability to repay loans, which can be adversely affected by a number of factors including changes in general economic conditions, adverse trends or events affecting business industry groups or specific businesses, declines in real estate values or markets, business closings or lay-offs, inclement weather, natural disasters, prolonged government shutdowns and other factors. Furthermore, loans generally are not readily convertible to cash. Accordingly, we may be required from time to time to rely on secondary sources of liquidity to meet growth in loans, deposit withdrawal demands or otherwise fund operations. Such secondary sources include FHLB Cincinnati advances, brokered deposits, secured and unsecured federal funds lines of credit from correspondent banks, Federal Reserve borrowings and/or accessing the equity or debt capital markets. An increase in our reliance on noncore funding (particularly brokered time deposits), as occurred in 2019, would increase our liquidity risk.

These noncore funding sources can be more rate sensitive than core deposits, and the availability of these noncore funding sources is subject to broad economic conditions, in some instances regulation, and to investor assessment of our financial strength and, as such, the cost of funds may fluctuate significantly and/or the availability of such funds may be restricted, thus impacting our net interest income, our immediate liquidity and/or our access to additional liquidity. We have somewhat similar risks to the extent high balance core deposits exceed the amount of deposit insurance coverage available.

In the event that our funding strategies call for the use of brokered deposits, there can be no assurance that such sources will be available, or will remain available, or that the cost of such funding sources will be reasonable, or that we will be able to offer competitive rates to retain these deposits upon their maturity (particularly in a down rate or low rate environment). Additionally, should we no longer be considered well-capitalized, our ability to access new brokered deposits or retain existing brokered deposits could be affected by market conditions, regulatory requirements or a combination thereof, which could result in most, if not all, brokered deposit sources being unavailable. The inability to utilize brokered deposits as a source of funding could have an adverse effect on our results of operations, financial condition and liquidity.

We anticipate we will continue to rely primarily on deposits, loan repayments, and cash flows from our investment securities to provide liquidity. Additionally, where necessary, the secondary sources of borrowed funds and brokered deposits described above will be used to augment our primary funding sources. If we are unable to access any of these secondary funding sources when needed, or retain these funding sources upon maturity, we might be unable to meet our customers’ or creditors’ needs, which would adversely affect our financial condition, results of operations, and liquidity.

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Our ability to maintain required capital levels and adequate sources of funding and liquidity could be impacted by changes in the capital markets and deteriorating economic and market conditions.

Federal and state bank regulators require Pinnacle Financial and Pinnacle Bank to maintain adequate levels of capital to support operations. At December 31, 2020, Pinnacle Bank’s regulatory capital ratios were at “well-capitalized” levels under regulatory guidelines. Growth in assets (either organically or as a result of acquisitions) at rates in excess of the rate at which our capital is increased through retained earnings will reduce our capital ratios unless we continue to increase capital. Failure by us to meet applicable capital guidelines or to satisfy certain other regulatory requirements could subject us to a variety of enforcement remedies available to the federal regulatory authorities and would negatively impact our ability to pursue acquisitions or other expansion opportunities.

We may need to raise additional capital (including through the issuance of common or preferred stock or additional Tier 2 capital instruments) in the future to provide us with sufficient capital resources (or replace expiring capital instruments) and liquidity to meet our commitments and business needs or in connection with our growth or as a result of deterioration in our asset quality. Our ability to maintain capital levels, sources of funding and liquidity could be impacted by negative perceptions of our business or prospects, changes in the capital markets and deteriorating economic and market conditions. Pinnacle Bank is required to obtain regulatory approval in order to pay dividends to Pinnacle Financial unless the amount of such dividends does not exceed its net income for that calendar year plus retained net income for the preceding two years. Any restriction on the ability of Pinnacle Bank to pay dividends to Pinnacle Financial could impact Pinnacle Financial’s ability to continue to pay dividends on its capital stock or its ability to pay interest on its indebtedness.

Unexpected changes in requirements for capital resulting from regulatory actions could require us to raise capital at a time, and at a price, that might be unfavorable, or could require that we forego continuing growth or reduce our current loan portfolio. We cannot assure you that access to capital will be available to us in needed amounts or on acceptable terms or at all. Any occurrence that may limit our access to the capital markets may materially and adversely affect our capital costs and our ability to raise capital and/or debt and, in turn, our liquidity. If we cannot raise additional capital when needed, our ability to expand through internal growth or acquisitions or to continue operations could be impaired. Factors that could adversely affect our ability to raise additional capital or necessary funding include conditions in the capital markets, our financial performance, our credit ratings, regulatory actions and general economic conditions. Increases in our cost of capital, including dilution and increased interest or dividend requirements, could have a direct adverse impact on our operating performance and our ability to achieve our growth objectives.

Operational and Market Risks

Negative developments in the U.S. and local economy may adversely impact our results in the future.

Our financial performance is highly dependent on the business environment in the markets where we operate and in the U.S. as a whole. Unfavorable or uncertain economic and market conditions can be caused by declines in economic growth, business activity, investor or business confidence, consumer sentiment, limitations on the availability or increases in the cost of credit and capital, increases in inflation or interest rates, natural disasters, international trade disputes and retaliatory tariffs, terrorist attacks, global pandemics, acts of war, or a combination of these or other factors. Economic conditions in certain industries in the markets in which we operate deteriorated rapidly in 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. These challenges manifested themselves primarily within the hotel, restaurant, retail, commercial real estate and entertainment industries and contributed to increased levels of provisions for credit losses. A continued worsening of business and economic conditions generally or specifically in the principal markets in which we conduct business could have adverse effects, including the following:

•a decrease in deposit balances or the demand for loans and other products and services we offer;

•an increase in the number of borrowers who become delinquent, file for protection under bankruptcy laws or default on their loans or other obligations to us, which could lead to higher levels of nonperforming assets, net charge-offs and provisions for credit losses;

•a decrease in the value of loans and other assets secured by real estate;

•a decrease in net interest income from our lending and deposit gathering activities; and

•an increase in competition resulting from financial services companies.

Although economic conditions have improved in most of our markets when compared to the first and second quarters of 2020 and we have returned our focus to growing earning assets, we believe that it is possible we will continue to experience an uncertain and volatile economic environment during 2021, including as a result of issues of national security, COVID-19 and other health crises around the world and prolonged international trade disputes. There can be no assurance that these conditions will improve in the near term or that conditions will not worsen. Such conditions could adversely affect our business, financial condition, and results of operations.

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In addition, over the last several years, the federal government has shut down periodically, in some cases for prolonged periods. It is possible that the federal government may shut down again in the future, particularly in light of the evenly divided United States Senate. If a prolonged government shutdown occurs, it could significantly impact business and economic conditions generally or specifically in our principal markets, which could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition.

Our operations are principally geographically concentrated in certain markets in the southeastern United States, and changes in local economic conditions impact our profitability.

A significant percentage of our borrowers are situated in various MSAs in Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia in which we operate. In December 2019, we also expanded our operations into Georgia. Our success significantly depends upon the growth in population, income levels, deposits, employment levels and housing starts in our markets, along with the continued attraction of business ventures to these areas, and our profitability is impacted by the changes in general economic conditions in these markets and other markets in which collateral securing our loans is located. We cannot assure you that economic conditions, including loan demand, in these markets will not remain sluggish during 2021 or thereafter, and as a result, we may not be able to grow our loan portfolio in line with our expectations and the ability of our customers to repay their loans to us may be negatively impacted and our financial condition and results of operations could be negatively and materially impacted.

Our business may suffer if there are significant declines in the value of real estate.

The market value of real estate can fluctuate significantly in a short period of time as a result of market conditions in the geographic area in which the real estate is located. If the value of the real estate serving as collateral for our loan portfolio were to decline materially, a significant part of our loan portfolio could become under-collateralized. If the loans that are collateralized by real estate become troubled during a time when market conditions are declining or have declined, we may not be able to realize the value of the security anticipated when we originated the loan, which in turn could have an adverse effect on our allowance and provision for loan and lease losses and our financial condition, results of operations and liquidity.

Most of our foreclosed assets are comprised of real estate properties. We carry these properties at their estimated fair values less estimated selling costs. While we believe the carrying values for such assets are reasonable and appropriately reflect current market conditions, there can be no assurance that the values of such assets will not further decline prior to sale or that the amount of proceeds realized upon disposition of foreclosed assets will approximate the carrying value of such assets. If the proceeds from any such dispositions are less than the carrying value of foreclosed assets, we will record a loss on the disposition of such assets, which in turn could have an adverse effect on our results of operations.

Compared to national financial institutions, we are less able to spread the risks of unfavorable local economic conditions across a large number of diversified economies. Moreover, we cannot give any assurance that we will benefit from any market growth or return of more favorable economic conditions in our primary market areas if they do occur.

BHG’s results of operations have become a larger portion of our results of operations, and challenges in BHG’s business that negatively affect its results would now more significantly impact our results.

Pinnacle Financial and Pinnacle Bank collectively hold a 49% interest in BHG. Our share of BHG’s earnings make up a significant portion of our recurring noninterest income, and as a result, a meaningful portion of our net income. While we have a significant stake in BHG, are entitled to designate two members of BHG’s five person board of managers and in some instances have protective rights to block BHG from engaging in certain activities, the other managers and members of BHG may make most decisions regarding BHG’s and its subsidiaries’ operations without our consent or approval. This includes a decision to sell the company. Any sale of all or a portion of our interest in BHG would adversely affect our recurring noninterest income. In addition, any sale of all or a portion of the other members' interest in BHG, including in connection with a capital raising transaction, could affect our governance rights in BHG and adversely affect our recurring noninterest income. Moreover, there are certain limitations on our ability to sell our interest in BHG without first offering BHG and the other members a right of first refusal, and we are prohibited from transferring any portion of our interest without the consent of the other members of BHG prior to March 1, 2021, other than transfers in connection with an acquisition of Pinnacle Financial or Pinnacle Bank or as a result of a change in applicable law that forces Pinnacle Financial and/or Pinnacle Bank to divest Pinnacle Financial’s or Pinnacle Bank’s ownership interests in BHG.

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A significant portion of BHG’s revenue (and correspondingly our interest in any of BHG’s net profits) comes from the sale of loans originated by BHG to community banks. BHG, and its subsidiaries, also retain loans that they originate on their balance sheet and earn interest income on those loans. Recently, BHG has been retaining more of the loans that it originates on its balance sheet. This practice requires more external funding of BHG’s business than the historical practice of routinely selling loans to other financial institutions and will likely increase BHG’s funding costs. It also increases BHG’s exposure to credit losses in its portfolio, which losses could materially and adversely impact BHG’s results of operations and Pinnacle Financial’s and Pinnacle Bank’s interest in BHG’s net profits. If BHG is unable to secure the necessary funding for this change in its business model, it may be required to return to a business model that focuses more on a gain on sale approach that could negatively impact BHG’s results and our noninterest income contributed by our investment in BHG.

Future contributions to our earnings from BHG and its subsidiaries will require that they continue to grow their business and increase the amount of loans that they are able to originate and sell, if not retained on BHG’s or a subsidiary’s balance sheet. In the event that BHG’s loan growth slows over historical levels, its loan sales decrease (including but not limited to as a result of regulatory restrictions on banks that are the principal purchasers of BHG’s loans) or it experiences increased levels of loan losses or requests for substitutions and loans it previously originated and sold, its results of operations and our noninterest income would be adversely affected. BHG currently operates in most states without the need for a permit or any other license as its loans are principally commercial, business purpose loans that don’t trigger the need for licensure. In the event that BHG or its subsidiaries were required to register or become licensed in any state in which they operate, including as a result of their expanding into consumer lending or expanding into other lending areas like patient financing, or regulations are adopted that seek to limit BHG’s or its subsidiaries’ ability to operate in any jurisdiction or that seek to limit the amounts of interest that BHG can charge on its loans, BHG’s results of operations (and Pinnacle Financial’s and Pinnacle Bank’s interest in BHG’s net profits) could be materially and adversely affected.

Recently, BHG has expanded its operations to include commercial lending to other professional service firms like attorneys, accountants and others. Through subsidiaries that it owns, it also has expanded into patient financing, which involves making loans to individuals to finance medical expenses, particularly those where patients have high deductible health plans. BHG may further expand its business into other types of lending, which may not be as profitable as BHG’s current lending products or successful at all. These new product lines may involve more risk than BHG’s historical business and BHG’s loss rates may increase when compared to historical levels. Moreover, BHG and its subsidiaries will likely face greater regulatory scrutiny in certain of these lines of business that may increase BHG’s compliance costs and its risk of regulatory scrutiny. Failure to realize the expected revenue increases and/or other projected benefits from, and any increased compliance costs and regulatory scrutiny in connection with, any such expansion could have a negative impact on BHG’s business, which would negatively impact our interest in BHG’s profits.

BHG’s business is also subject to increased scrutiny by bank regulatory agencies as a result of our investment. The FDIC has published guidance related to the operation of marketplace lenders and banks’ business relationships with such lenders and other third parties in which banks are required to exercise increased oversight and ongoing monitoring and other responsibility for such third parties’ compliance with applicable regulatory guidance and requirements. As a result, we are subject to enhanced responsibility for and risk related to BHG and our relationship with it. BHG’s compliance costs have increased since our investment and are likely to continue to increase, including as a result of its new product lines, and its loan yields may be negatively impacted, which would negatively impact its results of operations and Pinnacle Financial’s and Pinnacle Bank’s interest in BHG’s net profits. If banks that are examined by the FDIC became restricted in their ability to buy loans originated by BHG, BHG’s business would be negatively impacted, which would negatively impact our interest in BHG’s profits.

Because of our ownership of a portion of BHG, BHG is limited in the types of activities in which it may engage. Were BHG to desire to expand its operations into areas that are not permissible for an entity owned by a state member bank like Pinnacle Bank, it may need to do so through separate entities in which we do not have an ownership interest. Were these businesses to be more profitable than BHG’s core business or require BHG’s management’s attention in ways that are detrimental to BHG, our investment in BHG may be negatively impacted.

A decline in our stock price or expected future cash flows, or a material adverse change in our results of operations or prospects, could result in impairment of our goodwill.

A significant and sustained decline in our stock price and market capitalization below book value, a significant decline in our expected future cash flows, a significant adverse change in the business climate, slower growth rates or other factors could result in impairment of our goodwill. At December 31, 2020, our goodwill and other identifiable intangible assets totaled approximately $1.9 billion. If we were to conclude that a write-down of our goodwill is necessary, then the appropriate charge would likely cause a material loss. Any significant loss would adversely impact the capacity of Pinnacle Bank to pay dividends to Pinnacle Financial without seeking prior regulatory approval, which could adversely affect Pinnacle Financial’s ability to pay required interest payments on its outstanding indebtedness or to continue to pay dividends to its shareholders.

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Our selection of accounting policies and methods may affect our reported financial results.

Our accounting policies and methods are fundamental to how we record and report our financial condition and results of operations. Our management must exercise judgment in selecting and applying many of these accounting policies and methods so they comply with GAAP and reflect management’s judgment of the most appropriate manner to report our financial condition and results of operations. In some cases, management must select the accounting policy or method to apply from two or more alternatives, any of which may be reasonable under the circumstances, yet which may result in our reporting materially different results than would have been reported under a different alternative.

Certain accounting policies are critical to presenting our financial condition and results of operations. They require management to make difficult, subjective or complex judgments about matters that are uncertain. Materially different amounts could be reported under different conditions or using different assumptions or estimates. Because of the uncertainty of estimates involved in these matters, we may be required to do one or more of the following: significantly increase the allowance for credit losses or sustain loan losses that are significantly higher than the reserve provided; recognize significant impairment on goodwill and other intangible asset balances; reduce the carrying value of an asset measured at fair value; or significantly increase our accrued tax liability. Any of these could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition or results of operations. For a discussion of our critical accounting policies, see “Part II, Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations - Critical Accounting Estimates” included elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

We currently invest in bank owned life insurance (“BOLI”) and may continue to do so in the future.

We had $743.9 million in general, hybrid and separate account BOLI contracts at December 31, 2020. BOLI is an illiquid long-term asset that provides tax savings because cash value growth and life insurance proceeds are not taxable, subject to certain exceptions. However, if we needed additional liquidity and converted the BOLI to cash, such transaction would be subject to ordinary income tax and applicable penalties. We are also exposed to the credit risk of the underlying securities in the investment portfolio and to the insurance carrier’s credit risk (in a general account contract). If BOLI was exchanged to another carrier, additional fees would be incurred and a tax-free exchange could only be done for insureds that were still actively employed by us at that time. There is interest rate risk relating to the market value of the underlying investment securities associated with the BOLI in that there is no assurance that the market value of these securities will not decline. Investing in BOLI exposes us to liquidity, credit and interest rate risk, which could adversely affect our results of operations, financial condition and liquidity.

The fair values of our investments in private companies and venture capital funds are likely to fluctuate and the value that we ultimately realize on those investments may vary materially.

From time to time, we and our affiliates, including Pinnacle Bank, make investments in private companies and venture capital funds. The fair value of these investments are reflected in our financial statements and are adjusted on a quarterly basis. Moreover, because valuations of private companies are inherently uncertain, may fluctuate over short periods of time and may be based on estimates, our determinations of fair value for private companies may differ materially from the values that would have been used if a ready market for these securities existed. Therefore, fair value determinations may materially understate or overstate the value that we ultimately realize upon the sale of one or more investments. We cannot predict future realized or unrealized gains or losses, and any such gains or losses are likely to vary materially from period to period.

An ineffective risk management framework could have a material adverse effect on our strategic planning and our ability to mitigate risks and/or losses and could have adverse regulatory consequences.

We have implemented a risk management framework to identify and manage our risk exposure. This framework is comprised of various processes, systems and strategies, and is designed to manage the types of risk to which we are subject, including, among others, credit, market, liquidity, operational, capital, compliance, strategic and reputational risks. Our framework also includes financial, analytical, forecasting, or other modeling methodologies, which involves management assumptions and judgment. In addition, our board of directors, in consultation with management, has adopted a risk appetite statement, which sets forth certain thresholds and limits to govern our overall risk profile. However, there is no assurance that our risk management framework, including the risk metrics under our risk appetite statement, will be effective under all circumstances or that it will adequately identify, manage or mitigate any risk or loss to us. If our risk management framework is not effective, we could suffer unexpected losses and become subject to regulatory consequences, as a result of which our business, financial condition, results of operations or prospects could be materially adversely affected.

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We are dependent on our information technology and telecommunications systems and third-party servicers, and systems failures, interruptions or breaches of security could have an adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations, as well as cause legal or reputational harm.

We are dependent upon information technologies, computer systems and networks, including those we maintain and those maintained and provided to us by third parties, to conduct operations and are reliant on technology to help increase efficiency in our business. These systems could become unavailable or impaired due to a variety of causes, including storms and other natural disasters, terrorist attacks, fires, utility outages, internal or external theft or fraud, design defects, human error, misconduct or complications or failures encountered as existing systems are maintained, replaced or upgraded. For example, our financial, accounting, data processing, or other operating or security systems or infrastructure or those of third parties upon which we rely may fail to operate properly or become disabled or damaged, which could adversely affect our ability to process transactions or provide services. In the event that backup systems are utilized, they may not process data as quickly as our primary systems and we may experience data losses in the course of such recovery. We continuously update the systems on which we rely to support our operations and growth and to remain compliant with all applicable laws, rules and regulations globally. This updating entails significant costs and creates risks associated with implementing new systems and integrating them with existing ones, including business interruptions that may occur in the course of such implementation challenges. We maintain a system of internal controls and security to mitigate the risks of many of these occurrences and maintain insurance coverage for certain risks; however, should an event occur that is not prevented or detected by our internal controls, causes an interruption, degradation or outage in service, or is uninsured against or in excess of applicable insurance limits, such occurrence could have an adverse effect on our business and our reputation, which, in turn, could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition, results of operations and liquidity.

Our operations rely on the secure processing, storage and transmission of confidential, proprietary, personal and other information in our computer systems and networks. Although we take protective measures and endeavor to modify these systems as circumstances warrant, the security of our computer systems, software and networks may be vulnerable to breaches, unauthorized access, misuse, computer viruses, ransomware or other malicious code and other events that could have a security impact. We provide our customers the ability to bank remotely, including over the Internet or through their mobile device. The secure transmission of confidential information is a critical element of remote and mobile banking. Our network, and the systems of parties with whom we contract or on which we rely, as well as those of our customers and regulators, could be vulnerable to unauthorized access, computer viruses, phishing schemes, spam attacks, human error, natural disasters, power loss and other security breaches. Sources of attacks vary and may include hackers, disgruntled employees or vendors, organized crime, terrorists, foreign governments, corporate espionage and activists. In recent periods, there continues to be a rise in electronic fraudulent activity, security breaches and cyber-attacks within the financial services industry, especially in the commercial banking sector due to cyber criminals targeting commercial bank accounts.

Cybersecurity risks for banking organizations have significantly increased in recent years in part because of the proliferation of new technologies, and the use of the Internet and telecommunications technologies to conduct financial transactions. For example, cybersecurity risks may increase in the future as we continue to increase our mobile-payment and other Internet-based product offerings and expand our internal use of web-based products and applications. Even the most advanced internal control environment may be vulnerable to compromise. Targeted social engineering attacks are becoming more prevalent and sophisticated and are extremely difficult to prevent. The techniques used by bad actors change frequently, may not be recognized until launched and may not be recognized until well after a breach has occurred. Additionally, the existence of cyber attacks or security breaches at third parties with access to our data, such as vendors, may not be disclosed to us in a timely manner. Consistent with industry trends, we remain at risk for attempted electronic fraudulent activity, as well as attempts at security breaches and cybersecurity-related incidents. Cloud technologies are also critical to the operation of our systems, and our reliance on cloud technologies is growing. Service disruptions in cloud technologies may lead to delays in accessing, or the loss of, data that is important to our businesses and may hinder our clients’ access to our products and services.

We may be required to spend significant capital and other resources to protect against the threat of security breaches and computer viruses, or to alleviate problems caused by security breaches or viruses. To the extent that our activities or the activities of our vendors, regulators or customers involve the storage and transmission of confidential information, security breaches (including breaches of security of customer, vendor or regulatory systems and networks) and viruses could expose us to claims, litigation and other possible liabilities, which may be significant. Any inability to prevent security breaches or computer viruses could also cause existing customers to lose confidence in our systems and could adversely affect our reputation, results of operations and ability to attract and retain customers and businesses. Further, a security breach could also subject us to additional regulatory scrutiny, expose us to civil litigation and possible financial liability and cause reputational damage.

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We outsource many of our major systems, such as data processing, loan servicing and deposit processing systems. The failure of these systems, or the termination of a third-party software license or service agreement on which any of these systems is based, could interrupt our operations. Because our information technology and telecommunications systems interface with and depend on third-party systems, we could experience service denials if demand for such services exceeds capacity or such third-party systems fail or experience interruptions. If sustained or repeated, a system failure or service denial could result in a deterioration of our ability to process new and renewal loans, gather deposits and provide customer service, compromise our ability to operate effectively, damage our reputation, result in a loss of customer business and/or subject us to additional regulatory scrutiny and possible financial liability, any of which could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

We also face the risk of operational disruption, failure, termination, or capacity constraints of any of the third parties that facilitate our business activities, including vendors, exchanges, and other financial intermediaries. Such parties could also be the source or cause of an attack on, or breach of, our operational systems, data or infrastructure, and could disclose such attack or breach to us in a delayed manner or not at all. In addition, we may be at risk of an operational failure with respect to our customers’ systems. Our risk and exposure to these matters remains heightened because of, among other things, the evolving nature of these threats and the continued uncertain global economic environment.

As cyber threats continue to evolve, we may be required to expend significant additional resources to continue to modify or enhance our protective measures, investigate and remediate any information security vulnerabilities, or respond to any changes to state or federal regulations, policy statements or laws concerning information systems or security. Any failure to maintain adequate security over our information systems, our technology-driven products and services or our customers’ personal and transactional information could negatively affect our business and our reputation and result in fines, penalties, or other costs, including litigation expense and/or additional compliance costs, all of which could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition, results of operations and liquidity. Furthermore, the public perception that a cyber attack on our systems has been successful, whether or not this perception is correct, may damage our reputation with customers and third parties with whom we do business. A successful penetration or circumvention of system security could cause us negative consequences, including loss of customers and business opportunities, disruption to our operations and business, misappropriation or destruction of our confidential information and/or that of our customers, or damage to our customers’ and/or third parties’ computers or systems, and could result in a violation of applicable privacy laws and other laws, litigation exposure, regulatory fines, penalties or intervention, loss of confidence in our security measures, reputational damage, reimbursement or other compensatory costs, additional compliance costs, and could adversely impact our results of operations, liquidity and financial condition.

Our business reputation and relationships are important and any damage to them could have a material adverse effect on our business.

Our reputation is very important in sustaining our business and we rely on our relationships with our current, former and potential clients and shareholders and other actors in the industries that we serve. Any damage to our reputation, whether arising from regulatory, supervisory or enforcement actions, matters affecting our financial reporting or compliance with SEC and exchange listing requirements, negative publicity, the way in which we conduct our business or otherwise could strain our existing relationships and make it difficult for us to develop new relationships. Any such damage to our reputation and relationships could in turn lead to a material adverse effect on our business.

We face substantial competition and are subject to certain regulatory constraints not applicable to some of our competitors, which may decrease our growth or profits.

We face substantial competition for deposits, and for credit and trust relationships, and other financial services and products in the communities we serve. Competing providers include other banks, thrifts and trust companies, insurance companies, mortgage banking operations, credit unions, finance companies, title companies, money market funds and other financial and nonfinancial companies, including mobile payment platforms, which may offer products functionally equivalent to those offered by us. Competing providers may have greater financial resources than we do and offer services within and outside the market areas we serve. In addition to this challenge of attracting and retaining customers for traditional banking services, our competitors include securities dealers, brokers, mortgage bankers, investment advisors and finance and insurance companies who seek to offer one-stop financial services to their customers that may include services that financial institutions have not been able or allowed to offer to their customers in the past. The increasingly competitive environment is primarily a result of changes in regulation, changes in technology and product delivery systems and the accelerating pace of consolidation among financial service providers. If we are unable to adjust both to increased competition for traditional banking services and changing customer needs and preferences, our financial performance could be adversely affected.

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Some of our competitors, including credit unions, are not subject to certain regulatory constraints, such as the Community Reinvestment Act, which requires us to, among other things, implement procedures to make and monitor loans throughout the communities we serve. Credit unions also have federal tax exemptions that may allow them to offer lower rates on loans and higher rates on deposits than taxpaying financial institutions such as commercial banks. In addition, non-depository institution competitors are generally not subject to the extensive regulation applicable to institutions, like Pinnacle Bank, that offer federally insured deposits. Other institutions may have other competitive advantages in particular markets or may be willing to accept lower profit margins on certain products. These differences in resources, regulation, competitive advantages, and business strategy may decrease our net interest margin, may increase our operating costs, and may make it harder for us to compete profitably.

The financial services industry could become even more competitive as a result of legislative, regulatory and technological changes and continued consolidation. For example, the Growth Act and certain implementing regulations significantly reduce the regulatory burden of certain large bank holding companies and raise the asset thresholds at which more onerous requirements apply, which could cause certain large bank holding companies to become more competitive, to more aggressively pursue expansion or to more readily consolidate with similar sized financial institutions. Also, technology has lowered barriers to entry and made it possible for non-banks to offer products and services traditionally provided by banks, such as mobile payment and other automatic transfer and payment systems, and for banks that do not have a physical presence in our markets to compete for deposits. The absence of regulatory requirements may give non-bank financial companies a competitive advantage over us.

The implementation of other new lines of business or new products and services may subject us to additional risk.

We continuously evaluate our service offerings and may implement new lines of business or offer new products and services within existing lines of business in the future. There are substantial risks and uncertainties associated with these efforts. In developing and marketing new lines of business and/or new products and services, we undergo a new product process to assess the risks of the initiative, and invest significant time and resources to build internal controls, policies and procedures to mitigate those risks, including hiring experienced management to oversee the implementation of the initiative. Initial timetables for the introduction and development of new lines of business and/or new products or services may not be achieved and price and profitability targets may not prove feasible. External factors, such as compliance with regulations, competitive alternatives, and shifting market preferences, may also impact the successful implementation of a new line of business and/or a new product or service. Furthermore, any new line of business and/or new product or service could require the establishment of new key and other controls and have a significant impact on our existing system of internal controls. Failure to successfully manage these risks in the development and implementation of new lines of business and/or new products or services could have a material adverse effect on our business and, in turn, our financial condition and results of operations.

Inability to retain senior management and key employees or to attract new experienced financial services professionals could impair our relationship with our customers, reduce growth and adversely affect our business.

We have assembled a senior management team which has substantial background and experience in banking and financial services in our markets. Moreover, much of our organic loan growth that we have experienced in recent years (and that we are seeking during 2021) was the result not of strong loan demand but rather of our ability to attract experienced financial services professionals who have been able to attract customers from other financial institutions. We are continuing to deploy a similar hiring strategy in the Carolinas and Virginia and we are in the early stages of deploying such strategy in Atlanta. Inability to retain these key personnel (including key personnel of the businesses we have acquired) or to continue to attract experienced lenders with established books of business (including, in either case, as a result of competitive compensation and other hiring and retention pressures), at all or at the pace we have anticipated, could negatively impact our growth because of the loss of these individuals’ skills and customer relationships and/or the potential difficulty of promptly replacing them. Moreover, the higher costs we have to pay to hire and retain these experienced individuals could cause our noninterest expense levels to rise and negatively impact our results of operations.

Many of our key associates, and those we seek to hire, are experienced bankers who have been engaged in the business of commercial banking for a significant period of time. While we believe this model of hiring has contributed to our success, we face risks associated with this older workforce. Our healthcare costs may exceed those of our peers on account of our older associate base. Additionally, as a number of our long-term employees approach retirement age, our ability to successfully plan for the transition of those associates’ clients to other associates becomes more important to our future success. If we are unable to successfully manage such transitions, our relationships with our clients may be negatively impacted and our results of operations may be negatively affected.

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We are subject to regulatory oversight and certain litigation, and our expenses related to this regulatory oversight and litigation may adversely affect our results.

We are from time to time subject to certain litigation in the ordinary course of our business. As we have aggressively hired new revenue producing associates over the last five years we, and the associates we have hired, have also periodically been the subject of litigation and threatened litigation with these associates’ former employers. We may also be subject to claims related to our loan servicing programs, particularly those involving servicing of commercial real estate loans. These and other claims and legal actions, as well as supervisory and enforcement actions by our regulators, including the CFPB or other regulatory agencies with which we deal, including those with oversight of our loan servicing programs, could involve large monetary claims, capital directives, agreements with federal regulators, cease and desist penalties and orders and significant defense costs. The outcome of any such cases or actions is uncertain. Substantial legal liability or significant regulatory action against us could have material adverse financial effects or cause significant reputational harm to us, which in turn could seriously harm our business prospects.

In accordance with GAAP, for matters where a loss is not probable or the amount of the loss cannot be estimated, no accrual is established. For matters where it is probable we will incur a loss and the amount can be reasonably estimated, we establish an accrual for the loss. Once established, the accrual is adjusted periodically to reflect any relevant developments. The actual cost of any outstanding legal proceedings or threatened claims, however, may turn out to be substantially higher than the amount accrued. Further, our insurance may not cover all litigation, other proceedings or claims, or the costs of defense. Future developments could result in an unfavorable outcome for any existing or new lawsuits or investigations in which we are, or may become, involved, which may have a material adverse effect on our business and our results of operations.

Our business is dependent on technology, and an inability to invest in technological improvements may adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition.

The financial services industry is undergoing rapid technological changes with frequent introductions of new technology-driven solutions, and as customer preferences and expectations continue to evolve, technology has lowered barriers to entry and made it possible for non-banks to offer products and services traditionally provided by banks, such as automatic transfer and automatic payment systems, as well as nontraditional alternatives like crowdfunding and digital wallets. In addition to better serving customers, the effective use of technology increases efficiency and enables financial institutions to reduce costs. The importance of technology has been sharpened as a result of COVID-19, and will likely remain even after the pandemic wanes. We have made significant investments in data processing, management information systems and internet banking accessibility. Our future success will depend in part upon our ability to create additional efficiencies in our operations through the use of technology. Many of our competitors have substantially greater resources to invest in technological improvements. We cannot make assurances that our technological improvements will increase our operational efficiency or that we will be able to effectively implement new technology-driven solutions or be successful in marketing these products and services to our customers.

The soundness of other financial institutions could adversely affect us.

Our ability to engage in routine funding transactions could be adversely affected by the actions and financial stability of other financial institutions. Financial services institutions are interrelated as a result of trading, clearing, counterparty or other relationships. We have exposure to various counterparties, including brokers and dealers, commercial and correspondent banks, and others including those with whom we have implemented our hedging strategies. As a result, defaults by, or rumors or questions about, one or more financial services institutions, or the financial services industry generally, may result in market-wide liquidity problems and could lead to losses or defaults by such other institutions. Such occurrences could expose us to credit risk in the event of default of one or more counterparties and could have a material adverse effect on our financial position, results of operations and liquidity.

We may be subject to claims and litigation pertaining to fiduciary responsibility.

From time to time as part of our normal course of business, customers may make claims and take legal action against us based on actions or inactions related to the fiduciary responsibilities of Pinnacle Bank’s trust and wealth management associates. If such claims and legal actions are not resolved in a manner favorable to us, they may result in financial liability and/or adversely affect our market reputation or our products and services. Any financial liability or reputation damage could have a material adverse effect on our business, which, in turn, could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

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Natural disasters may adversely affect us.

Our operations and customer base are located in markets where natural disasters, including tornadoes, severe storms, fires, wildfires, floods, and hurricanes often occur. Such natural disasters could significantly impact the local population and economies and our business, and could pose physical risks to our properties. Although our banking offices are geographically dispersed throughout portions of the southeastern United States and we maintain insurance coverages for such events, a significant natural disaster in or near one or more of our markets could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition, results of operations or liquidity.

If we fail to maintain an effective system of internal control over financial reporting, we may not be able to accurately report our financial results. As a result, current and potential holders of our securities could lose confidence in our financial reporting, which would harm our business and the trading price of our securities.

Maintaining and adapting our internal controls over financial reporting, as required by Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, is expensive and requires significant management attention. Moreover, as we continue to grow, our internal controls may become more complex and require additional resources to ensure they remain effective amid dynamic regulatory and other guidance. Failure to implement effective controls or difficulties encountered in the process may harm our results of operations and financial condition or cause us to fail to meet our reporting obligations. If we or our independent registered accounting firm identify material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting or are otherwise required to restate our financial statements, we could be required to implement expensive and time-consuming remedial measures and could lose investor confidence in the accuracy and completeness of our financial reports. We may also face regulatory enforcement or other actions, including the potential delisting of our securities from the Nasdaq Global Select Market. This could have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition or results of operations, as well as the trading price of our securities, and could potentially subject us to litigation.

Risks Related to Acquisition Activity

Our acquisitions and future expansion may result in additional risks.

From 2015 through 2017, we completed the acquisitions of CapitalMark, Magna, Avenue and BNC and made a significant investment in BHG. In 2019, we acquired Advocate Capital. We expect to continue to consider and explore opportunities to expand in our current markets and in select primarily high-growth markets located outside of Tennessee in the southern portion of the United States through additional branches and also may consider expansion within these markets through additional acquisitions of all or part of other financial institutions, including our recent expansion into the Atlanta, Georgia metro market on a de novo basis late in 2019. These types of expansions, including the Atlanta expansion, involve various risks, including:

Management of Growth. We may be unable to successfully:

•maintain loan quality in the context of significant loan growth;

•identify and expand into suitable markets;

•obtain regulatory and other approvals;

•identify and acquire suitable sites for new banking offices;

•attract sufficient deposits and capital to fund anticipated loan growth;

•recruit seasoned professionals with significant experience and established books of business;

•maintain adequate common equity and regulatory capital;

•scale our technology platform and operational infrastructure;

•avoid diversion or disruption of our existing operations or management as well as those of the acquired institution;

•maintain adequate management personnel and systems to oversee and support such growth;

•maintain adequate internal audit, loan review and compliance functions; and

•implement additional policies, internal controls, procedures and operating systems required to support such growth.

Results of Operations. There is no assurance that existing offices or future offices will maintain or achieve deposit levels, loan balances or other operating results necessary to avoid losses or produce profits. Our growth strategy necessarily entails growth in overhead expenses as we add new offices and staff. Our historical results may not be indicative of future results or results that may be achieved as we continue to evaluate opportunities to increase the number and concentration of our branch offices in our newer markets.

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Development of Offices. There are considerable costs involved in opening branches (particularly those in new markets), and new branches generally do not generate sufficient revenues to offset their costs until they have been in operation for at least a year or more. Accordingly, any new branches we establish, including those we plan to establish in Atlanta, can be expected to negatively impact our earnings for some period of time until they reach certain economies of scale. The same is true for our efforts to expand in these markets with the hiring of additional seasoned professionals with significant experience in that market. Our expenses could be further increased if we encounter delays in opening any of our new branches. We may be unable to accomplish future branch expansion plans due to a lack of available satisfactory sites, difficulties in acquiring such sites, failure or inability to receive any required regulatory approvals, increased expenses or loss of potential sites due to complexities associated with zoning and permitting processes, higher than anticipated merger and acquisition costs or other factors. Finally, we have no assurance any branch will be successful even after it has been established or acquired, as the case may be.

Regulatory and Economic Factors. Our growth and expansion plans may be adversely affected by a number of regulatory and economic developments or other events. Failure or inability to obtain required regulatory approvals, changes in laws and regulations or other regulatory developments and changes in prevailing economic conditions or other unanticipated events may prevent or adversely affect our continued growth and expansion. Such factors may cause us to alter our growth and expansion plans or slow or halt the growth and expansion process, which may prevent us from entering into or expanding in our other markets or allow competitors to gain or retain market share in our existing markets.

Infrastructure and Controls. We may not successfully implement improvements to, or integrate, our information and control systems, procedures and processes in an efficient or timely manner and may discover deficiencies in existing systems and controls. In particular, our systems, controls and procedures must be able to accommodate an increase in transaction volume and the infrastructure that comes with new products, branches, markets or any combination thereof. Thus, our growth strategy may divert management from our existing operation and may require us to incur additional expenditures to expand our administrative and operational infrastructure, which may adversely affect earnings, shareholder returns, and our efficiency ratio.

Failure to successfully address these and other issues related to our expansion in Atlanta or in any other future market could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations, and could adversely affect our ability to successfully implement our business strategy. Also, if our growth occurs more slowly than anticipated or declines, our results of operations and financial condition could be materially adversely affected.

We may face risks with respect to future acquisitions.

When we attempt to expand our business through mergers and acquisitions (as we did from 2015 through 2017), we seek targets that are culturally similar to us, have experienced management and possess either significant market presence or have potential for improved profitability through economies of scale or expanded services. In addition to the general risks associated with our growth plans which are highlighted above, in general acquiring or merging with other banks, businesses or branches, particularly those in markets with which we are less familiar, involves various risks commonly associated with acquisitions, including, among other things:

•the time and costs associated with identifying and evaluating potential acquisition and merger targets;

•inaccuracies in the estimates and judgments used to evaluate credit, operations, culture, management and market risks with respect to an institution we acquire or with which we merge;

•the time and costs of evaluating new markets, hiring experienced local management, including as a result of de novo expansion into a market such as our expansion into the Atlanta, Georgia metro market at the end of 2019, and opening new bank locations, and the time lags between these activities and the generation of sufficient assets and deposits to support the significant costs of the expansion that we may incur, particularly in the first 12 to 24 months of operations;

•our ability to finance (or increase capital levels in connection with) an acquisition and possible dilution to our existing shareholders;

•the diversion of our management’s attention to the negotiation of a transaction and integration of an acquired company’s operations with ours;

•the incurrence of an impairment of goodwill associated with an acquisition and adverse effects on our results of operations;

•entry into new markets where we have limited or no direct prior experience;

•closing delays and increased expenses related to the resolution of lawsuits filed by our shareholders or shareholders of companies we may seek to acquire;

•the inability to receive regulatory approvals timely or at all, including as a result of community objections, or such approvals being restrictively conditional; and

•risks associated with integrating the operations, technologies and personnel of the acquired business.

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Though we expect to remain principally focused on organically growing our business in our existing markets (including our new market in Atlanta) during 2021, we nonetheless may have opportunities to evaluate merger and acquisition opportunities that are presented to us in our current markets as well as other markets throughout the southern portion of the United States and conduct due diligence activities related to possible transactions with other financial institutions. As a result, merger or acquisition discussions and, in some cases, negotiations may take place and future mergers or acquisitions involving cash, debt or equity securities and related capital raising transactions may occur at any time. Generally, acquisitions of financial institutions involve the payment of a premium over book and market values, and, therefore, some dilution of our book value and fully diluted earnings per share may occur in connection with any future transaction. Failure to realize the expected revenue increases, cost savings, increases in product presence and/or other projected benefits from an acquisition could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

In addition, we may face significant competition from numerous other financial services institutions, many of which may have greater financial resources than we do, when considering acquisition opportunities, particularly in our targeted high-growth markets located outside of Tennessee. Accordingly, attractive acquisition opportunities may not be available to us. There can be no assurance that we will be successful in identifying or completing any potential future acquisitions.

Regulatory and Compliance Risks

National or state legislation or regulation may increase our expenses and reduce earnings.

Bank regulators are increasing regulatory scrutiny, and additional restrictions (including those originating from the Dodd-Frank Act) on financial institutions have been proposed or adopted by regulators and by Congress. Changes in tax law, federal legislation, regulation or policies, such as bankruptcy laws, deposit insurance, consumer protection laws, and capital requirements, among others, can result in significant increases in our expenses and/or charge-offs, which may adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition. Changes in state or federal tax laws or regulations can have a similar impact. State and municipal governments, including the State of Tennessee, could seek to increase their tax revenues through increased tax levies which could have a meaningful impact on our results of operations. Furthermore, financial institution regulatory agencies are expected to continue to be aggressive in responding to concerns and trends identified in examinations, including the continued issuance of additional formal or informal enforcement or supervisory actions. These actions, whether formal or informal, could result in our agreeing to limitations or to take actions that limit our operational flexibility, restrict our growth, increase our operating expenses, or increase our capital or liquidity levels. Failure to comply with any formal or informal regulatory restrictions, including informal supervisory actions, could lead to further regulatory enforcement actions.

Negative developments in the financial services industry and the impact of recently enacted or new legislation in response to those developments could negatively impact our operations by restricting our business operations, including our ability to originate or sell loans, and adversely impact our financial performance. In addition, industry, legislative or regulatory developments may cause us to materially change our existing strategic direction, capital strategies, compensation or operating plans.

We are subject to various statutes and regulations that may impose additional costs or limit our ability to take certain actions.

We operate in a highly regulated industry and are subject to examination, supervision, and comprehensive regulation by various regulatory agencies. Our compliance with these regulations is costly and restricts certain of our activities, including payment of dividends, mergers and acquisitions, investments, loans and interest rates charged on loans, interest rates paid on deposits and locations of offices. We are also subject to capital requirements established by our regulators, which require us to maintain specified levels of capital. It is possible that our FDIC assessments may increase in the future. Any future assessment increases could negatively impact our results of operations. Significant changes in laws and regulations applicable to the banking industry have been recently adopted and others are being considered in Congress. We cannot predict the effects of these changes on our business and profitability. Because government regulation greatly affects the business and financial results of commercial banks and bank holding companies, our cost of compliance could adversely affect our ability to operate profitably. Additionally, we are subject to laws regarding our handling, disclosure and processing of personal and confidential information of certain parties, such as our employees, customers, suppliers, counterparties and other third parties. The Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act requires us to periodically disclose our privacy policies and practices relating to sharing such information and enables retail customers to opt out of our ability to share information with unaffiliated third parties, under certain circumstances. Other laws and regulations impact our ability to share certain information with affiliates and non-affiliates for marketing and/or non-marketing purposes, or to contact customers with marketing offers. We are subject to laws that require us to implement a comprehensive information security program that includes administrative, technical and physical safeguards to provide the security and confidentiality of customer records and information. Additionally, other legislative and regulatory activity continue to lend uncertainty to privacy compliance requirements that impact our business. We also expect that there will continue to be new laws, regulations and industry standards concerning privacy, data protection and information security proposed and enacted in various jurisdictions. The potential effects of pending legislation are far-reaching and may require us to modify our data processing practices and policies and to incur substantial costs and expenses in an effort to comply.

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We must maintain adequate regulatory capital to support our business objectives.

Under regulatory capital adequacy guidelines and other regulatory requirements, we must satisfy capital requirements based upon quantitative measures of assets, liabilities and certain off-balance sheet items. Our satisfaction of these requirements is subject to qualitative judgments by regulators that may differ materially from management’s and that are subject to being determined retroactively for prior periods. Additionally, regulators can make subjective assessments about the adequacy of capital levels, even if our bank subsidiary’s reported capital exceeds the “well-capitalized” requirements. Our ability to maintain our status as a financial holding company and to continue to operate Pinnacle Bank as we have in recent periods is dependent upon a number of factors, including Pinnacle Bank qualifying as “well capitalized” and “well managed” under applicable prompt corrective action regulations and upon our qualifying on an ongoing basis as “well capitalized” and “well managed” under applicable Federal Reserve regulations.

Failure to meet regulatory capital standards could have a material adverse effect on our business, including damaging the confidence of customers in us, adversely impacting our reputation and competitive position and retention of key personnel. Any of these developments could limit our access to:

•brokered deposits;

•the Federal Reserve discount window;

•advances from the FHLB;

•capital markets transactions; and

•development of new financial services.

Failure to meet regulatory capital standards may also result in higher FDIC assessments. If we fall below guidelines for being deemed “adequately capitalized” the FDIC or Federal Reserve could impose restrictions on our activities and a broad range of regulatory requirements in order to effect “prompt corrective action.” The capital requirements applicable to us are in a process of continuous evaluation and revision in connection with actions of the Basel Committee, our regulators and the requirements of the Dodd-Frank Act. We cannot predict the final form, or the effects, of these regulations on our business, but among the possible effects are requirements that we slow our rate of growth or obtain additional capital which could reduce our earnings or dilute our existing shareholders.

Pinnacle Financial is required to act as a source of financial and managerial strength for Pinnacle Bank in times of stress.

Under federal law, Pinnacle Financial is required to act as a source of financial and managerial strength to Pinnacle Bank, and to commit resources to support Pinnacle Bank if necessary. Pinnacle Financial may be required to commit additional resources to Pinnacle Bank at times when Pinnacle Financial may not be in a financial position to provide such resources or when it may not be in Pinnacle Financial’s, or its shareholders’ or its creditors’ best interests to do so. Providing such support is more likely during times of financial stress for Pinnacle Financial and Pinnacle Bank, which may make any capital Pinnacle Financial is required to raise to provide such support more expensive or dilutive than it might otherwise be. In addition, any capital loans Pinnacle Financial makes to Pinnacle Bank are subordinate in right of payment to depositors and to certain other indebtedness of Pinnacle Bank. In the event of Pinnacle Financial’s bankruptcy, any commitment by it to a federal banking regulator to maintain the capital of Pinnacle Bank will be assumed by the bankruptcy trustee and entitled to priority of payment.

Non-compliance with the USA PATRIOT Act, the Bank Secrecy Act or other laws and regulations could result in fines or sanctions against us or restrict our ability to make acquisitions.

The Bank Secrecy Act, as amended by the USA PATRIOT Act of 2001, requires financial institutions to design and implement programs to prevent financial institutions from being used for money laundering and terrorist activities. If such activities are detected, financial institutions are obligated to file suspicious activity reports with the U.S. Treasury Department's Office of Financial Crimes Enforcement Network. These rules require financial institutions to establish procedures for identifying and verifying the identity of customers seeking to open new financial accounts. Failure to comply with these regulations could result in fines or sanctions, including restrictions on conducting acquisitions or establishing new branches, as well as additional operating expenses to add staff and/or technological enhancements to our systems to better comply with our obligations. Failure to maintain and implement adequate programs to combat money laundering and terrorist financing could also have serious reputational consequences for us, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition or results of operations.

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Risks Relating to Our Securities

The price of our capital stock may be volatile or may decline.

The trading price of our capital stock may fluctuate as a result of a number of factors, many of which are outside our control. In addition, the stock market is subject to fluctuations in trading volumes that affect the market prices of the shares of many companies. These broad market fluctuations could adversely affect the market price of our common stock. Among the factors that could affect our stock price are:

•actual or anticipated quarterly fluctuations in our results of operations and financial condition;

•changes in revenue or earnings estimates or publication of research reports and recommendations by financial analysts;

•failure to meet analysts’ revenue or earnings estimates;

•speculation in the press or investment community;

•strategic actions by us or our competitors;

•actions by institutional shareholders;

•fluctuations in the stock price and operating results of our competitors;

•general market conditions and, in particular, developments related to market conditions for the financial services industry;

•market perceptions about the innovation economy, including levels of funding or "exit" activities of companies in the industries we serve;

•proposed or adopted regulatory changes or developments;

•changes in the political climate;

•market reactions to social media messages or posts;

•anticipated or pending investigations, proceedings or litigation that involve or affect us; and

•domestic and international economic and social factors unrelated to our performance.

The trading price of the shares of our common stock and the depositary shares representing fractional interests in our Series B Preferred Stock and the value of our other securities will further depend on many factors, which may change from time to time, including, without limitation, our financial condition, performance, creditworthiness and prospects, and future sales of our equity or equity-related securities. In some cases, the markets have produced downward pressure on stock prices and credit availability for certain issuers without regard to those issuers’ underlying financial strength. A significant decline in our stock price could result in substantial losses for individual shareholders and could lead to costly and disruptive securities litigation, as well as the loss of key employees.

Our ability to declare and pay dividends is limited.

While our board of directors has approved the payment of a quarterly cash dividend on our common stock since the fourth quarter of 2013 and approved the payment of the quarterly dividends on our Series B Preferred Stock (and underlying depositary shares) since issuance, there can be no assurance of whether or when we may pay dividends on our capital stock in the future. Future dividends, if any, will be declared and paid at the discretion of our board of directors and will depend on a number of factors, including our and Pinnacle Bank’s capital levels. Moreover, our ability to pay dividends on our common stock is limited by the terms of our Series B Preferred Stock which provides that if we have not paid dividends on the Series B Preferred Stock for the most recently completed dividend period, then no dividend or distribution shall be declared, paid, or set aside for payment on shares of our common stock.

Our principal source of funds used to pay cash dividends on our common stock will be cash we may hold from time to time as well as dividends that we receive from Pinnacle Bank. Although Pinnacle Bank’s asset quality, earnings performance, liquidity and capital requirements will be taken into account before we declare or pay any future dividends on our capital stock, our board of directors will also consider our liquidity and capital requirements and our board of directors could determine to declare and pay dividends without relying on dividend payments from Pinnacle Bank.

Federal and state banking laws and regulations and state corporate laws restrict the amount of dividends we may declare and pay and that Pinnacle Bank may declare and pay to us. For example, Federal Reserve regulations implementing the capital rules required under Basel III do not permit dividends unless capital levels exceed certain higher levels applying capital conservation buffers. In addition, the Federal Reserve has issued supervisory guidance advising bank holding companies to eliminate, defer or reduce dividends paid on common stock and other forms of capital, like the Series B Preferred Stock, where the company’s net income available to shareholders for the past four quarters, net of dividends previously paid during that period, is not sufficient to fully fund the dividends, the company’s prospective rate of earnings retention is not consistent with the company’s capital needs and overall current and prospective financial condition or the company will not meet, or is in danger of not meeting, minimum regulatory capital adequacy ratios. Recent supplements to this guidance reiterate the need for bank holding companies to inform their applicable reserve bank sufficiently in advance of the proposed payment of a dividend in certain circumstances.

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In addition, subject to certain exceptions, the terms of our subordinated debentures, including the subordinated debentures we assumed upon the consummation of the BNC merger, prohibit us from paying dividends on shares of our capital stock at times when we are deferring the payment of interest on such subordinated debentures.

We may issue additional common stock or other equity securities in the future which could dilute the ownership interest of existing shareholders.

We may issue additional shares of common stock, or securities convertible into, exchangeable for or representing rights to acquire shares of common stock, including in connection with acquisitions. We may sell these shares at prices below the then current market price of shares, and the sale of these shares may significantly dilute shareholder ownership. We could also issue additional shares in connection with acquisitions of other financial institutions (as we did in connection with our acquisition of BNC and our other recent acquisitions) or investments in fee-related or other businesses (as we did with BHG), which could also dilute shareholder ownership.

We have the ability under our current effective registration statement to issue shares of preferred stock. Further, our shareholders authorized our board of directors to issue up to 10,000,000 shares of preferred stock without any further action on the part of our shareholders, which is what we did when we issued the Series B Preferred Stock. We may determine that it is advisable, or we may encounter circumstances where we determine it is necessary, to issue additional shares of preferred stock, securities convertible into, exchangeable for, or that represent an interest in preferred stock, or preferred stock-equivalent securities to fund strategic initiatives or other business needs or to build additional capital. Our board of directors is authorized to cause us to issue one or more classes or series of preferred stock from time to time without any action on the part of our shareholders, including issuing additional shares of our Series B Preferred Stock or additional depositary shares. Our board of directors also has the power, without shareholder approval, to set the terms of any such classes or series of preferred stock that may be issued, including voting rights, dividend rights, and preferences over the Series B Preferred Stock with respect to dividends or upon our dissolution, liquidation or winding-up and other terms.

Although the affirmative vote or consent of the holders of at least two-thirds of all outstanding shares of the Series B Preferred Stock, voting together as a single class with any parity stock having similar voting rights, is required to authorize or issue any shares of capital stock senior in rights and preferences to the Series B Preferred Stock, if we issue preferred stock or depositary shares in the future with voting rights that dilute the voting power of the Series B Preferred Stock or depositary shares, the rights of holders of the depositary shares or the market price of the depositary shares could be adversely affected. The market price of the depositary shares could decline as a result of these other offerings, as well as other sales of a large block of depositary shares, Series B Preferred Stock, or similar securities in the market thereafter, or the perception that such sales could occur. Holders of the Series B Preferred Stock are not entitled to preemptive rights or other protections against dilution.

Because our decision to issue securities in any future offering will depend on market conditions and other factors beyond our control, we cannot predict or estimate the amount, timing or nature of our future offerings. Thus, holders of the depositary shares bear the risk of our future offerings reducing the market price of the depositary shares and diluting their holdings in the depositary shares.

The Series B Preferred Stock constitutes an equity security and ranks junior to all of our and our subsidiaries’ existing indebtedness and will rank junior to our and our subsidiaries’ future indebtedness.

Shares of the Series B Preferred Stock are equity interests in Pinnacle Financial and do not constitute indebtedness. Accordingly, shares of the Series B Preferred Stock and the related depositary shares are and will be junior in right of payment to any existing and all future indebtedness and other non-equity claims of Pinnacle Financial with respect to assets available to satisfy claims on us, including in a liquidation of Pinnacle Financial. In the event of our bankruptcy, liquidation, dissolution or winding-up, our assets will be available to pay obligations on the Series B Preferred Stock and any parity stock only after all of our liabilities have been paid and any obligations we owe on any securities that rank senior to the Series B Preferred Stock then outstanding, if any, have been satisfied. In case of such bankruptcy, liquidation, dissolution or winding-up, the Series B Preferred Stock will rank equally with any parity stock in the distribution of our assets. Holders of the depositary shares may be fully subordinated to interests held by the U.S. government in the event of a receivership, insolvency, liquidation or similar proceeding. In addition, our existing and future indebtedness may restrict payment of dividends on the Series B Preferred Stock.

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The Series B Preferred Stock and the depositary shares representing the Series B Preferred Stock effectively rank junior to any existing and all future liabilities of our subsidiaries.

We are a financial holding company and conduct substantially all of our operations through our subsidiaries. Our right to participate in any distribution of the assets of our subsidiaries upon any liquidation, reorganization, receivership or conservatorship of any subsidiary (and thus the ability of the holder of the Series B Preferred Stock and the holders of the depositary shares to benefit indirectly from such distribution) will rank junior to the prior claims of that subsidiary’s creditors. In the event of bankruptcy, liquidation or winding-up, there may not be sufficient assets remaining, after paying our and our subsidiaries’ liabilities, to pay amounts due on any or all of the Series B Preferred Stock and the depositary shares representing the Series B Preferred Stock then outstanding.

We, together with Pinnacle Bank, own 49% of the outstanding equity interests of BHG. Our right to participate in any distribution of the assets of BHG upon its liquidation, reorganization, receivership or conservatorship (and thus the ability of the holders of the Series B Preferred Stock and the holders of the depositary shares to benefit indirectly from such distribution) will rank junior to the prior claims of BHG’s creditors. Moreover, our 49% ownership interest in BHG and minority board representation on BHG’s board means that we, and Pinnacle Bank, cannot on our own cause BHG to make distributions to us and Pinnacle Bank that could be used to pay dividends on the Series B Preferred Stock. In addition, BHG is a party to various loan agreements pursuant to which BHG’s ability to make distributions to us may be limited.

The Series B Preferred Stock and the depositary shares representing the Series B Preferred Stock places no restrictions on our business or operations or on our ability to incur indebtedness or engage in any transactions, subject only to the limited voting rights of the shares of Series B Preferred Stock. The holders of the Series B Preferred Stock, and therefore the holders of the depositary shares representing the Series B Preferred Stock, have limited voting rights.

Dividends on the Series B Preferred Stock are non-cumulative and discretionary. If we do not declare dividends on the Series B Preferred Stock, holders of the depositary shares will not be entitled to receive related distributions on their depositary shares.

Dividends on the Series B Preferred Stock are non-cumulative and discretionary, not mandatory. Consequently, if our board of directors does not authorize and declare a dividend for any dividend period, the holder of the Series B Preferred Stock, and therefore the holders of the depositary shares, will not be entitled to receive a dividend for such period, and such undeclared dividend will not accrue and be payable. We will have no obligation to pay dividends for such dividend period, whether or not dividends are authorized and declared for any subsequent dividend period with respect to the Series B Preferred Stock. Our board of directors may determine that it would be in our best interests to pay less than the full amount of the stated dividends on the Series B Preferred Stock or no dividend for any dividend period even if funds are available. Factors that would be considered by our board of directors in making this determination include our financial condition, liquidity and capital needs, the impact of current and pending legislation and regulations, economic conditions, including worsening economic conditions resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, our ability to service any equity or debt obligations senior to the Series B Preferred Stock, any credit agreements to which we are a party, tax considerations and such other factors as our board of directors may deem relevant.

Unlike indebtedness, where principal and interest would customarily be payable on specified due dates, in the case of preferred stock like the Series B Preferred Stock dividends are payable only when, as and if authorized and declared by our board of directors or a duly authorized committee of the board and as a Tennessee corporation, we are subject to restrictions on payments of dividends out of lawfully available funds as described elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

The holders of the Series B Preferred Stock, and therefore the holders of the depositary shares representing the Series B Preferred Stock, have limited voting rights.

Until and unless we are in arrears on our dividend payments on the Series B Preferred Stock for six quarterly dividend periods, whether consecutive or not, the holders of the Series B Preferred Stock, and therefore the holders of the depositary shares, have no voting rights with respect to matters that generally require the approval of voting shareholders, except with respect to certain fundamental changes in the terms of the Series B Preferred Stock, and except as may be required by the rules of any securities exchange or quotation system on which the Series B Preferred Stock is listed, traded or quoted or by Tennessee law. If dividends on the Series B Preferred Stock are not paid in full for six dividend periods, whether consecutive or not, the holders of Series B Preferred Stock, voting together as a class with any other equally ranked series of preferred stock that have similar voting rights then outstanding, if any, will have the right, at the first annual meeting or special meeting held thereafter and at subsequent annual meetings, to elect two directors to our board. The terms of the additional directors so elected will end upon the payment or setting aside for payment by us of continuous noncumulative dividends for at least four dividend periods on the Series B Preferred Stock and any other equally ranked series of preferred stock then outstanding, if any.

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Holders of the depositary shares must act through the depositary to exercise any voting rights of the Series B Preferred Stock. Although each depositary share is entitled to 1/40th of a vote, the depositary can only vote whole shares of Series B Preferred Stock. While the depositary will vote the maximum number of whole shares of Preferred Stock in accordance with the instructions it receives, any remaining fractional votes of holders of the depositary shares will not be voted.

Holders of Pinnacle Financial’s junior subordinated debentures have rights that are senior to those of Pinnacle Financial’s shareholders.

At December 31, 2020, Pinnacle Financial had outstanding trust preferred securities and accompanying junior subordinated debentures totaling $129.0 million. Payments of the principal and interest on the trust preferred securities are conditionally guaranteed by Pinnacle Financial, and the accompanying subordinated debentures are senior to shares of Pinnacle Financial’s common stock and preferred stock. As a result, Pinnacle Financial must make payments on the subordinated debentures (and the related trust preferred securities) before any dividends can be paid on our common stock or preferred stock and, in the event of Pinnacle Financial’s bankruptcy, dissolution or liquidation, the holders of the subordinated debentures must be satisfied before any distributions can be made on Pinnacle Financial’s preferred stock, and thereafter its common stock. Pinnacle Financial has the right to defer distributions on its junior subordinated debentures (and the related trust preferred securities) for up to five years, during which time no dividends may be paid on its common stock or preferred stock.

Pinnacle Financial and Pinnacle Bank have issued subordinated indebtedness the holders of which have rights that are senior to those of Pinnacle Financial’s shareholders.

From time to time, Pinnacle Financial and Pinnacle Bank have issued, and in connection with the Avenue merger and BNC merger, assumed, subordinated notes. At December 31, 2020, Pinnacle Financial and Pinnacle Bank had an aggregate of $550.0 million of subordinated notes outstanding, not including the subordinated debentures issued in connection with our trust preferred securities. Moreover, the notes we have issued rank senior to shares of Pinnacle Financial’s common and preferred stock and Pinnacle Bank’s subordinated indebtedness is structurally senior to the rights of the holders of Pinnacle Financial’s common and preferred stock. In the event of any bankruptcy, dissolution or liquidation of Pinnacle Financial, these notes, along with Pinnacle Financial’s other indebtedness, would have to be repaid before Pinnacle Financial’s shareholders would be entitled to receive any of the assets of Pinnacle Financial.

Pinnacle Financial or Pinnacle Bank may from time to time issue, or assume in connection with an acquisition, additional subordinated indebtedness that would have to be repaid before Pinnacle Financial’s shareholders would be entitled to receive any of the assets of Pinnacle Financial or Pinnacle Bank.

We and/or the holders of certain types of our securities could be adversely affected by unfavorable ratings from rating agencies.

The ratings agencies regularly evaluate Pinnacle Financial and Pinnacle Bank, and their ratings of our company and certain of our debt and equity securities are based on a number of factors, including our financial strength as well as factors not entirely within our control, including conditions affecting the financial services industry generally. There can be no assurance that we will not receive adverse changes in our published ratings in the future, which could adversely affect the cost and other terms upon which we are able to obtain funding, and the way in which we are perceived in the capital markets. Actual or anticipated changes, or downgrades in our published credit ratings, including any announcement that our ratings are under review for a downgrade, could affect the market value and liquidity of our securities, increase our borrowing costs and negatively impact our profitability. Additionally, a downgrade of published credit rating of any particular security issued by us or our subsidiaries could negatively affect the ability of the holders of that security to sell the securities and the prices at which any such securities may be sold.

Even though our common stock and the depositary shares underlying our Series B Preferred Stock are currently traded on the Nasdaq Stock Market’s Global Select Market, these shares, particularly the depositary shares, have less liquidity than many other stocks quoted on a national securities exchange.

The trading volume in our common stock and depositary shares on the Nasdaq Global Select Market has been relatively low when compared with larger companies listed on the Nasdaq Global Select Market or other stock exchanges. Although we have experienced increased liquidity in our stock, we cannot say with any certainty that a more active and liquid trading market for our common stock or depositary shares will continue to develop. Because of this, it may be more difficult for shareholders to sell a substantial number of shares for the same price at which shareholders could sell a smaller number of shares.

We cannot predict the effect, if any, that future sales of our common stock or additional depositary shares in the market, or the availability of shares of common stock or depositary shares for sale in the market, will have on the market price of our common stock and depositary shares. We can give no assurance that sales of substantial amounts of common stock or depositary shares in the market, or the potential for large amounts of sales in the market, would not cause the price of our common stock or depositary shares to decline or impair our future ability to raise capital through sales of our common stock or additional depositary shares.

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The market price of our common stock has fluctuated significantly, and may fluctuate in the future. These fluctuations may be unrelated to our performance. General market or industry price declines or overall market volatility in the future could adversely affect the price of our common stock or depositary shares, and the current market price may not be indicative of future market prices.

Our corporate organizational documents and the provisions of Tennessee law to which we are subject contain certain provisions that could have an anti-takeover effect and may delay, make more difficult or prevent an attempted acquisition of Pinnacle Financial that you may favor.

Our amended and restated charter, as amended, and bylaws, as amended, contain various provisions that could have an anti-takeover effect and may delay, discourage or prevent an attempted acquisition or change of control of Pinnacle Financial. These provisions include:

•a provision requiring our board of directors to take into account specific factors when considering an acquisition proposal;

•a provision that all extraordinary corporate transactions to which we are a party must be approved by a majority of the directors and a majority of the shares entitled to vote;

•a provision that any special meeting of our shareholders may be called only by our chairman, our chief executive officer, our president, our board of directors, or the holders of 25% of the outstanding shares of our voting stock that have held those shares for at least one year; and

•a provision establishing certain advance notice procedures for nomination of candidates for election as directors at an annual or special meeting of shareholders at which directors are elected.

Additionally, our amended and restated charter, as amended, authorizes the board of directors to issue shares of our preferred stock without shareholder approval and upon such terms as the board of directors may determine. The issuance of our preferred stock, while providing desirable flexibility in connection with possible acquisitions, financings, and other corporate purposes, could have the effect of making it more difficult for a third party to acquire, or of discouraging a third party from acquiring, a controlling interest in us. In addition, certain provisions of Tennessee law, including a provision which restricts certain business combinations between a Tennessee corporation and certain affiliated shareholders, may delay, discourage or prevent an attempted acquisition or change in control of our company.

An investment in our common stock or depositary shares is not an insured deposit and is not guaranteed by the FDIC.

An investment in our common stock or depositary shares is not a bank deposit and, therefore, is not insured against loss or guaranteed by the FDIC, any other deposit insurance fund or by any other public or private entity. An investment in our common stock or depositary shares is inherently risky for the reasons described herein and our shareholders will bear the risk of loss if the value or market price of our common stock or depositary shares is adversely affected.

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ITEM 1B.  UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS

None.

ITEM 2.  PROPERTIES

The Company's executive offices are located at 150 Third Avenue South, Suite 900, Nashville, Tennessee. At December 31, 2020, we conducted branch banking operations in 114 offices in five states. These offices include both owned and leased facilities as follows:

State	Owned	Leased	Total
Tennessee	30	18	48
Georgia	—	1	1
North Carolina	28	8	36
South Carolina	10	10	20
Virginia	7	2	9
	75	39	114

ITEM 3.  LEGAL PROCEEDINGS

Various legal proceedings to which Pinnacle Financial or a subsidiary of Pinnacle Financial is party arise from time to time in the normal course of business. There are no material pending legal proceedings to which Pinnacle Financial or any of its subsidiaries is a party or of which any of its or its subsidiaries' properties are subject.

ITEM 4.  MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES

Not applicable.

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PART II

ITEM 5.  MARKET FOR REGISTRANT'S COMMON EQUITY, RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS AND ISSUER PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES

Pinnacle Financial's common stock is traded on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the symbol "PNFP" and has traded on that market since July 3, 2006. As of February 22, 2021, Pinnacle Financial had approximately 4,499 stockholders of record.

In connection with the settlement of income tax liabilities associated with the Company's equity compensation plans and pursuant to the common stock share repurchase program approved by the Pinnacle Financial board of directors and announced during the fourth quarter of 2018, Pinnacle Financial repurchased shares of its common stock during the quarter ended December 31, 2020 as follows:

Period	Total Number of Shares Repurchased (1)	Average Price Paid Per Share		Total Number of Shares Purchased as Part of Publicly Announced Plans or Programs (2)	Maximum Number (or Approximate Dollar Value) of Shares That May Yet Be Purchased Under the Plans or Programs(2)
October 1, 2020 to October 31, 2020	4,483	$	39.23	—	—
November 1, 2020 to November 30, 2020	—	—		—	—
December 1, 2020 to December 31, 2020	—	—		—	—
Total	4,483	$	39.23	—	—

(1) During the quarter ended December 31, 2020, 17,247 shares of restricted stock previously awarded to certain of our associates vested. We withheld 4,483 shares to satisfy tax withholding requirements associated with their vesting.

(2) On November 13, 2018, Pinnacle Financial announced that its board of directors authorized a share repurchase program for up to $100.0 million of Pinnacle Financial’s outstanding common stock that expired on March 31, 2020. On October 15, 2019, Pinnacle Financial's board of directors approved an additional $100.0 million share repurchase program that commenced upon the exhaustion of the original $100.0 million repurchase program. The additional share repurchase program expired on December 31, 2020, though it was suspended in March 2020 due to the uncertainty surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic and remained suspended until its expiration. Pinnacle Financial repurchased 1,015,039 shares of its common stock at an aggregate cost of $50.8 million in the quarter ended March 31, 2020. On January 19, 2021, the board of directors authorized a new share repurchase program for up to $125.0 million of Pinnacle Financial's outstanding common stock. The new share repurchase program is set to expire on March 31, 2022. Share repurchases may be made from time to time, on the open market or in privately negotiated transactions, at the discretion of the management of Pinnacle Financial, after the board of directors of Pinnacle Financial authorizes a repurchase program. The approved share repurchase programs do not obligate Pinnacle Financial to repurchase any dollar amount or number of shares, and the programs may be extended, modified, suspended, or discontinued at any time. Stock repurchases generally are affected through open market purchases, and may be made through unsolicited negotiated transactions. The timing of these repurchases will depend on market conditions and other requirements.

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ITEM 6.  SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA

(dollars in thousands, except per share data)	2020(1)			2019 (2)			2018			2017 (3)			2016 (4)(5)
Total assets	$	34,932,860		$	27,805,496		$	25,031,044		$	22,205,700		$	11,194,623
Loans, net of unearned income	22,424,501			19,787,876			17,707,549			15,633,116			8,449,925
Allowance for credit losses	285,050			94,777			83,575			67,240			58,980
Total securities	4,615,040			3,728,991			3,277,968			2,536,045			1,323,797
Goodwill, core deposit and other intangible assets	1,862,147			1,870,941			1,853,282			1,864,712			566,698
Deposits and securities sold under agreements to repurchase	27,833,739			20,307,382			18,953,848			16,586,964			8,845,014
Advances from FHLB	1,087,927			2,062,534			1,443,589			1,319,909			406,304
Subordinated debt and other borrowings	670,575			749,080			485,130			465,505			350,768
Stockholders' equity	4,904,611			4,355,748			3,965,940			3,707,952			1,496,696
Statement of Operations Data:
Interest income	$	1,021,042		$	1,067,936		$	946,717		$	636,138		$	363,609
Interest expense	199,254			301,794			210,375			92,832			38,615
Net interest income	821,788			766,142			736,342			543,306			324,994
Provision for credit losses	191,734			27,283			34,377			23,664			18,328
Net interest income after provision for credit losses	630,054			738,859			701,965			519,642			306,666
Noninterest income	317,840			263,826			200,870			144,904			121,003
Noninterest expense	576,536			505,148			452,887			366,560			236,285
Income before income taxes	371,358			497,537			449,948			297,986			191,384
Income tax expense	59,037			96,656			90,508			124,007			64,159
Net income	312,321			400,881			359,440			173,979			127,225
Preferred stock dividends	7,596			—			—			—			—
Net income available to common shareholders	304,725			400,881			359,440			173,979			127,225
Per Share Data:
Earnings per share available to common stockholders – basic	$	4.04		$	5.25		$	4.66		$	2.73		$	2.96
Weighted average common shares outstanding – basic	75,376,489			76,364,303			77,111,372			63,760,578			43,037,083
Earnings per share available to common stockholders – diluted	$	4.03		$	5.22		$	4.64		$	2.70		$	2.91
Weighted average common shares outstanding – diluted	75,654,385			76,763,903			77,449,917			64,328,189			43,731,992
Common dividends per share	$	0.64		$	0.64		$	0.58		$	0.56		$	0.56
Preferred dividends per share	$	16.88		$	—		$	—		$	—		$	—
Book value per common share	$	61.80		$	56.89		$	51.18		$	47.70		$	32.28
Common shares outstanding at end of period	75,850,323			76,563,811			77,483,796			77,739,636			46,359,377
Performance Ratios:
Return on average assets	0.94		%	1.52		%	1.53		%	1.02		%	1.27		%
Return on average stockholders' equity	6.57		%	9.57		%	9.37		%	6.26		%	9.47		%
Net interest margin	2.97		%	3.46		%	3.68		%	3.76		%	3.70		%
Net interest spread	2.72		%	3.06		%	3.35		%	3.53		%	3.46		%
Noninterest income to average assets	0.98		%	1.00		%	0.85		%	0.85		%	1.21		%
Noninterest expense to average assets	1.78		%	1.91		%	1.92		%	2.15		%	2.36		%
Efficiency ratio	50.59		%	49.05		%	48.32		%	53.26		%	52.98		%
Average loan to average deposit ratio	88.11		%	97.78		%	96.92		%	95.14		%	96.66		%
Avg. interest-earning assets to avg. interest-bearing liabilities	136.60		%	131.12		%	132.69		%	136.10		%	139.39		%
Average equity to average total assets ratio	14.33		%	15.84		%	16.29		%	16.32