2024 Journal of Community Bank Case Studies

FIRST PLACE: Commonwealth University of Pennsylvania

media pages, and it further limits administrative access to the accounts to only a few individuals. FCCB holds risk management to the utmost importance, and proactive planning allows the bank to be confident and fearless when chaos

caused by rapid withdrawals from uninsured depositors. Technology and social media put these bank runs into hyperdrive. As a community bank, FCCB differs because of how it values relationships. In the aftermath, keeping values close, the bank even reached out to customers to reassure them. The bank consistently focuses on the present needs of its community members, exemplified through its agricultural lending niche. Unlike large banks, FCCB sees its customers as individuals rather than a statistic. One of the bank’s core values is that its strength is derived from relationships within its community (FCCB). Even during times of crisis, FCCB ensures its customers agree: “We put the Unity in Community.” Acknowledgments We, the Commonwealth University of Pennsylvania team, would like to acknowledge each of the individuals who assisted us in completing our case study paper and video. We could not have done it without the help we received from FCCB and our Commonwealth University faculty advisors. First and foremost,

arises (Gephart). Conclusion

In this case study, we examined the causes and effects of the 2023 bank closures on community banks, focusing on liquidity, regulatory, and reputational risk. Through this analysis, we contrasted FCCB with banks that failed and identified key contributors to community banks’ resilience in times of uncertainty. In Part I, we analyzed FCCB’s financial performance over the past five years. The bank displayed impressive growth over the period, driven by two acquisitions; however, the inverted yield curve has led to shrinking margins. In Part II, we described the causes of the 2023 bank closures and how these events have affected ALM practices and regulatory risk policies. We found that FCCB displayed resilience during this time due to supplemental insurance for uninsured depositors, highly relationship-centered values, and its agricultural lending niche. We also found that regulators are now increasingly concerned with liquidity management and capital planning. In Part III, we evaluated how social media was a catalyst during the bank failures. We concluded our analysis by explaining how FCCB uses social media to advertise and develop relationships with community members while also managing the risks associated with such technology. SVB, Signature Bank, and First Republic Bank each failed due to insufficient liquidity,

In a world full of scams and fraud, FCCB takes every precaution to ensure that its data and communications are secure.

23