Accounting Policies

3 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2020

Accounting Policies [Abstract]

Accounting Policies

Accounting Policies

Accounting Standards:

Note 1 to the 2019 Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC contains a description of the accounting policies followed by the Company and a discussion of recent accounting pronouncements. The following paragraphs update that information as necessary.

SBA Loans Held for Sale - SBA Loans Held for Sale represent the guaranteed portion of SBA loans that the Company intends to sell in the near future. These loans are carried at the lower of cost or market as determined on an individual loan basis.

Accounting Standards Adopted in 2020

In January 2017, the FASB amended the Goodwill and Other Intangibles topic of the Accounting Standards Codification to simplify the accounting for goodwill impairment for public business entities and other entities that have goodwill reported in their financial statements and have not elected the private company alternative for the subsequent measurement of goodwill. The amendment removes Step 2 of the goodwill impairment test. The amount of goodwill impairment will now be the amount by which a reporting unit’s carrying value exceeds its fair value, not to exceed the carrying amount of goodwill. The effective date and transition requirements for the technical corrections were effective for the Company on January 1, 2020 and the adoption of this amendment did not have a material effect on the Company's financial statements. The Company's policy is to test goodwill for impairment annually on October 31 or on an interim basis if an event triggering impairment may have occurred. During the period ended March 31, 2020, the economic turmoil and market volatility resulting from the COVID-19 crisis resulted in a substantial decrease in the Company's stock price and market capitalization. Management believed such decrease was a triggering indicator requiring an interim goodwill impairment quantitative analysis. Under the new simplified guidance, the Company determined that none of it's goodwill was impaired as of March 31, 2020. Management will continue to evaluate the economic conditions at future reporting periods for applicable changes.

In August 2018, the FASB amended the Fair Value Measurement Topic of the Accounting Standards Codification. The amendments remove, modify, and add certain fair value disclosure requirements based on the concepts in the FASB Concepts Statement, Conceptual Framework for Financial Reporting—Chapter 8: Notes to Financial Statements. The amendments were effective on January 1, 2020. These amendments did not have a material effect on the Company's financial statements.

In March 2019, the FASB issued guidance to address concerns companies had raised about an accounting exception they would lose when assessing the fair value of underlying assets under the leases standard and clarify that lessees and lessors are exempt from a certain interim disclosure requirement associated with adopting the new standard. The amendments were effective for the Company on January 1, 2020 and their adoption did not have a material effect on its financial statements.

Accounting Standards Pending Adoption

In June 2016, the FASB issued guidance to change the accounting for credit losses. The guidance requires an entity to utilize a new impairment model known as the current expected credit loss ("CECL") model to estimate its lifetime "expected credit losses" and record an allowance that, when deducted from the amortized cost basis of the financial assets, presents the net amount expected to be collected on the financial assets.  In May 2019, the FASB issued additional guidance to provide entities with an option to irrevocably elect the fair value option, applied on an instrument-by-instrument basis for eligible instruments, upon the adoption of the CECL model. The Company does not expect to elect this option. The CECL framework is expected to result in earlier recognition of credit losses and is expected to be significantly influenced by the composition, characteristics and quality of the Company's loan portfolio, as well as the prevailing economic conditions and forecasts. Except as discussed below, the Company would have applied the new guidance through a cumulative-effect adjustment to retained earnings as of the beginning of the year of adoption, which, for the Company, is January 1, 2020, with future adjustments to credit loss

expectations recorded through the income statement as charges or credits to earnings. In the first quarter of 2020, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the CARES Act was enacted by the United States Congress and signed by the President. This CARES Act included an election to defer the implementation of CECL until the earlier of the cessation of the national emergency, or December 31, 2020. The Company is prepared for CECL implementation but elected to defer its effective date, as permitted by the CARES Act, because of the challenges associated with developing a reliable forecast of losses that may result from the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic. Upon the adoption of CECL, the Company expects its allowance for credit losses related to all financial assets will increase to approximately $40-$44 million as of January 1, 2020 compared to its allowance for loan losses at December 31, 2019 of approximately $21 million. As noted above, this initial impact will be reflected as a cumulative-effect adjustment to retained earnings.

In August 2018, the FASB amended the Compensation - Retirement Benefits – Defined Benefit Plans Topic of the Accounting Standards Codification to improve disclosure requirements for employers that sponsor defined benefit pension and other postretirement plans. The guidance removes disclosures that are no longer considered cost-beneficial, clarifies the specific requirements of disclosures, and adds disclosure requirements identified as relevant. The amendments are effective for fiscal years, and interim periods within those fiscal years, beginning after December 15, 2020. Early adoption is permitted. The Company does not expect these amendments to have a material effect on its financial statements.

In March 2020, the FASB issued guidance to provide temporary optional guidance to ease the potential burden in accounting for reference rate reform. The amendments are effective as of March 12, 2020 through December 31, 2022. The Company does not expect these amendments to have a material effect on its financial statements.

Other accounting standards that have been issued or proposed by the FASB or other standards-setting bodies are not expected to have a material impact on the Company’s financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

See Note 1 regarding temporary provisions of the Coronavirus Aid Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) related to loans.