Nature of Banking Activities and Significant Accounting Policies (Policies)	9 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2020
Nature of Banking Activities and Significant Accounting Policies [Abstract]
Organization	Organization Community Bankers Trust Corporation (the “Company”) is headquartered in Richmond, Virginia and is the holding company for Essex Bank (the “Bank”), a Virginia state bank with 24 full-service offices, 18 of which are in Virginia and six of which are in Maryland. The Bank also operates two loan production offices. The Bank engages in a general commercial banking business and provides a wide range of financial services primarily to individuals, small businesses and larger commercial companies, including individual and commercial demand and time deposit accounts, commercial and industrial loans, consumer and small business loans, real estate and mortgage loans, investment services, on-line and mobile banking products, and cash management services.
Financial Statements	Financial Statements The consolidated statements presented include accounts of the Company and the Bank, its wholly-owned subsidiary. All material intercompany balances and transactions have been eliminated. The statements should be read in conjunction with the Company’s consolidated financial statements and the accompanying notes to consolidated financial statements included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019. The accounting and reporting policies of the Company conform to U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) and to the general practices within the banking industry. The interim financial statements have not been audited; however, in the opinion of management, all adjustments, consisting of normal accruals, were made that are necessary to present fairly the balance sheet of the Company as of September 30, 2020, the statements of income and comprehensive income and changes in shareholders’ equity for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2020, and the statements of cash flows for the nine months ended September 30, 2020. Results for the nine month period ended September 30, 2020 are not necessarily indicative of the results that may be expected for the year ending December 31, 2020. The financial information contained within the statements is, to a significant extent, financial information that is based on measures of the financial effects of transactions and events that have already occurred. A variety of factors could affect the ultimate value that is obtained when either earning income, recognizing an expense, recovering an asset or relieving a liability. The Company uses historical loss factors as one factor in determining the inherent loss that may be present in its loan portfolio. Actual losses could differ significantly from the historical factors that the Company uses. In addition, GAAP itself may change from one previously acceptable method to another method. Although the economics of the Company’s transactions would be the same, the timing of events that would impact its transactions could change. In preparing these financial statements, the Company has evaluated subsequent events and transactions for potential recognition or disclosure through the date the financial statements were issued.
Recent Accounting Developments	Recent Accounting Developments In October 2020, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) issued Accounting Standards Codification (ASC) 2020-08, Codification Improvements to Subtopic 310-20, Receivables – Nonrefundable fees and Other Costs. This ASU clarifies that an entity should reevaluate whether a callable debt security is within the scope of ASC paragraph 310-20-35-33 for each reporting period. For public business entities, the ASU is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2021, and interim periods within those fiscal years. Early adoption is not permitted. All entities should apply ASU 2020-08 on a prospective basis as of the beginning of the period of adoption for existing or newly purchased callable debt securities. The Company does not expect the adoption of ASU 2020-08 to have a material impact on its consolidated financial statements. In March 2020, President Trump signed into law the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (the “CARES Act”), which provides relief from certain requirements under GAAP. Section 4013 of the CARES Act gives entities temporary relief from the accounting and disclosure requirements for troubled debt restructurings (TDRs) under FASB ASC 310-40, Receivables – Troubled Debt Restructurings by Creditors, in certain situations. Under FASB ASC 310-40, a restructuring of debt constitutes a TDR if the creditor, for economic or legal reasons related to the debtor’s financial difficulties, grants a concession to the debtor that it would not otherwise consider. Section 4013 of the CARES Act permits the suspension of FASB ASC 310-40 for loan modifications that are made by financial institutions in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic if (1) the borrower was not more than 30 days past due as of December 31, 2019, and (2) the modifications are related to arrangements that defer or delay the payment of principal or interest, or change the interest rate on the loan. These modifications must be made between March 1, 2020 and the earlier of December 31, 2020 or the date that is 60 days after the date on which the national emergency concerning COVID–19 declared by the President on March 13, 2020 under the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.) terminates (the “applicable period”). In April 2020, various regulatory agencies, including the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (the “agencies”), issued an interagency statement on loan modifications and reporting for financial institutions working with customers affected by COVID-19. The agencies noted that there are circumstances in which a loan modification may not be eligible for non-TDR treatment under Section 4013 of the CARES Act or in which an institution elects not to apply Section 4013. For example, a loan that is modified after the end of the applicable period would not be eligible under Section 4013. For such loans, the agencies confirmed with the staff of the FASB that short-term modifications made on a good faith basis in response to the impact of COVID-19 to borrowers who were current prior to any relief are not to be considered TDRs. This includes short-term (e.g., six months) modifications such as payment deferrals, fee waivers, extensions of repayment terms, or other delays in payment that are insignificant. Borrowers considered current are those that are less than 30 days past due on their contractual payments at the time a modification program is implemented. The interagency statement was effective immediately. The CARES Act and interagency statement are expected to have a material impact on the Company’s financial statements; however, due to the uncertainties regarding the economic effects of COVID-19, this impact cannot be quantified at this time.

Nature of Banking Activities and Significant Accounting Policies (Policies)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2020

Nature of Banking Activities and Significant Accounting Policies [Abstract]

Community Bankers Trust Corporation (the “Company”) is headquartered in Richmond, Virginia and is the holding company for Essex Bank (the “Bank”), a Virginia state bank with 24 full-service offices, 18 of which are in Virginia and six of which are in Maryland. The Bank also operates two loan production offices.

The Bank engages in a general commercial banking business and provides a wide range of financial services primarily to individuals, small businesses and larger commercial companies, including individual and commercial demand and time deposit accounts, commercial and industrial loans, consumer and small business loans, real estate and mortgage loans, investment services, on-line and mobile banking products, and cash management services.

Financial Statements

The consolidated statements presented include accounts of the Company and the Bank, its wholly-owned subsidiary. All material intercompany balances and transactions have been eliminated. The statements should be read in conjunction with the Company’s consolidated financial statements and the accompanying notes to consolidated financial statements included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019. The accounting and reporting policies of the Company conform to U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) and to the general practices within the banking industry. The interim financial statements have not been audited; however, in the opinion of management, all adjustments, consisting of normal accruals, were made that are necessary to present fairly the balance sheet of the Company as of September 30, 2020, the statements of income and comprehensive income and changes in shareholders’ equity for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2020, and the statements of cash flows for the nine months ended September 30, 2020. Results for the nine month period ended September 30, 2020 are not necessarily indicative of the results that may be expected for the year ending December 31, 2020.

The financial information contained within the statements is, to a significant extent, financial information that is based on measures of the financial effects of transactions and events that have already occurred. A variety of factors could affect the ultimate value that is obtained when either earning income, recognizing an expense, recovering an asset or relieving a liability. The Company uses historical loss factors as one factor in determining the inherent loss that may be present in its loan portfolio. Actual losses could differ significantly from the historical factors that the Company uses. In addition, GAAP itself may change from one previously acceptable method to another method. Although the economics of the Company’s transactions would be the same, the timing of events that would impact its transactions could change.

In preparing these financial statements, the Company has evaluated subsequent events and transactions for potential recognition or disclosure through the date the financial statements were issued.

Recent Accounting Developments

In October 2020, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) issued Accounting Standards Codification (ASC) 2020-08, Codification Improvements to Subtopic 310-20, Receivables – Nonrefundable fees and Other Costs. This ASU clarifies that an entity should reevaluate whether a callable debt security is within the scope of ASC paragraph 310-20-35-33 for each reporting period. For public business entities, the ASU is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2021, and interim periods within those fiscal years. Early adoption is not permitted. All entities should apply ASU 2020-08 on a prospective basis as of the beginning of the period of adoption for existing or newly purchased callable debt securities. The Company does not expect the adoption of ASU 2020-08 to have a material impact on its consolidated financial statements.

In March 2020, President Trump signed into law the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (the “CARES Act”), which provides relief from certain requirements under GAAP. Section 4013 of the CARES Act gives entities temporary relief from the accounting and disclosure requirements for troubled debt restructurings (TDRs) under FASB ASC 310-40, Receivables – Troubled Debt Restructurings by Creditors, in certain situations. Under FASB ASC 310-40, a restructuring of debt constitutes a TDR if the creditor, for economic or legal reasons related to the debtor’s financial difficulties, grants a concession to the debtor that it would not otherwise consider. Section 4013 of the CARES Act permits the suspension of FASB ASC 310-40 for loan modifications that are made by financial institutions in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic if (1) the borrower was not more than 30 days past due as of December 31, 2019, and (2) the modifications are related to arrangements that defer or delay the payment of principal or interest, or change the interest rate on the loan. These modifications must be made between March 1, 2020 and the earlier of December 31, 2020 or the date that is 60 days after the date on which the national emergency concerning COVID–19 declared by the President on March 13, 2020 under the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.) terminates (the “applicable period”).

In April 2020, various regulatory agencies, including the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (the “agencies”), issued an interagency statement on loan modifications and reporting for financial institutions working with customers affected by COVID-19. The agencies noted that there are circumstances in which a loan modification may not be eligible for non-TDR treatment under Section 4013 of the CARES Act or in which an institution elects not to apply Section 4013. For example, a loan that is modified after the end of the applicable period would not be eligible under Section 4013. For such loans, the agencies confirmed with the staff of the FASB that short-term modifications made on a good faith basis in response to the impact of COVID-19 to borrowers who were current prior to any relief are not to be considered TDRs. This includes short-term (e.g., six months) modifications such as payment deferrals, fee waivers, extensions of repayment terms, or other delays in payment that are insignificant. Borrowers considered current are those that are less than 30 days past due on their contractual payments at the time a modification program is implemented. The interagency statement was effective immediately.

The CARES Act and interagency statement are expected to have a material impact on the Company’s financial statements; however, due to the uncertainties regarding the economic effects of COVID-19, this impact cannot be quantified at this time.