Building a Successful Relationship with a Great Bank: Part III

Term for today: call report (source: Investopedia)

A call report is a regulatory report that must be filed by banks in the U.S. on a quarterly basis with the FDIC. A call report contains information about a bank’s financial health and by examining multiple call reports it can provide insight regarding the welfare of the U.S. banking system more broadly. Banks that are required to file call reports are national banks, state member banks, and non-member banks.

A call report is officially known as the “Report of Condition and Income” and can also be called the RC report.

Call reports for banks can be found here. Call reports for credit unions can be found here.

Questions to Ask a Potential Banker: Bank Loans, Call Reports and Statistical Information, and Governance Information

Bank Loans

Do you offer mortgages? If so, do you sell your mortgages (and if so, to whom, e.g., Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, other commercial MBS aggregators)? Do you retain the servicing of your mortgages?
What is your history of selling your mortgages and their servicing?
Do you make FHA, VA, SBA, and/or rural housing loans?
Do you make auto loans?
What type of consumer loans do you make, and do you make available loans and other services targeted at low-income customers?
Do you make small business loans?
What criteria do you employ in underwriting loans?

Call Reports and Statistical Information

How can I obtain copies of your call reports?
What percentage of your deposits are federally insured?
What is the make-up of your depositor base? Your lending base? Your mortgage base?
What is your bank rating? By what rating company (e.g., Best’s)?
Is your stock publicly traded? What is the mix of ownership of your shares (private or public)?

Governance Information

Who serves on your board of directors?
How likely is it you might be acquired by a larger bank?
What is the history of your participation in the local economy and lending to local small businesses and farms?
Do you borrow from the Federal Home Loan Bank?
What is your position on central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), and how do you envision your role if and when CBDCs become available or mandated?
Do you participate in the FedNow system? Do you plan to?

Related Resources:

Building a Successful Relationship with a Great Bank: Part I

Building a Successful Relationship with a Great Bank: Part II

Building a Successful Relationship with a Great Bank: Part IV

Call Reports: FFIEC Central Data Repository’s Public Data Distribution

Call Report: JPMorgan Chase, Columbus, Ohio

Call Report: Union Savings, Cincinnati

Sample Fannie Mae Mortgage Note

Weiss Bank Ratings

Weiss Ratings – Banking

NCUA – Call Report Quarterly Data

I Want to Stop CBDCs – What Can I Do?