SEC Filing | CVB Financial Corp.

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10-K

Table of Contents

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

Form

10-K

☒

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

For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2020

☐

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

For the transition period from

Commission file number:

000-10140

CVB FINANCIAL CORP.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)


California		95-3629339
(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization)		(I.R.S. Employer Identification No.)

701 N. Haven Avenue, Suite 350 Ontario, California		91764
(Address of Principal Executive Offices)		(Zip Code)

Registrant’s telephone number, including area code:

(909)

980-4030

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


Title of Class	Trading Symbol	Name of Each Exchange on Which Registered
Common Stock, no par value	CVBF	NASDAQ Stock Market, LLC

Securities registered pursuant 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 ☒ No ☐

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 ☐ No ☒

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 ☒ No ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically 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 ☒ No ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a

non-accelerated

filer, a smaller reporting company or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer”, “smaller reporting company” and “emerging growth company” in Rule

12b-2

of the Exchange Act. (Check one):

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. ☒

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 ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule

12b-2

of the Act). Yes ☐ No ☒

As of June 30, 2020, the aggregate market value of the common stock held by

non-affiliates

of the registrant was approximately $2,400,051,983.

Number of shares of common stock of the registrant outstanding as of February

, 2021: 135,873,607.


DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE		PART OF
Definitive Proxy Statement for the Annual Meeting of Stockholders which will be filed within 120 days of the fiscal year ended December 31, 2020		Part III of Form 10-K

Table of Contents

CVB FINANCIAL CORP.

2020 ANNUAL REPORT ON FORM

10-K

TABLE OF CONTENTS

PART I


ITEM 1.	BUSINESS	5
ITEM 1A.	RISK FACTORS	25
ITEM 1B.	UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS	40
ITEM 2.	PROPERTIES	40
ITEM 3.	LEGAL PROCEEDINGS	40
ITEM 4.	MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES	41

PART II


ITEM 5.	MARKET FOR THE REGISTRANT’S COMMON EQUITY, RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS AND ISSUER PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES	42
ITEM 6.	SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA	44
ITEM 7.	MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS	45
	CRITICAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES	46
	OVERVIEW	50
	ANALYSIS OF THE RESULTS OF OPERATIONS	51
	ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION	60
	RISK MANAGEMENT	80
ITEM 7A.	QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK	88
ITEM 8.	FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA	89
ITEM 9.	CHANGES IN AND DISAGREEMENTS WITH ACCOUNTANTS ON ACCOUNTING AND FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE	89
ITEM 9A.	CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES	89
ITEM 9B.	OTHER INFORMATION	91

PART III

PART IV

Table of Contents

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

Certain matters set forth in this Annual Report on Form

10-K

(including the exhibits hereto) constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including forward-looking statements relating to the Company’s current business plans, financial performance, expectations and our future financial position and operating results. Words such as “will likely result”, “aims”, “anticipates”, “believes”, “could”, “estimates”, “expects”, “hopes”, “intends”, “may”, “plans”, “projects”, “seeks”, “should”, “will”, “strategy”, “possibility”, and variations of these words and similar expressions help to identify these forward-looking statements, which involve risks and uncertainties. These forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results, performance and/or achievements to differ materially from those projected. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to the following:

•

local, regional, national and international economic and market conditions, political events and public health developments and the impact they may have on us, our customers and our assets and liabilities;

•

our ability to attract deposits and other sources of funding or liquidity;

•

supply and demand for commercial or residential real estate and periodic deterioration in real estate prices and/or values in California or other states where we lend;

•

a sharp or prolonged slowdown or decline in real estate construction, sales or leasing activities;

•

changes in the financial performance and/or condition of our borrowers, depositors, key vendors or counterparties;

•

changes in our levels of delinquent loans, nonperforming assets, allowance for credit losses and charge-offs;

•

the costs or effects of mergers, acquisitions or dispositions we may make, whether we are able to obtain any required governmental approvals in connection with any such mergers, acquisitions or dispositions, and/or our ability to realize the contemplated financial or business benefits or cost savings associated with any such mergers, acquisitions or dispositions;

•

the effects of new laws, regulations and/or government programs, including those laws, regulations and programs enacted by federal, state or local governments in the geographic jurisdictions in which we do business in response to the current national emergency declared in connection with the

COVID-19

pandemic;

•

the impact of the federal CARES Act, the Consolidated Appropriations Act, and the significant additional lending activities undertaken by the Company in connection with the Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program enacted and extended under those statutes, including risks to the Company with respect to the uncertain application by the Small Business Administration of new borrower and loan eligibility, forgiveness and audit criteria;

•

the effects of the Company’s participation in one or more of the lending programs established by the Federal Reserve in 2020, including the Main Street New Loan Facility, the Main Street Priority Loan Facility and the Nonprofit Organization New Loan Facility, and the impact of any related actions or decisions by the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston and its special purpose vehicle established pursuant to such lending programs;

•

the effect of changes in other pertinent laws, regulations and applicable judicial decisions (including laws, regulations and judicial decisions concerning financial reforms, taxes, bank capital levels, allowance for credit losses, consumer, commercial or secured lending, securities and securities trading and hedging, bank operations, compliance, fair lending, the Community Reinvestment Act, employment, executive compensation, insurance, cybersecurity, vendor management and information security technology) with which we and our subsidiaries must comply or believe we should comply or which may otherwise impact us;

•

changes in estimates of future reserve requirements and minimum capital requirements based upon the periodic review thereof under relevant regulatory and accounting standards, including changes in the Basel Committee framework establishing capital standards for bank credit, operations and market risks;

•

the accuracy of the assumptions and estimates and the absence of technical error in implementation or calibration of models used to estimate the fair value of financial instruments or currently expected credit losses or delinquencies;

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•

the sensitivity of our assets and liabilities to changes in market interest rates, or our current allowance for credit losses;

•

inflation, changes in market interest rates, securities market and monetary fluctuations;

•

changes in government-established interest rates, reference rates or monetary policies, including the possible imposition of negative interest rates on bank reserves;

•

the impact of the anticipated

phase-out

of the London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR) on interest rate indexes specified in certain of our customer loan agreements and our interest rate swap arrangements, including any economic and compliance effects related to the expected change from LIBOR to an alternative reference rate;

•

changes in the amount, cost and availability of deposit insurance;

•

disruptions in the infrastructure that supports our business and the communities where we are located, which are concentrated in California, involving or related to public health, physical site access and/or communications facilities;

•

cyber incidents, attacks, infiltrations, exfiltrations, or theft or loss of Company or customer or employee data or money;

•

political developments, uncertainties or instability, catastrophic events, acts of war or terrorism, or natural disasters, such as earthquakes, drought, the effects of pandemic diseases, climate changes or extreme weather events, that may affect electrical, environmental, computer servers, and communications or other services, computer services or facilities we use, or that may affect our customers, employees or third parties with whom we conduct business;

•

our timely development and implementation of new banking products and services and the perceived overall value of these products and services by customers and potential customers;

•

the Company’s relationships with and reliance upon outside vendors with respect to certain of the Company’s key internal and external systems, applications and controls;

•

changes in commercial or consumer spending, borrowing and savings preferences or behaviors;

•

technological changes and the expanding use of technology in banking and financial services (including the adoption of mobile banking, funds transfer applications, electronic marketplaces for loans, block-chain technology and other banking products, systems or services);

•

our ability to retain and increase market share, to retain and grow customers and to control expenses;

•

changes in the competitive environment among banks and other financial services and technology providers;

•

competition and innovation with respect to financial products and services by banks, financial institutions and

non-traditional

providers including retail businesses and technology companies;

•

volatility in the credit and equity markets and its effect on the general economy or local or regional business conditions or on the Company’s capital, assets, liabilities, or customers;

•

fluctuations in the price of the Company’s common stock or other securities, and the resulting impact on the Company’s ability to raise capital or make acquisitions;

•

the effect of changes in accounting policies and practices, as may be adopted from

time-to-time

by our regulatory agencies, as well as by the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, the Financial Accounting Standards Board and other accounting standard setters;

•

changes in our organization, management, compensation and benefit plans, and our ability to recruit, retain, expand or contract our workforce, management team, key executive positions and/or our board of directors;

•

our ability to identify suitable and qualified replacements for any of our executive officers who may leave their employment with us, including our Chief Executive Officer, or to fill any key employment vacancies;

•

the costs and effects of legal, compliance and regulatory actions, changes and developments, including the initiation and resolution of legal proceedings (including any securities, lender liability, bank operations, financial product or service, data privacy, health and safety, consumer or employee class action litigation);

•

regulatory or other governmental inquiries or investigations, and/or the results of regulatory examinations or reviews;

•

our ongoing relations with our various federal and state regulators, including the SEC, Federal Reserve Board, FDIC and California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI);

•

our success at managing the risks involved in the foregoing items; and

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•

all other factors set forth in the Company’s public reports, including our Annual Report on

Form 10-K

for the year ended December 31, 2020, and particularly the discussion of risk factors within this document.

Among other risks, the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic may significantly affect the banking industry, the health and safety of the Company’s employees, and the Company’s business prospects. The ultimate impact on our business and financial results will depend on future developments, which are highly uncertain and cannot be predicted, including the scope and duration of the pandemic, the impact on the economy, our customers, our employees and our business partners, the safety, effectiveness, timely distribution and acceptance of vaccines developed to mitigate the pandemic, and actions taken by governmental authorities in response to the pandemic.

The Company does not undertake, and specifically disclaims any obligation, to update any forward-looking statements to reflect occurrences or unanticipated events or circumstances after the date of such statements, except as required by law. Any statements about future operating results, such as those concerning accretion and dilution to the Company’s earnings or shareholders, are for illustrative purposes only, are not forecasts, and actual results may differ.

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PART I

ITEM 1.

BUSINESS

CVB Financial Corp.

CVB Financial Corp. (referred to herein on an unconsolidated basis as “CVB” and on a consolidated basis as “we”, “our” or the “Company”) is a bank holding company incorporated in California on April 27, 1981 and registered with the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (“Federal Reserve”) under the Bank Holding Company Act of 1956, as amended (the “Bank Holding Company Act”). The Company commenced business on December 30, 1981 when, pursuant to a reorganization, it acquired all of the voting stock of Chino Valley Bank. On March 29, 1996, Chino Valley Bank changed its name to Citizens Business Bank (“CBB” or the “Bank”). The Bank is our principal asset. The Company also has one inactive subsidiary, Chino Valley Bancorp. The Company is also the common stockholder of CVB Statutory Trust III. CVB Statutory Trust III was created in January 2006 to issue trust preferred securities in order to raise capital for the Company.

CVB’s principal business is to serve as a holding company for the Bank and for other banking or banking related subsidiaries, which the Company may establish or acquire. CVB has not engaged in any other material activities to date. As a legal entity separate and distinct from its subsidiaries, CVB’s principal source of funds is, and will continue to be, dividends paid by and other funds advanced from the Bank and capital raised directly by CVB. Legal limitations are imposed on the amount of dividends that may be paid and loans that may be made by the Bank to CVB. See “Item 1.

Business — Regulation and Supervision — Dividends

.” As of December 31, 2020, the Company had $14.42 billion in total consolidated assets, $8.26 billion in net loans, $11.74 billion in deposits, and $2.01 billion in shareholders’ equity.

The principal executive offices of CVB and the Bank are located at 701 North Haven Avenue, Suite 350, Ontario, California. Our phone number is (909)

980-4030.

Citizens Business Bank

The Bank commenced operations as a California state-chartered bank on August 9, 1974. The Bank’s deposit accounts are insured under the Federal Deposit Insurance Act up to applicable limits. The Bank is not a member of the Federal Reserve System. At December 31, 2020, the Bank had $14.41 billion in assets, $8.26 billion in net loans, $11.79 billion in deposits, and $1.99 billion in total equity.

As of December 31, 2020, the Bank had 57 Banking Centers (“Centers”) located in the Inland Empire, Los Angeles County, Orange County, San Diego County, Ventura County, Santa Barbara County, and the Central Valley area of California. We also have one loan production office in Modesto, California

We also have three trust offices located in Ontario, Newport Beach and Pasadena. These offices serve as sales offices for the Bank’s wealth management, trust and investment products.

Through our network of Centers, we emphasize personalized service combined with a wide range of banking and trust services for businesses, professionals and individuals located in the service areas of our Centers. Although we focus the marketing of our services to

small-and

medium-sized

businesses, a wide range of banking, investment and trust services are made available to the markets we serve.

We offer a wide range of bank deposit instruments. These include checking, savings, money market and time certificates of deposit for both business and personal accounts, municipalities and districts, and specialized deposit products for title and escrow. We also serve as a federal tax depository for our business customers.

We provide a full complement of lending products, including commercial, agribusiness, consumer, SBA loans, real estate loans and equipment and vehicle leasing. Commercial products include lines of credit and other working capital financing, accounts receivable lending and letters of credit. Agribusiness products are loans to

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finance the operating needs of wholesale dairy farm operations, cattle feeders, livestock raisers, and farmers. We provide bank qualified lease financing for municipal governments. Commercial real estate and construction loans are secured by a range of property types and include both owner-occupied and investor owned properties. We also offer borrowers the ability to enter into interest rate swaps. Financing products for consumers include automobile leasing and financing, lines of credit, credit cards, home mortgages, and home equity loans and lines of credit.

We also offer a wide range of specialized services designed for the needs of our commercial customers. These services include treasury management systems for monitoring and managing cash flow, a merchant card processing program, armored

pick-up

and delivery, payroll services, remote deposit capture, electronic funds transfers, domestic and international wires and automated clearinghouse, and

on-line

account access. We make available investment products offered by other providers to our customers, including mutual funds, a full array of fixed income vehicles and a program to diversify our customers’ funds in federally insured time certificates of deposit of other institutions.

In addition, we offer a wide range of financial services and trust services through our CitizensTrust division. These services include fiduciary services, mutual funds, annuities, 401(k) plans and individual investment accounts.

Business Segments

We are a community bank with one reportable operating segment. See the sections captioned “Business Segments” in Item 7.

Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

and Note 3 —

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

—

Business Segments

of the notes to consolidated financial statements.

Human Capital

We employed 1,052 associates as of December 31, 2020. This was a 3% decrease from December 31, 2019. Our Code of Personal and Business Conduct and Ethics (“Code”) addresses both business and social relationships that may present legal and ethical concerns and also sets forth a code of conduct to guide the members of the Board of Directors and associates. Our associates acknowledge annually they have read and understood their responsibility to conduct business in accordance with the highest ethical standards in order to merit and maintain the confidence and trust of our customers and the public in general.

The Company promotes Five Core Values that we believe provides a continuing commitment and direction to our business activities and our underlying culture. These core values are fundamental to the Company’s performance and strategy.

Our Five Core Values are:

1) Financial Strength;

2) Superior People;

3) Customer Focus;

4) Cost-Effective Operation; and

5) Having Fun.

The Company’s Citizens Experience Service Awards and Recognition Program resulted in 302 nominations of associates who were recognized for exemplifying our Five Core Values in 2020. In addition, the Company has a long held tradition of an annual awards program that recognizes outstanding job performance. In 2020, we held a virtual awards ceremony that recognized 33 associates, who stood out for their commitment to our high standards of performance.

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The Company is committed to supporting the physical and financial wellness of our associates and their families. We offer a comprehensive set of health insurance and retirement benefits, as well as wellness programs and resources. As of December 2020, 88% of our associates were enrolled in our medical insurance plans and 43% of our associates participated in at least one wellness activity during 2020. The Company makes an annual 401(k) retirement contribution to all eligible associates, which includes a profit sharing component. For 2020, the combined Company 401(k) contribution was 5% of associate’s eligible salary. In addition, 93% of our associates made individual participant contributions to the 401(k) plan during 2020. During 2020, with oversight by the Company’s Business Continuity Committee, we took numerous actions to promote the health and safety of our associates during the

COVID-19

pandemic. These actions included certain individual protocols such as required facial coverings, social distancing, daily temperature taking and virus testing. We also enhanced the daily cleaning of our workspaces and provided greater opportunities for our associates to work remotely where possible.

Recruiting, training and development, and retention of key associates is vital to the Company’s strategy and success. The Company promotes leadership and associate development through various programs, including succession planning, top talent program, and leadership essentials training. At December 31, 2020, we had approximately 140 positions within the Company designated as “leadership” positions. This represents approximately 13% of our total associates. The average tenure at the Company among our leadership group at the end of 2020 was 10 years. In 2020, turnover among our leadership group was less than 10% and during the year we promoted 6 associates and hired 5 new associates into our leadership group.

The Company’s Diversity and Inclusion Program is designed to invest in the professional development of our associates and values an inclusive and diverse workplace. We strive to reward talent, with a commitment to equal opportunity. Oversight is provided by the Company’s Diversity and Inclusion Committee, which is guided by our Diversity and Inclusion Policy. The Policy provides a framework which we use to create and strengthen our diversity policies and practices, including our organizational commitment to diversity, positive workforce and employment practices, sound procurement and business practices, and practices to promote transparency of organizational diversity and inclusion. The Diversity and Inclusion Committee is

co-chaired

by our Chief Operations Officer and Human Resources Director and includes our Chief Financial Officer, Chief Risk Officer, and General Counsel. We monitor progress in enhancing diversity throughout our organization, including the percentage of our total associates who are female and racially or ethnically diverse. Our Human Resources Director provides updates on our progress to the Board of Directors on a regular basis. The following represents the Company’s diversity at December 31, 2020:

In addition, 40% of our Board of Directors are female or ethnically diverse.

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The Board of Directors oversees executive compensation, as well as the Company’s compensation and benefit plans, through the Board’s Compensation Committee. The Management Compensation Compliance Committee, under the direction of the Compensation Committee, identifies, assesses, and manages exposure to and compliance with applicable compensation laws, regulations, and other related issues. In general, the Management Compensation Compliance Committee is responsible for ensuring that the Company has designed and implemented risk management processes that (1) evaluate the nature of inherent risks in compensation programs; (2) are consistent with the Company’s strategic plan; and (3) foster a culture of risk-awareness and risk-adjusted decision making throughout the Company. All of our associates are eligible for incentive compensation awards. For 2020, 92% of our associates earned an incentive bonus. In addition, we paid all eligible associates a “Thank You” Award in July of 2020, which totaled approximately $1.1 million. This award was in recognition of our associates commitments and efforts as essential workers to support our customers and communities during the pandemic.

Competition

The banking and financial services business is highly competitive. The competitive environment faced by banks is a result primarily of changes in laws and regulations, changes in technology and product delivery systems, and the ongoing consolidation among insured financial institutions. We compete for loans, deposits, and customers with other commercial banks, savings and loan associations, savings banks, securities and brokerage companies, mortgage companies, insurance companies, finance companies, blockchain and cryptocurrency companies, money market funds, credit unions, and other nonbank financial service providers, including online banks and

“peer-to-peer”

or “marketplace” payment processors, FinTech companies, lenders and other small business and consumer lenders. Many competitors are much larger in total assets and capitalization, have greater access to capital markets and/or offer a broader range of financial products and services. Additionally, some smaller competitors, including

non-bank

entities, may be more nimble and responsive to customer preferences or requirements.

Economic Conditions/Government Policies

Our profitability, like most financial institutions, is primarily dependent on interest rate spreads and noninterest income. In general, the difference between the interest rates paid by the Bank on interest-bearing liabilities, such as deposits and other borrowings, and the interest rates received by the Bank on interest-earning assets, such as loans extended to customers and securities held in the investment portfolio, will comprise the major portion of our earnings. These rates are highly sensitive to many factors that are beyond our control, such as inflation, recession and unemployment, government monetary and other policies, and the impact which future changes in domestic and foreign economic conditions might have on us cannot be predicted.

Opportunity for banks to earn fees and other noninterest income have also been limited by restrictions imposed by the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (“Dodd-Frank”) and other government regulations. As the following sections indicate, the impact of current and future changes in government laws and regulations on our ability to maintain current levels of fees and other noninterest income could be material and cannot be predicted.

Our business is also influenced by the monetary and fiscal policies of the federal government and the policies of regulatory agencies, particularly the Federal Reserve. The Federal Reserve implements national monetary policies (with objectives such as curbing inflation, increasing employment and combating recession) through its open-market operations in U.S. Government securities by buying and selling treasury and mortgage-backed securities, by adjusting the required level of reserves for depository institutions subject to its reserve requirements, and by varying the target federal funds and discount rates applicable to borrowings by depository institutions. The actions of the Federal Reserve in these areas influence the growth and performance of bank loans, investments, and deposits and also affect interest earned on interest-earning assets and paid on interest-bearing liabilities. In recent years, the impact of the Federal Reserve’s actions and policies have tended to assume even greater importance and impact on the lending and securities markets, and these actions and policies are

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continuing to evolve and change based on political and economic events and incoming data. Government fiscal and budgetary policies, including deficit spending, can also have a significant impact on the capital markets and interest rates. The nature and impact of any future changes in monetary and fiscal policies on us cannot be predicted.

Regulation and Supervision

General

The Bank is subject to significant regulation and restrictions under federal and state laws and regulatory agencies. These regulations and restrictions are intended primarily for the protection of depositors and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (“FDIC”) Deposit Insurance Fund (“DIF”) and for the protection of borrowers, and secondarily for the stability of the U.S. banking system. The following discussion of statutes and regulations is a summary and does not purport to be complete nor does it address all applicable statutes and regulations. This discussion is qualified in its entirety by reference to the statutes and regulations referred to in this discussion. From time to time, federal and state legislation is enacted and implemented by regulations which may have the effect of materially increasing the cost of doing business, limiting or expanding permissible activities, or affecting the competitive balance between banks and other financial services providers.

We cannot predict whether or when other legislation or new regulations may be enacted, and if enacted, the effect that new legislation or any implemented regulations and supervisory policies would have on our financial condition and results of operations. Such developments may further alter the structure, regulation, and competitive relationship among financial institutions, may limit the types or pricing of the products and services we offer, and may subject us to increased regulation, disclosure, and reporting requirements.

Legislation and Regulatory Developments

The federal banking agencies continue to implement the remaining requirements in the Dodd-Frank Act as well as promulgating other regulations and guidelines intended to assure the financial strength and safety and soundness of banks and the stability of the U.S. banking system. On February 3, 2017 President Trump issued an executive order identifying certain “core principles” for the administration’s financial services regulatory policy and directing the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the heads of other financial regulatory agencies, to evaluate how the current regulatory framework promotes or inhibits the principles and what actions have been, and are being, taken to promote the principles. In response to the executive order, on June 12, 2017, October 6, 2017, October 26, 2017 and July 31, 2018, respectively, the United States Department of the Treasury issued four reports recommending a number of comprehensive changes in the current regulatory system for U.S. depository institutions, the U.S. capital markets and the U.S. asset management and insurance industries, around the following principles:

•

Improving regulatory efficiency and effectiveness by critically evaluating mandates and regulatory fragmentation, overlap, and duplication across regulatory agencies;

•

Aligning the financial system to help support the U.S. economy;

•

Reducing regulatory burden by decreasing unnecessary complexity;

•

Tailoring the regulatory approach based on size and complexity of regulated firms and requiring greater regulatory cooperation and coordination among financial regulators;

•

Aligning regulations to support market liquidity, investment, and lending in the U.S. economy; and

•

Creating a regulatory landscape that better supports nonbank financial institutions, embraces financial technology and fosters innovation.

The scope and breadth of regulatory changes that will be implemented in response to the President’s executive order have not yet been determined. The scope and breath of regulatory changes that will occur as a result of the election of President Biden have yet to be determined.

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Capital Adequacy Requirements

Bank holding companies and banks are subject to similar regulatory capital requirements administered by state and federal banking agencies. The current capital rule changes (the “Current Capital Rules”) adopted by the federal bank regulatory agencies, which were fully effective on January 1, 2015, have been fully phased in. The risk-based capital guidelines for bank holding companies, and additionally for banks, require capital ratios that vary based on the perceived degree of risk associated with a banking organization’s operations, both for transactions reported on the balance sheet as assets, such as loans, and for those recorded as

off-balance

sheet items, such as commitments, letters of credit and recourse arrangements. The risk-based capital ratio is determined by classifying assets and certain

off-balance

sheet financial instruments into weighted categories, with higher levels of capital being required for those categories perceived as representing greater risks, and with the applicable ratios calculated by dividing qualifying capital by total risk-adjusted assets and

off-balance

sheet items. Capital amounts and classifications are also subject to qualitative judgments by regulators about components, risk weighting and other factors. Bank holding companies and banks engaged in significant trading activity may also be subject to the market risk capital guidelines and be required to incorporate additional market and interest rate risk components into their risk-based capital standards. Bank holding companies are also required to act as a source of financial strength to their subsidiary banks. Under this policy, the Company must commit resources to support the Bank even when the Company may not be in a financial position to provide it.

Regulatory Capital and Risk-weighted Assets

The Federal Reserve monitors our capital adequacy on a consolidated basis, and the FDIC and the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation

(“DFPI”) monitor the capital adequacy of our Bank. These rules implement the Basel III international regulatory capital standards in the United States, as well as certain provisions of the Dodd-Frank Act. These quantitative calculations are minimums, and the Federal Reserve, FDIC or DFPI may determine that a banking organization, based on its size, complexity or risk profile, must maintain a higher level of capital in order to operate in a safe and sound manner.

Under the Basel III Capital Rules, the Company’s and the Bank’s assets, exposures and certain

off-balance

sheet items are subject to risk weights used to determine the institutions’ risk-weighted assets. These risk-weighted assets are used to calculate the following minimum capital ratios for the Company and the Bank:

•

Tier

1 Leverage Ratio

, equal to the ratio of Tier 1 capital to quarterly average assets (net of goodwill, certain other intangible assets and certain other deductions).

•

CET1 Risk-Based Capital Ratio

, equal to the ratio of CET1 capital to risk-weighted assets. CET1 capital primarily includes common stockholders’ equity subject to certain regulatory adjustments and deductions, including with respect to goodwill, intangible assets and certain deferred tax assets. Certain of these adjustments and deductions were subject to

phase-in

periods that began on January 1, 2015 and ended on January 1, 2018. The last phase of the Basel III Capital Rules’ transition provisions relating to capital deductions for mortgage servicing assets, certain deferred tax assets and investments in the capital instruments of unconsolidated financial institutions, and the recognition of minority interests in regulatory capital was delayed for certain bank holding companies and banks, including us and the Bank, but a revised rule was finalized in July 2019 that was effective in April 2020. Hybrid securities, such as trust preferred securities, generally are excluded from being counted as Tier 1 capital. However, for bank holding companies like us that have less than $15 billion in total consolidated assets, certain trust preferred securities were grandfathered in as a component of Tier 1 capital. In addition, because we are not an advanced approach banking organization, we were permitted to make a

one-time

permanent election to exclude accumulated other comprehensive income items from regulatory capital. We made this election in order to avoid significant variations in our levels of capital depending upon the impact of interest rate fluctuations on the fair value of our Bank’s

available-for-sale

securities portfolio.

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•

Tier 1 Risk-Based Capital Ratio

, equal to the ratio of Tier 1 capital to risk-weighted assets. Tier 1 capital is primarily comprised of CET1 capital, perpetual preferred stock and certain qualifying capital instruments.

•

Total Risk-Based Capital Ratio

, equal to the ratio of total capital, including CET1 capital, Tier 1 capital and Tier 2 capital, to risk-weighted assets. Tier 2 capital primarily includes qualifying subordinated debt and qualifying allowance for credit losses. Tier 2 capital also includes, among other things, certain trust preferred securities.

The total minimum regulatory capital ratios and well-capitalized minimum ratios are reflected in the charts below. For purposes of the Federal Reserve’s Regulation Y, including determining whether a bank holding company meets the requirements to be a financial holding company, bank holding companies, such as the Company, must maintain a Tier 1 Risk-Based Capital Ratio of 6.0% or greater and a Total Risk-Based Capital Ratio of 10.0% or greater. The Federal Reserve may require bank holding companies, including the Company, to maintain capital ratios substantially in excess of mandated minimum levels, depending upon general economic conditions and a bank holding company’s particular condition, risk profile and growth plans.

Failure to be well-capitalized or to meet minimum capital requirements could result in certain mandatory and possible additional discretionary actions by regulators that, if undertaken, could have a material adverse effect on our operations or financial condition. Failure to be well-capitalized or to meet minimum capital requirements could also result in restrictions on the Company’s or the Bank’s ability to pay dividends or otherwise distribute capital or to receive regulatory approval of applications.

In addition to meeting the minimum capital requirements, under the Basel III Capital Rules, the Company and the Bank must also maintain the required Capital Conservation Buffer to avoid becoming subject to restrictions on capital distributions and certain discretionary bonus payments to management. The Capital Conservation Buffer is calculated as a ratio of CET1 capital to risk-weighted assets, and it effectively increases the required minimum risk-based capital ratios. The Capital Conservation Buffer requirement was phased in over a three-year period that began on January 1, 2016. The

phase-in

period ended on January 1, 2019, and the Capital Conservation Buffer is now at its fully

phased-in

level of 2.5%.

The Tier 1 Leverage Ratio is not impacted by the Capital Conservation Buffer, and a banking institution may be considered well-capitalized while remaining out of compliance with the Capital Conservation Buffer.

The table below summarizes the capital requirements that the Company and the Bank must satisfy to avoid limitations on capital distributions and certain discretionary bonus payments (i.e., the required minimum capital ratios plus the Capital Conservation Buffer):


	Minimum Basel III Regulatory Capital Ratio Plus Capital Conservation Buffer
	Effective January 1, 2019
CET1 risk-based capital ratio		7.0	%
Tier 1 risk-based capital ratio		8.5	%
Total risk-based capital ratio		10.5	%

As of December 31, 2020 the Company and the Bank are well-capitalized for regulatory purposes. For a tabular presentation of the Company’s and Bank’s capital ratios as of December 31, 2020, see Note 18 —

Regulatory Matters

of the notes to the consolidated financial statements.

In December 2017, the Basel Committee published standards that it described as the finalization of the Basel III post-crisis regulatory reforms (the standards are commonly referred to as “Basel IV”). Among other things, these standards revise the Basel Committee’s standardized approach for credit risk (including by recalibrating risk weights and introducing new capital requirements for certain “unconditionally cancellable

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commitments,” such as unused credit card lines of credit) and provides a new standardized approach for operational risk capital. Under the Basel framework, these standards will generally be effective on January 1, 2023, with an aggregate output floor phasing in through January 1, 2028. Under the current U.S. capital rules, operational risk capital requirements and a capital floor apply only to advanced approaches institutions, and not to the Company and the Bank. The impact of Basel IV on us will depend on the manner in which it is implemented by the federal bank regulators.

Prompt Corrective Action Provisions

The Federal Deposit Insurance Act requires the federal bank regulatory agencies to take “prompt corrective action” with respect to a depository institution if that institution does not meet certain capital adequacy standards, including requiring the prompt submission of an acceptable capital restoration plan. Depending on the bank’s capital ratios, the agencies’ regulations define five categories in which an insured depository institution will be placed: well-capitalized, adequately capitalized, undercapitalized, significantly undercapitalized, and critically undercapitalized. At each successive lower capital category, an insured bank is subject to more restrictions, including restrictions on the bank’s activities, operational practices or the ability to pay dividends or executive bonuses. Based upon its capital levels, a bank that is classified as well-capitalized, adequately capitalized, or undercapitalized may be treated as though it were in the next lower capital category if the appropriate federal banking agency, after notice and opportunity for hearing, determines that an unsafe or unsound condition, or an unsafe or unsound practice, warrants such treatment.

The prompt corrective action standards were changed to conform with the New Capital Rules. Under the new standards, in order to be considered well-capitalized, the bank will be required to meet the new common equity Tier 1 ratio of 6.5%, an increased Tier 1 ratio of 8% (increased from 6%), a total capital ratio of 10% (unchanged) and a leverage ratio of 5% (unchanged).

The federal banking agencies also may require banks and bank holding companies subject to enforcement actions to maintain capital ratios in excess of the minimum ratios otherwise required to be deemed well capitalized, in which case institutions may no longer be deemed to be well capitalized and may therefore be subject to certain restrictions such as taking brokered deposits.

Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act)

In response to the

COVID-19

pandemic, the CARES Act was signed into law on March 27, 2020 to provide national emergency economic relief measures. Many of the CARES Act’s programs are dependent upon the direct involvement of U.S. financial institutions, such as the Company and the Bank, and have been implemented through rules and guidance adopted by federal departments and agencies, including the U.S. Department of Treasury, the Federal Reserve and other federal banking agencies, including those with direct supervisory jurisdiction over the Company and the Bank. Furthermore, as the

on-going

COVID-19

pandemic evolves, federal regulatory authorities continue to issue additional guidance with respect to the implementation, lifecycle, and eligibility requirements for the various CARES Act programs as well as industry-specific recovery procedures for

COVID-19.

On December 21, 2020, Congress passed, and on December 27, 2020 President Trump signed, a $900 billion aid package which provides additional funds for the PPP and extends the time of the PPP to March 31, 2021. This legislation also permits second PPP loans to certain entities which are subject to forgiveness subject to meeting certain required criteria. In addition, it is possible that Congress will enact supplementary

COVID-19

response legislation, including amendments to the CARES Act or new bills comparable in scope to the CARES Act. The Company continues to assess the impact of the CARES Act and other statues, regulations and supervisory guidance related to the

COVID-19

pandemic.

Paycheck Protection Program.

The CARES Act amended the SBA’s loan program, in which the Bank participates, to create a guaranteed, unsecured loan program, the PPP, to fund operational costs of eligible businesses, organizations and self-employed persons during

COVID-19.

In June 2020, the Paycheck Protection Program Flexibility Act was enacted, which among other things, gave borrowers additional time and flexibility to

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use PPP loan proceeds. Further, on January 13, 2021, the SBA reopened the PPP for Second Draw loans to small businesses and

non-profit

organizations that did receive a loan through the initial PPP phase. At least $25 billion has been set aside for Second Draw PPP loans to eligible borrowers with a maximum of 10 employees or for loans of $250,000 or less to eligible borrowers in low or moderate income neighborhoods. Generally speaking, businesses with more than 300 employees and/or less than a 25% reduction in gross receipts between comparable quarters in 2019 and 2020 are not eligible for Second Draw loans. Further, maximum loan amounts have been increased for accommodation and food service businesses.

Troubled Debt Restructuring and Loan Modifications for Affected Borrowers.

The CARES Act permits banks to suspend requirements under GAAP for loan modifications to borrowers affected by

COVID-19

that would otherwise be characterized as TDRs and suspend any determination related thereto if (i) the loan modification is made between March 1, 2020 and the earlier of December 31, 2020 or 60 days after the end of the

COVID-19

emergency declaration and (ii) the applicable loan was not more than 30 days past due as of December 31, 2019. The federal banking agencies also issued guidance to encourage banks to make loan modifications for borrowers affected by

COVID-19

and to assure banks that they will not be criticized by examiners for doing so. The Company applied this guidance to qualifying loan modifications. See Note 6 —

Loans and Lease Finance Receivables and Allowance for Credit Losses

of the Notes to the consolidated financial statements included in this report, which is included in Part II, Item 8 “Financial Statements and Supplementary Data” of this Annual Report on Form

10-K

for further information about the

COVID-19-related

loan modifications completed by the Company.

Federal Reserve Programs and Other Recent Initiatives Related to

COVID-19

Main Street Lending Program.

The CARES Act encouraged the Federal Reserve, in coordination with the Secretary of the Treasury, to establish or implement various programs to help midsize businesses, nonprofits, and municipalities. On April 9, 2020, the Federal Reserve proposed the creation of the Main Street Lending Program (“MSLP”) to implement certain of these recommendations. On June 15, 2020, the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston opened the MSLP for lender registration. The MSLP supports lending to small and

medium-sized

businesses that were in sound financial condition before the onset of the

COVID-19

pandemic. The MSLP operates through five facilities: the Main Street New Loan Facility, the Main Street Priority Loan Facility, the Main Street Expanded Loan Facility, the Nonprofit Organization New Loan Facility, and the Nonprofit Organization Expanded Loan Facility. On July 28, 2020, the Federal Reserve announced it was extending the MSLP through December 31, 2020. The MSLP originally was scheduled to expire on or around September 30, 2020. The MSLP ceased issuing commitment letters under the

condition-of-funding

model as of December 23, 2020. No loans submitted under the

condition-of-funding

model can be purchased by the MSLP unless a commitment letter is issued on or before December 23, 2020.

Temporary Regulatory Capital Relief related to Impact of CECL.

Concurrent with enactment of the CARES Act, federal banking agencies issued an interim final rule that delays the estimated impact on regulatory capital resulting from the adoption of CECL. The interim final rule provides banking organizations that implement CECL before the end of 2020 the option to delay for two years the estimated impact of CECL on regulatory capital relative to regulatory capital determined under the prior incurred loss methodology, followed by a three-year transition period to phase out the aggregate amount of capital benefit provided during the initial

two-year

delay. The federal banking agencies have since issued a final rule that makes certain technical changes to the interim final rule. The changes in the final rule apply only to those banking organizations that elect the CECL transition relief provided under the rule. The Company did not elect this option.

Volcker Rule

In December 2013, the federal bank regulatory agencies adopted final rules that implement a part of the Dodd-Frank Act commonly referred to as the “Volcker Rule.” Under these rules and subject to certain exceptions, banking entities are restricted from engaging in activities that are considered proprietary trading and from sponsoring or investing in certain entities, including hedge or private equity funds that are considered “covered funds.” These rules became effective on April 1, 2014, although certain provisions are subject to

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delayed effectiveness under rules promulgated by the FRB. The Company and the Bank held no investment positions at December 31, 2020 which were subject to the final rule. Therefore, while these new rules may require us to conduct certain internal analysis and reporting to ensure continued compliance, they did not require any material changes in our operations or business.

Brokered Deposits

The FDIC limits the ability to accept brokered deposits to those insured depository institutions that are well capitalized. Institutions that are less than well capitalized cannot accept, renew or roll over any brokered deposit unless they have applied for and been granted a waiver by the FDIC. The FDIC has defined the “national rate” for all interest-bearing deposits held by less-than-well-capitalized institutions as “a simple average of rates paid by all insured depository institutions and branches for which data are available” and has stated that its presumption is that this national rate is the prevailing rate in any market. As such, institutions that are less than well capitalized that are permitted to accept, renew or rollover brokered deposits via FDIC waiver generally may not pay an interest rate in excess of the national rate plus 75 basis points on such brokered deposits. As of December 31, 2020, the Bank categorized $32.2 million, or 0.27% of its deposit liabilities, as brokered deposits.

The FDIC has previously published industry guidance in the form of Frequently Asked Questions with respect to the categorization of deposit liabilities as brokered deposits. The FDIC published a proposed rule to modify the “national rate” definition that would apply to insured depository institutions that are less than well-capitalized in August 2019. In addition, in December 2019 and in connection with the Regulatory Relief Act, the FDIC published proposed revisions to its regulations relating to the brokered deposits restrictions. Specifically, the FDIC proposed to (i) revise the definition of the “facilitation” prong of the “deposit broker” definition; (ii) provide that a wholly-owned operating subsidiary be eligible for the insured depository institution exception to the deposit broker definition under certain circumstances; and (iii) amend the “primary purpose” exception. On December 15, 2020, the FDIC released a final rule, effective April 1, 2021 (with full compliance by January 1, 2022), which may encourage the update of certain bank services. The changes introduced by the final rule include, among other things, (i) adding definitions of “engaged in the business of placing deposits” and “engaged in the business of facilitating the placement of deposits,” (ii) establishing certain designated business exceptions that would automatically meet the “primary purpose” exception from the deposit broker definition (Designated Business Exceptions), and (iii) formalizing an application process for the “primary purpose” exception for parties that do not qualify for the Designated Business Exceptions. The Company does not believe the final rule will have a material effect on its brokered deposits.

Bank Holding Company Regulation

Bank holding companies and their subsidiaries are subject to significant regulation and restrictions by Federal and State laws and regulatory agencies, which may affect the cost of doing business, and may limit permissible activities and expansion or impact the competitive balance between banks and other financial services providers.

A wide range of requirements and restrictions are contained in both federal and state banking laws, which together with implementing regulatory authority:

•

Require periodic reports and such additional reports of information as the Federal Reserve may require;

•

Require bank holding companies to meet or exceed increased levels of capital (See “Capital Adequacy Requirements”);

•

Require that bank holding companies serve as a source of financial and managerial strength to subsidiary banks and commit resources as necessary to support each subsidiary bank;

•

Limit of dividends payable to shareholders and restrict the ability of bank holding companies to obtain dividends or other distributions from their subsidiary banks. The Company’s ability to pay dividends on both its common and preferred stock is subject to legal and regulatory restrictions. Substantially all of CVB’s funds to pay dividends or to pay principal and interest on our debt obligations are derived from dividends paid by the Bank;

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•

Require a bank holding company to terminate an activity or terminate control of or liquidate or divest certain subsidiaries, affiliates or investments if the Federal Reserve believes the activity or the control of the subsidiary or affiliate constitutes a significant risk to the financial safety, soundness or stability of any bank subsidiary;

•

Require the prior approval of senior executive officer or director changes and prohibit golden parachute payments, including change in control agreements, or new employment agreements with such payment terms, which are contingent upon termination if an institution is in “troubled condition”;

•

Regulate provisions of certain bank holding company debt, including the authority to impose interest ceilings and reserve requirements on such debt and require prior approval to purchase or redeem securities in certain situations;

•

Require prior approval for the acquisition of 5% or more of the voting stock of a bank or bank holding company by bank holding companies or other acquisitions and mergers with banks and consider certain competitive, management, financial, anti-money-laundering compliance, potential impact on U.S. financial stability or other factors in granting these approvals, in addition to similar California or other state banking agency approvals which may also be required; and

•

Require prior notice and/or prior approval of the acquisition of control of a bank or a bank holding company by a shareholder or individuals acting in concert with ownership or control of certain percentage thresholds of the voting stock being a presumption of control.

Change in Bank Control

Federal law and regulation set forth the types of transactions that require prior notice under the Change in Bank Control Act (“CIBCA”). Pursuant to CIBCA and Regulation Y, any person (acting directly or indirectly) that seeks to acquire control of a bank or its holding company must provide prior notice to the Federal Reserve. A “person” includes an individual, bank, corporation, partnership, trust, association, joint venture, pool, syndicate, sole proprietorship, unincorporated organization, or any other form of entity. A person acquires “control” of a banking organization whenever the person acquires ownership, control, or the power to vote 25 percent or more of any class of voting securities of the institution. The applicable regulations also provide for certain other “rebuttable” presumptions of control.

In April 2020, the Federal Reserve adopted a final rule to revise its regulations related to determinations of whether a company has the ability to exercise a controlling influence over another company for purposes of the BHCA. The final rule expands and codifies the presumptions for use in such determinations. By codifying the presumptions, the final rule provides greater transparency on the types of relationships that the Federal Reserve generally views as supporting a

facts-and-circumstances

determination that one company controls another company. The Federal Reserve’s final rule applies to questions of control under the BHCA, but does not extend to CIBCA or applicable provisions of California law.

Other Restrictions on the Company’s Activities

Subject to prior notice or Federal Reserve approval, bank holding companies may generally 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. Bank holding companies which elect and retain “financial holding company” status pursuant to the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act of 1999 (“GLBA”) may engage in these nonbanking activities and broader securities, insurance, merchant banking and other activities that are determined to be “financial in nature” or are incidental or complementary to activities that are financial in nature without prior Federal Reserve approval. Pursuant to GLBA and Dodd-Frank, in order to elect and retain financial holding company status, a bank holding company and all depository institution subsidiaries of a bank holding company must be considered well capitalized and well managed, and, except in limited circumstances, depository subsidiaries must be in satisfactory compliance with the Community Reinvestment Act (“CRA”), which requires banks to help meet the credit needs of the communities in which they operate. Failure to sustain compliance with these requirements or correct any

non-compliance

within a fixed time period could lead to

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divestiture of subsidiary banks or require all activities to conform to those permissible for a bank holding company. CVB has not elected financial holding company status and neither CVB nor the Bank has engaged in any activities determined by the Federal Reserve to be financial in nature or incidental or complementary to activities that are financial in nature.

CVB is also a bank holding company within the meaning of Section 3700 of the California Financial Code. Therefore, CVB and any of its subsidiaries are subject to examination by, and may be required to file reports with, the California DFPI. DFPI approvals may also be required for certain mergers and acquisitions.

Securities Exchange Act of 1934

CVB’s common stock is publicly held and listed on the NASDAQ Stock Market (“NASDAQ”), and CVB is subject to the periodic reporting, information, proxy solicitation, insider trading, corporate governance and other requirements and restrictions of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) promulgated thereunder as well as listing requirements of NASDAQ.

Sarbanes-Oxley Act

The Company is 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, requirements for board audit committees and their members, and disclosure of controls and procedures and internal control over financial reporting.

Bank Regulation

As a California commercial bank whose deposits are insured by the FDIC, the Bank is subject to regulation, supervision, and regular examination by the DFPI and by the FDIC, as the Bank’s primary Federal regulator, and must additionally comply with certain applicable regulations of the Federal Reserve. Specific federal and state laws and regulations which are applicable to banks regulate, among other things, the scope of their business, their investments, their reserves against deposits, the timing of the availability of deposited funds, their activities relating to dividends, investments, loans, the nature and amount of and collateral for certain loans, servicing and foreclosing on loans, borrowings, capital requirements, certain check-clearing activities, branching, and mergers and acquisitions. California banks are also subject to statutes and regulations including Federal Reserve Regulation O and Federal Reserve Act Sections 23A and 23B and Regulation W, which restrict or limit loans or extensions of credit to “insiders”, including officers, directors, and principal shareholders, and loans or extension of credit by banks to affiliates or purchases of assets from affiliates, including parent bank holding companies, except pursuant to certain exceptions and only on terms and conditions at least as favorable to those prevailing for comparable transactions with unaffiliated parties. Failure to comply with applicable bank regulation or adverse results from any examinations of the Bank could affect the cost of doing business, and may limit or impede otherwise permissible activities and expansion activities by the Bank.

Pursuant to the Federal Deposit Insurance Act (“FDI Act”) and the California Financial Code, California state chartered commercial banks may generally engage in any activity permissible for national banks. Therefore, the Bank may form subsidiaries to engage in the many

so-called

“closely related to banking” or “nonbanking” activities commonly conducted by national banks in operating subsidiaries or in subsidiaries of bank holding companies. Further, California banks may conduct certain “financial” activities permitted under GLBA in a “financial subsidiary” to the same extent as may a national bank, provided the bank is and remains “well-capitalized,” “well-managed” and in satisfactory compliance with the CRA. The Bank currently has no financial subsidiaries.

FDIC and DFPI Enforcement Authority

The federal and California regulatory structure gives the bank regulatory agencies extensive discretion in connection with their supervisory and enforcement activities and examination policies, including policies with

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respect to the classification of assets and the establishment of appropriate loan loss reserves for regulatory purposes. The regulatory agencies have adopted guidelines to assist in identifying and addressing potential safety and soundness concerns before an institution’s capital becomes impaired. The guidelines establish operational and managerial standards generally relating to: (1) internal controls, information systems, and internal audit systems; (2) loan documentation; (3) credit underwriting; (4) interest-rate exposure; (5) asset growth and asset quality; and (6) compensation, fees, and benefits. Further, the regulatory agencies have adopted safety and soundness guidelines for asset quality and for evaluating and monitoring earnings to ensure that earnings are sufficient for the maintenance of adequate capital and reserves. If, as a result of an examination, the DFPI or the FDIC should determine that the financial condition, capital resources, asset quality, earnings prospects, management, liquidity, or other aspects of the Bank’s operations are unsatisfactory or that the Bank or its management is violating or has violated any law or regulation, the DFPI and the FDIC, and separately the FDIC as insurer of the Bank’s deposits, have residual authority to:

•

Require affirmative action to correct any conditions resulting from any violation or practice;

•

Direct an increase in capital and the maintenance of higher specific minimum capital ratios, which could preclude the Bank from being deemed well capitalized and restrict its ability to accept certain brokered deposits;

•

Restrict the Bank’s growth geographically, by products and services, or by mergers and acquisitions, including bidding in FDIC receiverships for failed banks;

•

Enter into or issue informal or formal enforcement actions, including required Board resolutions, Matters Requiring Board Attention (MRBA), written agreements and consent or cease and desist orders or prompt corrective action orders to take corrective action and cease unsafe and unsound practices;

•

Require prior approval of senior executive officer or director changes; remove officers and directors and assess civil monetary penalties; and

•

Terminate FDIC insurance, revoke the charter and/or take possession of and close and liquidate the Bank or appoint the FDIC as receiver.

Deposit Insurance

The FDIC is an independent federal agency that insures deposits, up to prescribed statutory limits, of federally insured banks and savings institutions and safeguards the safety and soundness of the banking and savings industries. The FDIC insures our customer deposits through the DIF up to prescribed limits for each depositor. The Dodd-Frank Act revised the FDIC’s DIF management authority by setting requirements for the Designated Reserve Ratio (the DIF balance divided by estimated insured deposits) and redefining the assessment base, which is used to calculate banks’ quarterly assessments. The amount of FDIC assessments paid by each DIF member institution is based on its asset size and relative risk of default as measured by regulatory capital ratios and other supervisory factors. The FDIC may terminate a depository institution’s deposit insurance upon a finding that the institution’s financial condition is unsafe or unsound or that the institution has engaged in unsafe or unsound practices that pose a risk to the DIF or that may prejudice the interest of the bank’s depositors. The termination of deposit insurance for a bank would also result in the revocation of the bank’s charter by the DFPI.

We are generally unable to control the amount of premiums that we are required to pay for FDIC insurance, which can be affected by the cost of bank failures to the FDIC among other factors. The FDIC is an independent federal agency that insures deposits through the DIF up to prescribed statutory limits of federally insured banks and savings institutions and safeguards the safety and soundness of the banking and savings industries. The Dodd-Frank Act revised the FDIC’s DIF management authority by setting requirements for the Designated Reserve Ratio (the “DRR”, calculated as the DIF balance divided by estimated insured deposits) and redefining the assessment base which is used to calculate banks’ quarterly assessments. The amount of FDIC assessments paid by each DIF member institution is based on its asset size and its relative risk of default as measured by regulatory capital ratios and other supervisory factors.

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On September 30, 2018, the DRR reached 1.36%. Because the reserve ratio has exceeded 1.35%, two deposit insurance assessment changes occurred under the FDIC regulations: 1) surcharges on large banks (total consolidated assets of $10 billion or more) ended; the last surcharge on large banks was collected on December 28, 2018. and 2) small banks (total consolidated assets of less than $10 billion) were awarded assessment credits for the portion of their assessments that contributed to the growth in the reserve ratio from 1.15% to 1.35%, to be applied when the reserve ratio is at least 1.38%. The FDIC will, at least semi-annually, update its income and loss projections for the Deposit Insurance Fund and, if necessary, propose rules to further increase assessment rates. Any future increases in FDIC insurance premiums may have a material and adverse effect on our earnings and could have a material adverse effect on the value of, or market for, our common stock.

Dividends

It is the Federal Reserve’s policy that bank holding companies should generally pay dividends on common stock only out of income available over the past year, and only if prospective earnings retention is consistent with the organization’s expected future needs and financial condition. It is also the Federal Reserve’s policy that bank holding companies should not maintain dividend levels that undermine their ability to be a source of strength to its banking subsidiaries. The Federal Reserve also discourages dividend payment ratios that are at maximum allowable levels unless both asset quality and capital are very strong. In addition, a bank holding company may be unable to pay dividends on its common stock if it fails to maintain an adequate capital conservation buffer under the Current Capital Rules.

The Bank is a legal entity that is separate and distinct from its holding company. CVB relies on dividends received from the Bank for use in the operation of the Company and the ability of CVB to pay dividends to shareholders. Future cash dividends by the Bank will also depend upon management’s assessment of future capital requirements, contractual restrictions, and other factors. The Current Capital Rules may restrict dividends by the Bank if the additional capital conservation buffer is not achieved. See “Capital Adequacy Requirements”.

The ability of the Bank to declare a cash dividend to CVB is subject to California law, which restricts the amount available for cash dividends to the lesser of a bank’s retained earnings or net income for its last three fiscal years (less any distributions to shareholders made during such period). Where the above test is not met, cash dividends may still be paid, with the prior approval of the DFPI, in an amount not exceeding the greatest of (1) retained earnings of the bank; (2) the net income of the bank for its last fiscal year; or (3) the net income of the bank for its current fiscal year.

Compensation

The Dodd-Frank Act requires the federal bank regulators and the SEC to establish joint regulations or guidelines prohibiting incentive-based payment arrangements at specified regulated entities, including the Company and the Bank, having at least $1 billion in total assets that encourage inappropriate risks by providing an executive officer, employee, director or principal stockholder with excessive compensation, fees or benefits or that could lead to material financial loss to the entity. In addition, these regulators must establish regulations or guidelines requiring enhanced disclosure to regulators of incentive-based compensation arrangements. The agencies proposed such regulations initially in April 2011 and in April 2016, the Federal Reserve and other federal financial agencies

re-proposed

restrictions on incentive-based compensation. For institutions with at least $1 billion but less than $50 billion in total consolidated assets, such as the Company and the Bank, the proposal would impose principles-based restrictions that are broadly consistent with existing interagency guidance on incentive-based compensation. Such institutions would be prohibited from entering into incentive compensation arrangements that encourage inappropriate risks by the institution (1) by providing an executive officer, employee, director, or principal shareholder with excessive compensation, fees, or benefits, or (2) that could lead to material financial loss to the institution. The proposal would also impose certain governance and recordkeeping requirements on institutions of the Company’s and the Bank’s size. The regulatory organizations would reserve the authority to impose more stringent requirements on institutions of the Company’s and the Bank’s size.

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Cybersecurity and Data Breaches

Federal regulators have issued multiple statements regarding cybersecurity and that financial institutions need to 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. In addition, 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 in the event of a cyber-attack. A financial institution is also 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 a cyber-attack. If we fail to observe the regulatory guidance, we could be subject to various regulatory sanctions, including financial penalties.

State regulators have also been increasingly active in implementing privacy and cybersecurity standards and regulations. Recently, several states, notably including California where we conduct substantially all our banking business, have adopted laws and/or regulations requiring certain financial institutions to implement cybersecurity programs and providing detailed requirements with respect to these programs, including data encryption requirements. Many such states have also implemented or modified their data breach notification and data privacy requirements including California and New York. We expect this trend of state-level activity in those areas to continue, and we continue to monitor relevant legislative and regulatory developments in California where nearly all our customers are located.

In the ordinary course of business, we rely on electronic communications and information systems to conduct our operations and to store sensitive data. We employ a layered, defensive approach that leverages people, processes and technology to manage and maintain cybersecurity controls. We employ a variety of preventative and detective tools to monitor, block, and provide alerts regarding suspicious activity, as well as to report on any suspected advanced persistent threats. Notwithstanding the strength of our defensive measures, the threat from cyber-attacks is severe, attacks are sophisticated and increasing in volume, and attackers respond rapidly to changes in defensive measures. While to date we have not detected a significant compromise, significant data loss or any material financial losses related to cybersecurity attacks, our systems and those of our customers and third-party service providers are under constant threat and it is possible that we could experience a significant event in the future. Risks and exposures related to cybersecurity attacks are expected to remain high for the foreseeable future due to the rapidly evolving nature and sophistication of these threats, as well as due to the expanding use of Internet banking, mobile banking and other technology-based products and services by us and our customers. In addition, to the extent we experience any data breaches, we may become subject to governmental fines or enforcement actions as well as potential liability arising out of governmental or private litigation. See Item 1A. Risk Factors for a further discussion of risks related to cybersecurity and data breaches.

Operations and Consumer Compliance Laws

The Bank must comply with numerous federal and state anti-money laundering and consumer protection statutes and implementing regulations, including the USA PATRIOT Act of 2001, the Bank Secrecy Act, the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, the CRA, the California Consumer Privacy Act, the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, the Fair Credit Reporting Act, the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, the Truth in Lending Act, the Fair Housing Act, the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act, the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act, the National Flood Insurance Act, the California Homeowner Bill of Rights and various federal and state privacy protection laws, including the Telephone Consumer Protection Act ,

CAN-SPAM

Act. Noncompliance with any of these laws could subject the Bank to compliance enforcement actions as well as lawsuits and could also result in administrative penalties, including, fines and reimbursements. The Bank and the Company are also subject to federal and state laws prohibiting unfair or fraudulent business practices, untrue or misleading advertising and unfair competition.

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These laws and regulations mandate certain disclosure and reporting requirements and regulate the manner in which financial institutions must deal with customers when taking deposits, making loans, servicing, collecting and foreclosure of loans, and providing other services. Failure to comply with these laws and regulations can subject the Bank and the Company to various penalties, including but not limited to enforcement actions, injunctions, fines or criminal penalties, punitive damages to consumers, and the loss of certain contractual rights.

The Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2020 (“AMLA”), which amends the Bank Secrecy Act of 1970 (“BSA”), was enacted in January 2021. The AMLA is intended to be a comprehensive reform and modernization to U.S. bank secrecy and anti-money laundering laws. Among other things, it 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; expands enforcement and investigation-related authority, including increasing available sanctions for certain BSA violations and instituting BSA whistleblower incentives and protections.

The Bank received an overall “Satisfactory” rating in its most recent FDIC CRA performance evaluation, which measures how financial institutions support their communities in the areas of lending, investment and service tests. The Bank received a “High Satisfactory” rating for both the lending and the investment tests and an “Outstanding” rating for the service test.

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. While the OCC issued its final rule, the FDIC has not finalized the revisions to its 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.

The Dodd-Frank Act provided for the creation of the Bureau of Consumer Finance Protection (“CFPB”) as an independent entity within the Federal Reserve with broad rulemaking, supervisory and enforcement authority over consumer financial products and services, including deposit products, residential mortgages, home-equity loans and credit cards. The CFPB’s functions include investigating consumer complaints, conducting market research, rulemaking, and enforcing rules related to consumer financial products and services. CFPB regulations and guidance apply to all covered persons and banks with $10 billion or more in assets, such as the Bank. Accordingly, the Bank is subject to CFPB supervision including examination by the CFPB.

The CFPB has finalized a number of significant rules which impact nearly every aspect of the lifecycle of a residential mortgage loan. These rules implement the Dodd-Frank Act amendments to the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, the Truth in Lending Act and the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act. Among other things, the rules adopted by the CFPB require covered persons including banks making residential mortgage loans to: (i) develop and implement procedures to ensure compliance with an

“ability-to-repay”

test and identify whether a loan meets a new definition for a “qualified mortgage”, in which case a rebuttable presumption exists that the creditor extending the loan has satisfied the

ability-to-repay

test; (ii) implement new or revised disclosures, policies and procedures for originating and servicing mortgages including, but not limited to,

pre-loan

counseling, early intervention with delinquent borrowers and specific loss mitigation procedures for loans

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secured by a borrower’s principal residence; (iii) comply with additional restrictions on mortgage loan originator hiring and compensation; (iv) comply with new disclosure requirements and standards for appraisals and certain financial products; and (v) maintain escrow accounts for higher-priced mortgage loans for a longer period of time.

The review of products and practices to prevent unfair, deceptive or abusive acts or practices (“UDAAP”) is a continuing focus of the CFPB, and of banking regulators more broadly. The ultimate impact of this heightened scrutiny is uncertain but could result in changes to pricing, practices, products and procedures. It could also result in increased costs related to regulatory oversight, supervision and examination, additional remediation efforts and possible penalties. In addition, the Dodd-Frank Act provides the CFPB with broad supervisory, examination and enforcement authority over various consumer financial products and services, including the ability to require reimbursements and other payments to customers for alleged violations of UDAAP and other legal requirements and to impose significant penalties, as well as injunctive relief that prohibits lenders from engaging in allegedly unlawful practices. The CFPB also has the authority to obtain cease and desist orders providing for affirmative relief or monetary penalties. The Dodd-Frank Act does not prevent states from adopting stricter consumer protection standards. State regulation of financial products and potential enforcement actions could also adversely affect the Bank’s business, financial condition or results of operations.

The federal bank regulators have adopted rules limiting the ability of banks and other financial institutions to disclose

non-public

information about consumers to unaffiliated third parties. These limitations require disclosure of privacy policies to consumers and, in some circumstances, allow consumers to prevent disclosure of certain personal information to a nonaffiliated third party. These regulations affect how consumer information is transmitted through diversified financial companies and conveyed to outside vendors. In addition, consumers may also prevent disclosure of certain information among affiliated companies that is assembled or used to determine eligibility for a product or service, such as that shown on consumer credit reports and asset and income information from applications. Consumers also have the option to direct banks and other financial institutions not to share information about transactions and experiences with affiliated companies for the purpose of marketing products or services.

Under the Durbin Amendment to the Dodd-Frank Act, the Federal Reserve adopted rules establishing standards for assessing whether the interchange fees that may be charged with respect to certain electronic debit transactions are “reasonable and proportional” to the costs incurred by issuers for processing such transactions.

Interchange fees, or “swipe” fees, are charges that merchants pay to us and other card-issuing banks for processing electronic payment transactions. Under the final rules, the maximum permissible interchange fee is equal to no more than 21 cents plus 5 basis points of the transaction value for many types of debit interchange transactions. The Federal Reserve also adopted a rule to allow a debit card issuer to recover one cent per transaction for fraud prevention purposes if the issuer complies with certain fraud-related requirements required by the Federal Reserve. The Federal Reserve also has rules governing routing and exclusivity that require issuers to offer two unaffiliated networks for routing transactions on each debit or prepaid product.

Commercial Real Estate Concentration Limits

In December 2006, the federal banking regulators issued guidance entitled “Concentrations in Commercial Real Estate Lending, Sound Risk Management Practices” to address increased concentrations in commercial real estate, or CRE, loans. In addition, in December 2015, the federal bank agencies issued additional guidance entitled “Statement on Prudent Risk Management for Commercial Real Estate Lending.” Together, these guidelines describe the criteria the agencies will use as indicators to identify institutions potentially exposed to CRE concentration risk. An institution that has (i) experienced rapid growth in CRE lending, (ii) notable exposure to a specific type of CRE, (iii) total reported loans for construction, land development, and other land representing 100% or more of the institution’s capital, or (iv) total CRE loans (which excludes owner-occupied CRE loans) representing 300% or more of the institution’s capital, and the outstanding balance of the institutions CRE portfolio has increased by 50% or more in the prior 36 months, may be identified for further supervisory

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analysis of the level and nature of its CRE concentration risk. As of December 31, 2020, the Bank’s total CRE loan concentration based on total outstanding loans is 254% of risk-based capital; adding unfunded loan commitments, the CRE loan concentration increases to 275% of risk-based capital.

Office of Foreign Assets Control Regulation

The U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”), administers and enforces economic and trade sanctions against targeted foreign countries and regimes, under authority of various laws, including designated foreign countries, nationals and others. OFAC publishes lists of specially designated targets and countries. We are responsible for, among other things, blocking accounts of, and transactions with, such targets and countries, prohibiting unlicensed trade and financial transactions with them and reporting blocked transactions after their occurrence. 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.

Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (the “Tax Reform Act”)

On December 22, 2017, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (“Tax Reform Act”) was signed into law. The Tax Reform Act included a number of provisions that impact us, including the following:

•

Tax Rate. The Tax Reform Act replaces the corporate tax rates applicable under prior law, which imposed a maximum tax rate of 35%, with a reduced 21% tax rate for 2018. Although the reduced tax rate generally should be favorable to us by resulting in lower tax expense in future periods, it decreased the value of our existing deferred tax assets as of December 31, 2017. Generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”) requires that the impact of the provisions of the Tax Reform Act be accounted for in the period of enactment. Accordingly, the incremental income tax expense recorded by the Company in the fourth quarter of 2017 related to the Tax Reform Act was $13.2 million, resulting primarily from a

re-measurement

of deferred tax assets;

•

FDIC Insurance Premiums. The Tax Reform Act prohibits taxpayers with consolidated assets over $50 billion from deducting any FDIC insurance premiums and prohibits taxpayers with consolidated assets between $10 and $50 billion from deducting the portion of their FDIC premiums equal to the ratio, expressed as a percentage, that (i) the taxpayer’s total consolidated assets over $10 billion, as of the close of the taxable year, bears to (ii) $40 billion;

•

Employee Compensation. A “publicly held company” is not permitted to deduct compensation in excess of $1 million per year paid to certain employees. The Tax Reform Act eliminates certain exceptions to the $1 million limit applicable under prior law related to performance-based compensation, such as equity grants and cash bonuses that are paid only on the attainment of performance goals. As a result, our ability to deduct certain compensation paid to our most highly compensated employees is limited; and

•

Business Asset Expensing. The Tax Reform Act allows taxpayers immediately to expense the entire cost (instead of only 50%, as under prior law) of certain depreciable tangible property and real property improvements acquired and placed in service after September 27, 2017 and before January 1, 2023 (with an additional year for certain property). This 100% “bonus” depreciation is phased out proportionately for property placed in service on or after January 1, 2023 and before January 1, 2027 (with an additional year for certain property).

The foregoing description of the impact of the Tax Reform Act on us should be read in conjunction with Note 11 —

Income Taxes

of the notes to consolidated financial statements for more information.

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Future Legislation and Regulation

Congress may enact, modify or repeal legislation from time to time that affects the regulation of the financial services industry, and state legislatures may enact, modify or repeal legislation from time to time affecting the regulation of financial institutions chartered by or operating in those states. Federal and state regulatory agencies also periodically propose and adopt changes to their regulations or change the manner in which existing regulations are applied. The substance or impact of pending or future legislation or regulation, or the application thereof, cannot be predicted, although enactment of proposed legislation (or modification or repeal of existing legislation) could impact the regulatory structure under which the Company and Bank operate and may significantly increase its costs, impede the efficiency of its internal business processes, require the Bank to increase its regulatory capital and modify its business strategy, and limit its ability to pursue business opportunities in an efficient manner. The Company’s business, financial condition, results of operations or prospects may be adversely affected, perhaps materially.

Available Information

Reports filed with the SEC include our proxy statements, annual reports on Form

10-K,

quarterly reports on Form

10-Q

and current reports on Form

8-K.

The SEC maintains a website that contains the reports, proxy and information statements and other information we file with them. The address of the site is http://www.sec.gov. The Company also maintains an Internet website at http://www.cbbank.com. We make available, free of charge through our website, our Proxy Statement, Annual Report on Form

10-K,

Quarterly Reports on Form

10-Q,

and Current Reports on Form

8-K,

and any amendments thereto, as soon as reasonably practicable after we file such reports with the SEC. None of the information contained in or hyperlinked from our website is incorporated into this Form

10-K.

Executive Officers of the Company

The following sets forth certain information regarding our executive officers, their positions and their ages.


	Executive Officers:

Name	Position	Age

David A. Brager	Chief Executive Officer of the Company and the Bank	53
E. Allen Nicholson	Chief Financial Officer of the Company and Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of the Bank	53
David F. Farnsworth	Executive Vice President and Chief Credit Officer of the Bank	64
David C. Harvey	Executive Vice President and Chief Operations Officer of the Bank	53
Richard H. Wohl	Executive Vice President and General Counsel	62
Yamynn DeAngelis	Executive Vice President and Chief Risk Officer	64

Mr.

Brager

was appointed Chief Executive Officer of the Company and the Bank on March 16, 2020. Mr. Brager’s appointment followed the previously announced retirement of Christopher D. Myers, the Company’s President and Chief Executive Officer, effective as of March 15, 2020. In addition, Mr. Brager was appointed to the Board of Directors of CVB and the Bank as of March 16, 2020. Mr. Brager

assumed the position of Executive Vice President and Sales Division Manager of the Bank on November 22, 2010. From 2007 to 2010, he served as Senior Vice President and Regional Manager of the Central Valley Region for the Bank. From 2003 to 2007, he served as Senior Vice President and Manager of the Fresno Business Financial Center for the Bank. From 1997 to 2003, Mr. Brager held management positions with Westamerica Bank.

Mr.

Nicholson

was appointed Chief Financial Officer of the Company and Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of the Bank on May 4, 2016. Previously, Mr. Nicholson served as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Pacific Premier Bank and its holding company, Pacific Premier Bancorp Inc. from June of 2015 to May of 2016, and from 2008 to 2014, Mr. Nicholson was Chief Financial Officer of 1st Enterprise Bank. From 2005 to 2008, he was the Chief Financial Officer of Mellon First Business Bank.

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Mr.

Farnsworth

was appointed Executive Vice President and Chief Credit Officer of the Bank on July 18, 2016. Prior to his appointment, Mr. Farnsworth was Executive Vice President, Global Risk Management, and National CRE Risk Executive at BBVA Compass. Previously, Mr. Farnsworth held senior credit management positions with US Bank and AmSouth.

Mr.

Harvey

assumed the position of Executive Vice President and Chief Operations Officer of the Bank on December 31, 2009. From 2000 to 2008, he served as Senior Vice President and Operations Manager at Bank of the West. From 2008 to 2009 he served as Executive Vice President and Commercial and Treasury Services Manager at Bank of the West.

Mr.

Wohl

was initially appointed Executive Vice President and General Counsel of the Company and the Bank on October 11, 2011, and he rejoined the Company and the Bank in the same position on July 10, 2017 after a

one-year

hiatus at another financial institution. Prior to his initial appointment in 2011, Mr. Wohl served in senior business and legal roles at Indymac Bank, the law firm of Morrison & Foerster, and the U.S. Department of State.

Ms.

DeAngelis

assumed the position of Executive Vice President and Chief Risk Officer of the Bank on January 5, 2009. From 2006 to 2008, she served as Executive Vice President and Service Division Manager for the Bank. From 1995 to 2005, she served as Senior Vice President and Division Service Manager for the Bank.

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ITEM 1A.

RISK FACTORS

Risk Factors That May Affect Future Results — Together with the other information on the risks we face and our management of risk contained in this Annual Report or in our other SEC filings, the following presents significant risks which may affect us. Events or circumstances arising from one or more of these risks could adversely affect our business, financial condition, operating results and prospects and the value and price of our common stock could decline. The risks identified below are not intended to be a comprehensive list of all risks we face, and additional risks that we may currently view as not material may also impair our business operations and results.

Risks relating to the

COVID-19

Pandemic

The COVID-19

pandemic has significantly impacted the banking industry and our business. The ultimate impact on our business and financial results will depend on future developments, which are highly uncertain and cannot be predicted, including the scope and duration of the pandemic and actions taken by governmental authorities in response to the pandemic.

The COVID-19

pandemic has negatively impacted the global, U.S., California and local economies, disrupted supply chains, lowered equity market valuations, created significant volatility and disruption in financial markets, and sharply increased unemployment levels. In addition, the pandemic has resulted in temporary closures of many businesses and the institution of social distancing and sheltering in place requirements in many states and communities, including in California and the principal counties and cities in which our banking centers are located. Our operations, like those of other financial institutions that operate in our markets, are significantly influenced by economic conditions in California, including the strength of the real estate market and business conditions in the industries to which we lend or from which we gather deposits.

The COVID-19

pandemic has resulted in a substantial decline in the revenues of many business sectors as well as in commercial and residential property sales and construction activities. As a result, the demand for our products and services has been, and may continue to be, significantly impacted.

Furthermore, the pandemic could further influence the recognition of credit losses in our loan portfolios and further increase our allowance for credit losses, particularly as many businesses remain closed or partially open. Our customers could be expected to draw further on their lines of credit or to seek deferments of scheduled loan payments to help mitigate the effects of lost revenues. We implemented CECL, for determining our overall provision for credit losses, at the beginning of the first quarter of 2020. For the year ended December 31, 2020, our allowance for credit losses increased by $23.5 million in provision for credit losses, primarily due to the forecasted impact

of COVID-19

on certain economic variables that may cause distress to our loan portfolios. In addition, through January 15, 2021 we have temporary payment deferments of interest or of principal and interest to customers for six loans, with a gross balance of $10 million, or 0.12% of our total loan portfolio at December 31, 2020. Depending on the scope and duration of

the COVID-19

pandemic, we believe there is a possibility that increased provisions for credit losses could prove necessary in the future.

Similarly, because of changing economic and market conditions affecting bond issuers, we may be required to recognize credit losses in future periods on the securities we hold as well as reductions in other comprehensive income. Our business operations may also be disrupted if significant or critical portions of our workforce or managers are unable to work effectively, including because of illness, quarantines, government actions, or other restrictions in connection with the pandemic. In response to the pandemic, and to comply with or follow various government recommendations or mandates, we have also suspended certain real property foreclosure actions and sales, and in certain instances, we are providing fee waivers, payment deferrals, and other expanded assistance for our business and mortgage customers. The extent to which

the COVID-19

pandemic impacts our business, results of operations, and financial condition, as well as our regulatory capital and liquidity ratios, will depend on future developments, which are highly uncertain and cannot be predicted, including the scope and duration of the pandemic and actions taken by governmental authorities and other third parties in response to the pandemic.

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Our bank has elected to participate as a lender in the Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and to register as an Eligible Lender under the Federal Reserve’s Main Street Lending Program (MSLP), and has accordingly become subject to a number of significant risks applicable to lenders under the PPP and MSLP, respectively.

As one set of responses to

the COVID-19

pandemic, our federal, state and local governments have promulgated a wide variety of laws, regulations, executive orders and programs designed to ameliorate the severe and widespread economic distress caused by the mandatory closings of many businesses throughout the State of California and counties in which we operate. One such program is the PPP enacted under the federal CARES Act. This program is designed, among other things, to provide employee payroll maintenance support for small and

medium-sized

businesses throughout the United States, including in the State of California, through loans made by authorized lenders and guaranteed by the federal Small Business Administration (SBA). Because the Company is an authorized SBA lender and our primary customer base consists of small and

medium-sized

businesses, the Company has actively participated in the PPP. Including the second round of funding, after legislation passed on April 24, 2020, we originated and funded approximately 4,100 PPP loans totaling approximately $1.10 billion, of which $883.0 million was outstanding at December 31, 2020.

On January 13, 2021, the SBA reopened the PPP for Second Draw loans to small businesses and

non-profit

Under interim final regulations promulgated by the SBA, PPP lenders are entitled to rely on borrower certifications with respect to issues such as program eligibility and eligible loan amounts, and PPP loans are designed to be subsequently forgivable, in whole or part, if certain additional criteria are met by the borrower with respect to employee payroll maintenance. However, in view of the fact that the PPP was by design intended to support economically distressed businesses, the SBA’s guarantee of PPP loan amounts to participating lenders is a critical feature of the program. In this regard, because the PPP was quickly implemented into operation and the SBA’s interim regulations have been repeatedly revised and are continuing to evolve, there are significant risks to the Company’s participation in the PPP, including whether certain borrowers will ultimately be found to have been eligible for PPP loans, whether eligible PPP loan amounts for certain borrowers were correctly calculated, whether certain PPP loans will ultimately be determined to be forgivable, and if not, whether the SBA’s guarantee will continue to apply to any unforgiven PPP loan amounts. As of January 15, 2021, approximately 1,100 loans, representing nearly $260 million, were submitted to the SBA and granted forgiveness. To date, our customers who have had their forgiveness requests reviewed by the SBA have received 100% loan forgiveness.

Another program enacted pursuant to the federal CARES Act and designed to help provide support to small and

medium-sized

businesses and their employees throughout the U.S., including California, is the Federal Reserve’s MSLP. The Company has elected to participate as an Eligible Lender under at least

three sub-facilities

of the MSLP, including the Main Street New Loan Facility, the Main Street Priority Loan Facility and the Nonprofit Organization New Loan Facility. Each of these lending facilities offers different terms and conditions, including with respect to borrower eligibility criteria, maximum loan amounts, whether loan proceeds can be utilized to refinance borrower indebtedness to other lenders, contractual

priority, non-subordination

and collateralization requirements, etc. Eligible Lenders may extend new MSLP loans to eligible borrowers and sell a 95% participation in each MSLP loan to a special purpose vehicle established by the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston (“Main Street SPV”), subject to numerous borrower and lender certifications and covenants and the terms of a Loan Participation Agreement and a Servicing Agreement.

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In contrast to the PPP, loans under the MSLP are not forgivable, carry an adjustable rate of interest at LIBOR (one or three month) plus 300 basis points, require the payment of specified fees, and must be repaid in full at the end of a five-year maturity period, with principal repayment commencing after a deferment period consisting of the first two years following loan origination. In addition, Eligible Lenders must retain five percent of each MSLP loan and continue to service such loan until it matures or the Main Street SPV sells all of its 95% participation interest. In this regard, because the MSLP is a newly constituted program without any established operating history, there are significant risks to the Company’s participation in the MSLP, including whether certain borrowers will ultimately be found to have been eligible for MSLP loans, whether the numerous required lender and borrower certifications will be found to have been made in good faith, whether the borrower will remain in compliance with the terms and conditions of its MSLP loan throughout its applicable term, whether any given lender or MSLP loan will be found to have been in compliance with the terms of the Main Street SPV’s Loan Participation Agreement and/or Servicing Agreement, and whether any individual MSLP loan will be repaid by the borrower on schedule, and, if not, whether the Main Street SPV will seek recourse against the originating lender. As of December 31, 2020, we originated three loans under this program.

Credit Risks

Our allowance for credit losses may not be sufficient to cover actual losses

A significant source of risk arises from the possibility that we could sustain losses because borrowers, guarantors, and related parties may fail to perform in accordance with the terms of their loans and leases. The underwriting and credit monitoring policies and procedures that we have adopted to address this risk may not prevent unexpected losses that could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. We maintain an allowance for credit losses to provide for loan and lease defaults and

non-performance,

which also includes increases for new loan growth. While we believe that our allowance for credit losses is appropriate to cover expected losses, we cannot assure you that we will not increase the allowance for credit losses further or that regulators will not require us to increase this allowance.

We may be required to make additional provisions for credit losses and

charge-off

additional loans in the future, which could adversely affect our results of operations

For the year ended December 31, 2020, we recorded $23.5 million in loan loss provision. During 2020 we experienced charge-offs of $666,000 and recoveries of $358,000. Because we have a significant amount of real estate loans, decreases in real estate values could adversely affect the value of property used as collateral. As of December 31, 2020, we had $5.50 billion in commercial real estate loans, $85.1 million in construction loans, and $270.5 million in single-family residential mortgages. Although the U.S. economy has emerged from a prior period of severe recession followed by slower than normal growth, business activity and real estate values continue to grow more slowly than in past economic recoveries, and may not recover fully or could again decline from current levels, and this in turn could affect the ability of our loan customers to service their debts, including those customers whose loans are secured by commercial or residential real estate. This, in turn, could result in loan charge-offs and provisions for credit losses in the future, which could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition, net income and capital. In addition, the Federal Reserve Board and other government officials have expressed concerns about banks’ concentration in commercial real estate lending and the ability of commercial real estate borrowers to perform pursuant to the terms of their loans.

Dairy & livestock and agribusiness lending presents unique credit risks.

As of December 31, 2020, approximately 4.4% of our total gross loan portfolio was comprised of dairy & livestock and agribusiness loans. As of December 31, 2020, we had $361.1 million in dairy & livestock and agribusiness loans, including $320.1 million in dairy & livestock loans and $41.0 million in agribusiness loans. Repayment of dairy & livestock and agribusiness loans depends primarily on the successful raising and feeding of livestock or planting and harvest of crops and marketing the harvested commodity (including milk production). Collateral securing these loans may be illiquid. In addition, the limited purpose of some

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agricultural-related

collateral affects credit risk because such collateral may have limited or no other uses to support values when loan repayment problems emerge. Our dairy & livestock and agribusiness lending staff have specific technical expertise that we depend on to mitigate our lending risks for these loans and we may have difficulty retaining or replacing such individuals. Many external factors can impact our agricultural borrowers’ ability to repay their loans, including adverse weather conditions, water issues, commodity price volatility (i.e. milk prices), diseases, land values, production costs, changing government regulations and subsidy programs, changing tax treatment, technological changes, labor market shortages/increased wages, and changes in consumers’ preferences, over which our borrowers may have no control. These factors, as well as recent volatility in certain commodity prices, including milk prices, could adversely impact the ability of those to whom we have made dairy & livestock and agribusiness loans to perform under the terms of their borrowing arrangements with us, which in turn could result in credit losses and adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Our loan portfolio is predominantly secured by real estate in California and thus we have a higher degree of risk from a downturn in our real estate markets

A renewed downturn in our real estate markets could hurt our business because many of our loans are secured by real estate. Real estate values and real estate markets are generally affected by changes in national, regional or local economic conditions, fluctuations in interest rates and the availability of loans to potential purchasers, changes in tax laws and other governmental statutes, regulations and policies, and acts of nature, such as earthquakes, prolonged drought and disasters particular to California. Substantially all of our real estate collateral is located in the state of California. If real estate values, including values of land held for development, should again start to decline, the value of real estate collateral securing our loans could be significantly reduced. Our ability to recover on defaulted loans by foreclosing and selling the real estate collateral would then be diminished and we would be more likely to suffer losses on defaulted loans. Commercial real estate loans typically involve large balances to single borrowers or a group of related borrowers. Since payments on these loans are often dependent on the successful operation or management of the properties, as well as the business and financial condition of the borrower(s), repayment of such loans may be subject to adverse conditions in the real estate market, adverse economic conditions or changes in applicable government regulations.

Additional risks associated with our real estate construction loan portfolio include failure of developers and/or contractors to complete construction on a timely basis or at all, market deterioration during construction, cost overruns and failure to sell or lease the security underlying the construction loans so as to generate the cash flow anticipated by our borrower.

A decline in the economy may cause renewed declines in real estate values and increases in unemployment, which may result in higher than expected loan delinquencies or problem assets, a decline in demand for our products and services, or a lack of growth or decrease in deposits, which may cause us to incur losses, adversely affect our capital or hurt our business.

Our commercial real estate loan portfolio exposes us to risks that may be greater than the risks related to our other loans

Federal and state banking regulators are examining commercial real estate lending activity with heightened scrutiny and may require banks with higher levels of commercial real estate loans to implement more stringent underwriting, internal controls, risk management policies and portfolio stress testing, as well as possibly higher levels of allowances for losses and capital levels as a result of commercial real estate lending growth and exposures. Because a significant portion of our loan portfolio is comprised of commercial real estate loans, the banking regulators may require us to maintain higher levels of capital than we would otherwise be expected to maintain, which could limit our ability to leverage our capital and have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.

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We are exposed to risk of environmental liabilities with respect to properties to which we take title

In the course of our business, we may foreclose and take title to real estate, and could be subject to environmental liabilities with respect to these properties. While we will take steps to mitigate this risk, we may be held liable to a governmental entity or to third parties for property damage, personal injury, investigation and

clean-up

costs incurred by these parties in connection with environmental contamination, or we may be required to investigate or

clean-up

hazardous or toxic substances, or chemical releases at one or more properties. The costs associated with investigation or remediation activities could be substantial. In addition, while there are certain statutory protections afforded lenders who take title to property through foreclosure on a loan, if we are the owner or former owner of a contaminated site, we may be subject to common law claims by third parties based on damages and costs resulting from environmental contamination emanating from the property. If we become subject to significant environmental liabilities, our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects could be adversely affected.

Liquidity and Interest Rate Risks

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

Liquidity is essential to our business. An inability to raise funds through deposits, borrowings, the sale of loans and other sources could have a material adverse effect on our liquidity. Our access to funding sources in amounts adequate to finance our activities could be impaired by factors that affect us specifically or the financial services industry in general. 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. Our ability to acquire deposits or borrow could also be impaired by factors that are not specific to us, such as a severe disruption of the financial markets or negative views and expectations about the prospects for the financial services industry as a whole. Many if not all of these same factors could also significantly raise the cost of deposits to our Company and/or to the banking industry in general. This in turn could negatively affect the amount of interest we pay on our interest-bearing liabilities, which could have an adverse impact on our interest rate spread and profitability.

The actions and commercial soundness of other financial institutions could affect our ability to engage in routine funding transactions

Financial service institutions are interrelated as a result of trading, clearing, counterparty or other relationships. We have exposure to different industries and counterparties, and execute transactions with various counterparties in the financial industry, including brokers and dealers, commercial banks, investment banks, mutual funds, and other institutional clients. Defaults by financial services institutions, even rumors or questions about one or more financial institutions or the financial services industry in general, could lead to market wide liquidity problems and further, could lead to losses or defaults by the Company or other institutions. Many of these transactions expose us to credit risk in the event of default of the applicable counterparty or client. In addition, our credit risk may increase when the collateral held by us cannot be realized upon or is liquidated at prices not sufficient to recover the full amount of the loan or derivative exposure due to us. Any such losses could materially and adversely affect our consolidated financial statements.

Changes in interest rates could reduce the value of our investment securities holdings.

The Bank maintains an investment portfolio consisting of various high quality liquid fixed-income securities. The total book value of the securities portfolio as of December 31, 2020 was $2.98 billion, of which $2.40 billion is available for sale. The nature of fixed-income securities is such that changes in market interest rates impact the value of these assets.

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Our business is subject to interest rate risk and variations in interest rates may negatively affect our financial performance

A substantial portion of our income is derived from the differential or “spread” between the interest earned on loans, securities and other interest-earning assets, and the interest paid on deposits, borrowings and other interest-bearing liabilities. Because of the differences in the maturities and repricing characteristics of our interest-earning assets and interest-bearing liabilities, changes in interest rates do not produce equivalent changes in interest income earned on interest-earning assets and interest paid on interest-bearing liabilities. At December 31, 2020 our balance sheet was positioned with an asset sensitive bias over both a one and

two-year

horizon assuming no balance sheet growth, and as a result, our net interest margin tends to expand in a rising interest rate environment and decrease in a declining interest rate environment. Accordingly, fluctuations in interest rates could adversely affect our interest rate spread and, in turn, our profitability. Loan origination volumes may be affected by changes in market interest rates. In addition, in rising interest rate environments, loan repayment rates may decline and in falling interest rate environments, loan repayment rates may increase. In addition, in a rising interest rate environment, we may need to accelerate the pace of rate increases on our deposit accounts as compared to the pace of future increases in short-term market rates. Accordingly, changes in levels of market interest rates could materially and adversely affect our net interest spread, asset quality, as well as loan origination and prepayment volume.

We may be adversely impacted by the transition from LIBOR as a reference rate

In 2017, the United Kingdom’s Financial Conduct Authority announced that after 2021 it would no longer compel banks to submit the rates required to calculate the London Interbank Offered Rate (“

LIBOR

”). This announcement indicates that the continuation of LIBOR on the current basis cannot and will not be guaranteed after 2021. Consequently, at this time, it is not possible to predict whether and to what extent banks will continue to provide submissions for the calculation of LIBOR. Similarly, it is not possible to predict whether LIBOR will continue to be viewed as an acceptable market benchmark, what rate or rates may become accepted alternatives to LIBOR or what the effect of any such changes in views or alternatives may be on the markets for LIBOR-indexed financial instruments.

We have a number of loans, derivative contracts, borrowings and other financial instruments with attributes that are either directly or indirectly dependent on LIBOR. The Company established a LIBOR Transition Task Force in 2020, which has inventoried our instruments that reflect exposure to LIBOR, created a framework to manage the transition and established a timeline for key decisions and actions to complete the transition from LIBOR in 2021. The transition from LIBOR could create additional costs and risk. Since proposed alternative rates are calculated differently, payments under contracts referencing new rates will differ from those referencing LIBOR. The transition could change our market risk profiles, requiring changes to risk and pricing models, valuation tools, product design and hedging strategies. Furthermore, failure to adequately manage this transition process with our customers could adversely impact our reputation. Although we are currently unable to assess what the ultimate impact of the transition from LIBOR will be, failure to adequately manage the transition could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Operational Risks

Failure to manage our growth may adversely affect our performance

Our financial performance and profitability depend on our ability to manage past and possible future growth, including the significant growth we experienced following the acquisition of Community Bank. Future acquisitions and our continued growth may present operating, integration, regulatory, management and other issues that could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.

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The occurrence of fraudulent activity, breaches or failures of our information security controls or cybersecurity-related incidents could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations

As a financial institution, we are susceptible to fraudulent activity, information security breaches and cybersecurity-related incidents that may be committed against us or our clients, including by our own employees, which may result in financial losses or increased costs to us or our clients, disclosure or misuse of our information or our client information, misappropriation of assets, privacy breaches against our clients, litigation, or damage to our reputation. Such fraudulent activity may take many forms, including check fraud, electronic fraud, wire fraud,

on-line

banking, takeover, phishing, social engineering and other dishonest acts. Information security breaches and cybersecurity-related incidents may include fraudulent or unauthorized access to systems used by us or our clients, denial or degradation of service attacks, and malware or other cyber-attacks. 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. In recent periods, several large corporations, including financial institutions, medical providers and retail companies, have suffered major data breaches, in some cases exposing not only confidential and proprietary corporate information, but also sensitive financial and other personal information of their customers and employees and subjecting them to potential fraudulent activity. Some of our clients may have been affected by these breaches, which increase their risks of identity theft, credit card fraud and other fraudulent activity that could involve their accounts with us.

Information pertaining to us and our clients is maintained, and transactions are executed, such as our online banking or core systems on the networks and systems of ours, our clients and certain of our third party providers. The secure maintenance and transmission of confidential information, as well as execution of transactions over these systems, are essential to protect us and our clients against fraud and security breaches and to maintain our clients’ confidence. In addition, increases in criminal activity levels and sophistication, advances in computer capabilities, new discoveries, vulnerabilities in third-party technologies (including browsers and operating systems) or other developments could result in a compromise or breach of the technology, processes and controls that we use to prevent fraudulent transactions and to protect data about us, our clients and underlying transactions, as well as the technology used by our clients to access our systems. Although we continue to invest in systems and processes that are designed to detect and prevent security breaches and cyber-attacks and periodically test our security, our inability to anticipate, or failure to adequately mitigate, breaches of security could result in: losses to us or our clients; our loss of business and/or clients; damage to our reputation; the incurrence of additional expenses; disruption to our business; our inability to grow our online services or other businesses; additional regulatory scrutiny or penalties; or our exposure to civil litigation and possible financial liability — any of which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

More generally, continued publicized information concerning security and cyber-related problems could inhibit the use or growth of electronic or

web-based

applications or solutions as a means of conducting commercial transactions for us and other financial institutions. Such publicity may also cause damage to our reputation as a financial institution. As a result, our business, financial condition and results of operations could be adversely affected.

Our business is exposed to the risk of changes in technology

The rapid pace of technology changes and the impact of such changes on financial services generally and on our Company specifically could impact our cost structure and our competitive position with our customers. Such developments include the rapid movement by customers and some competitor financial institutions to

web-based

services, mobile banking and cloud computing. Our failure or inability to anticipate, plan for or implement technology change could adversely affect our competitive position, financial condition and profitability.

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Our controls and procedures could fail or be circumvented

Management regularly reviews and updates our internal controls, disclosure controls and procedures and corporate governance policies and procedures. Any system of controls, however well designed and operated, is based in part on certain assumptions and on the conduct of individuals, and can provide only reasonable, but not absolute, assurances of the effectiveness of these systems and controls, and that the objectives of these controls have been met. Any failure or circumvention of our controls and procedures, and any failure to comply with regulations related to controls and procedures could adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.

Failure to maintain effective internal control over financial reporting or disclosure controls and procedures could adversely affect our ability to report our financial condition and results of operations accurately and on a timely basis

A failure to maintain effective internal control over financial reporting or disclosure controls and procedures could adversely affect our ability to report our financial results accurately and on a timely basis, which could result in a loss of investor confidence in our financial reporting or adversely affect our access to sources of liquidity. Furthermore, because of the inherent limitations of any system of internal control over financial reporting, including the possibility of human error, the circumvention or overriding of controls and fraud, even effective internal controls may not prevent or detect all misstatements.

We rely on communications, information, operating and financial control systems technology from third-party service providers, and we may suffer an interruption in those systems

We rely heavily on third-party service providers for much of our communications, information, operating and financial control systems technology, including our internet banking services and data processing systems. Any failure or interruption of these services or systems or breaches in the security of these systems could result in failures or interruptions to serve our customers, including deposit, servicing and/or loan origination systems. The occurrence of any failures or interruptions may require us to identify alternative sources of such services, which may result in increased costs or other consequences that in turn could have an adverse effect on our business, including damage to the Bank’s reputation.

We are dependent on key personnel and the loss of one or more of those key personnel may materially and adversely affect our prospects

Competition for qualified employees and personnel in the banking industry is intense and there are a limited number of qualified persons with knowledge of, and experience in, the California community banking industry. The process of recruiting personnel with the combination of skills and attributes required to carry out our strategies is often lengthy. In addition, legislation and regulations which impose restrictions on executive compensation may make it more difficult for us to retain and recruit key personnel. Our success depends to a significant degree upon our ability to attract and retain qualified management, loan origination, finance, administrative, risk management, marketing and technical personnel and upon the continued contributions of our management and personnel. In particular, our success has been and continues to be highly dependent upon the abilities of key executives, including our Chief Executive Officer, and certain other employees.

Changes in stock market prices could reduce fee income from our brokerage, asset management and investment advisory businesses

We earn wealth management fee income for managing assets for our clients and also providing brokerage and investment advisory services. Because investment management and advisory fees are often based on the value of assets under management, a fall in the market prices of those assets could reduce our fee income. Changes in stock market prices could affect the trading activity of investors, reducing commissions and other fees we earn from our brokerage business.

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We may experience goodwill impairment

If our estimates of fair value change due to changes in our businesses or other factors, we may determine that impairment charges on goodwill recorded as a result of acquisitions are necessary. Estimates of fair value are determined based on a complex model using cash flows, the fair value of our Company as determined by our stock price, and company comparisons. If management’s estimates of future cash flows are inaccurate, fair value determined could be inaccurate and impairment may not be recognized in a timely manner. If the fair value of the Company declines, we may need to recognize goodwill impairment in the future which would have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and capital levels.

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

The processes we use to estimate our expected credit losses and to measure the fair value of financial instruments, as well as the processes used to estimate the effects of changing interest rates and other market measures on our financial condition and results of operations, depends upon the use of analytical and forecasting models. These models reflect assumptions that may not be accurate, particularly in times of market stress or other unforeseen circumstances. Even if these assumptions are adequate, the models may prove to be inadequate or inaccurate because of other flaws in their design or their implementation. If the models we use for interest rate risk and asset-liability management are inadequate, we may incur increased or unexpected losses upon changes in market interest rates or other market measures. If the models we use for determining our expected credit losses are inadequate, the allowance for credit losses may not be sufficient to support future charge-offs. If the models we use to measure the fair value of financial instruments are inadequate, the fair value of such financial instruments may fluctuate unexpectedly or may not accurately reflect what we could realize upon sale or settlement of such financial instruments. Any such failure in our analytical or forecasting models could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Our decisions regarding the fair value of assets acquired could be different than initially estimated, which could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations, and future prospects

In business combinations, we acquire significant portfolios of loans that are marked to their estimated fair value. The fluctuations in national, regional and local economic conditions, including those related to local residential, commercial real estate and construction markets, may increase the level of charge-offs or the allowance for credit losses in the loan portfolio that we acquire and correspondingly reduce our net income. These fluctuations are not predictable, cannot be controlled and may have a material adverse impact on our operations and financial condition, even if other favorable events occur.

Strategic and External Risks

Changes in economic, market and political conditions can adversely affect our liquidity, results of operations and financial condition.

Our success depends, to a certain extent, upon local, national and global economic and political conditions, as well as governmental monetary policies. Conditions such as an economic recession, rising unemployment, changes in interest rates, money supply and other factors beyond our control may adversely affect our asset quality, deposit levels and loan demand and, therefore, our earnings. Because we have a significant amount of real estate loans, decreases in real estate values could adversely affect the value of property used as collateral. Adverse changes in the economy may also have a negative effect on the ability of our borrowers to make timely repayments of their loans, which could have an adverse impact on our earnings. In addition, we may face the following risks in connection with any downward turn in the economy:

•

The process we use to estimate losses inherent in our credit exposure requires difficult, subjective and complex judgments, including forecasts of economic conditions and how these economic conditions might impair the ability of our borrowers to repay their loans. The level of uncertainty

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concerning economic conditions may adversely affect the accuracy of our estimates which may, in turn, impact the reliability of the process;

•

The Company’s commercial, residential and consumer borrowers may be unable to make timely repayments of their loans, or the decrease in value of real estate collateral securing the payment of such loans could result in significant credit losses, increasing delinquencies, foreclosures and customer bankruptcies, any of which could have a material adverse effect on the Company’s operating results;

•

A sustained environment of low interest rates would continue to cause lending margins to stay compressed, which in turn may limit our revenues and profitability;

•

The value of the portfolio of investment securities that we hold may be adversely affected by increasing interest rates and defaults by debtors;

•

Further disruptions in the capital markets or other events, including actions by rating agencies and deteriorating investor expectations, may result in changes in applicable rates of interest, difficulty in accessing capital or an inability to borrow on favorable terms or at all from other financial institutions; and

•

Increased competition among financial services companies due to expected further consolidation in the industry may adversely affect the Company’s ability to market its products and services.

Although the Company and the Bank exceed the minimum capital ratio requirements to be deemed “well-capitalized” for regulatory purposes and have not suffered any significant liquidity issues as a result of these types of events, the cost and availability of funds may be adversely affected by illiquid credit markets and the demand for our products and services may decline as our borrowers and customers continue to realize the impact of slower than customary economic growth, after-effects of the previous recession and ongoing underemployment of the workforce. In view of the concentration of our operations and the collateral securing our loan portfolio in Central and Southern California, we may be particularly susceptible to adverse economic conditions in the state of California, where our business is concentrated. In addition, adverse economic conditions may exacerbate our exposure to credit risk and adversely affect the ability of borrowers to perform, and thereby, adversely affect our liquidity, financial condition, results or operations and profitability.

Our earnings are significantly affected by the fiscal and monetary policies of the federal government and its agencies.

The policies of the Federal Reserve impact us significantly. Its policies directly and indirectly influence the rate of interest earned on loans and paid on borrowings and interest-bearing deposits and can also affect the value of financial instruments we hold. Changes in those policies are beyond our control and are difficult to predict. Federal Reserve policies can also affect our borrowers, potentially increasing the risk that they may fail to repay their loans. As an example, monetary tightening by the Federal Reserve could adversely affect our borrowers’ earnings and ability to repay their loans, which could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations. In addition, the Federal Reserve’s recent actions to reduce its own balance sheet of government and mortgage-backed securities could impact the credit markets and thus prevailing interest rates.

Future legislation, regulatory reform or policy changes under the new U.S. administration could have a material effect on our business and results of operations.

New legislation, regulatory reform or policy changes under the new U.S. administration led by President Biden, including financial services regulatory reform, enforcement priorities, and increased infrastructure spending, could impact our business. At this time, we cannot predict the scope or nature of these changes or assess what the overall effect of such potential changes could be on our results of operations or cash flows.

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We face strong competition from financial services companies and other companies that offer banking services

We conduct most of our operations in the state of California. The banking and financial services businesses in the state of California are highly competitive and increased competition in our primary market area may adversely impact the level of our loans and deposits. Ultimately, we may not be able to compete successfully against current and future competitors. These competitors include national banks, regional banks and other community banks. We also face competition from many other types of financial institutions, including savings and loan associations, finance companies, brokerage firms, insurance companies, credit unions, mortgage companies and other financial intermediaries. In addition, as noted below, we face competition from certain

non-traditional

entities, including so called “FinTech” companies which specialize in the provision of technology-based financial services, such as payment processing and lending marketplaces, and which may offer or be perceived to offer more responsive or currently desirable financial products and services.

In particular, our competitors include major financial companies whose greater resources may afford them a marketplace advantage by enabling them to offer products at lower costs, maintain numerous locations, and mount extensive promotional and advertising campaigns. Areas of competition include interest rates for loans and deposits, efforts to obtain loan and deposit customers and a range in quality of products and services provided, including new technology driven products and services. If we are unable to attract and retain banking customers, we may be unable to continue our loan growth and level of deposits.

Potential acquisitions may disrupt our business and dilute shareholder value

We generally seek merger or acquisition partners that are culturally similar and have experienced management and possess either significant market presence or have potential for improved profitability through financial management, economies of scale or expanded services. Acquiring other banks, businesses, or branches including our acquisition of Community Bank in 2018, involves various risks commonly associated with acquisitions, including, among other things:

•

Potential exposure to unknown or contingent liabilities of the target company;

•

Exposure to potential asset quality issues of the target company;

•

Potential disruption to our business;

•

Potential diversion of our management’s time and attention;

•

The possible loss of key employees and customers of the target company;

•

Difficulty in estimating the value of the target company; and

•

Potential changes in banking or tax laws or regulations that may affect the target company.

Acquisitions typically involve the payment of a premium over book and market values, and, therefore, some dilution of our tangible book value and net income per common share may occur in connection with any future transaction. Furthermore, failure to realize the expected revenue increases, cost savings, increases in geographic or product presence, and/or other projected benefits from an acquisition could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Consumers may decide not to use banks to complete their financial transactions.

Technology and other changes are allowing parties to complete financial transactions through alternative methods that historically have involved banks. For example, consumers can now maintain funds that would have historically been held as bank deposits in brokerage accounts, mutual funds or general-purpose reloadable prepaid cards. Consumers can also complete transactions, such as paying bills and/or transferring funds directly without the assistance of banks. The process of eliminating banks as intermediaries, known as “disintermediation,” could result in the loss of fee income, as well as the loss of customer deposits and the related income generated from those deposits. The loss of these revenue streams and the lower cost of deposits as a source of funds could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

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Legal, Regulatory, Compliance and Reputational Risks

We are subject to extensive government regulation that could limit or restrict our activities, which, in turn, may hamper our ability to increase our assets and earnings

Our operations are subject to extensive regulation by federal, state and local governmental authorities, including the FDIC, FRB, DFPI and CFPB, and we are subject to various laws and judicial and administrative decisions imposing requirements and restrictions on part or all of our operations. Similarly, the lending, credit and deposit products we offer are subject to broad oversight and regulation. Because our business is highly regulated, the laws, rules, regulations and supervisory guidance and policies applicable to us are subject to regular modification and change. Perennially, various laws, rules and regulations are proposed, which, if adopted, could impact our operations by making compliance much more difficult or expensive, restricting our ability to originate or sell loans or further restricting the amount of interest or other charges or fees earned on loans or other products. Current and future federal and state legal and regulatory requirements, restrictions and regulations, including those imposed under Dodd-Frank and those adopted to facilitate data privacy or consumer protection, may adversely impact our profitability and may have a material and adverse effect on our business, financial condition, and results of operations, may require us to invest significant management attention and resources to evaluate and make any changes required by the legislation and accompanying rules, and may make it more difficult for us to attract and retain qualified executive officers and employees. The implementation of certain final Dodd-Frank rules is delayed or phased in over several years; therefore, as yet we cannot definitively assess what may be the short or longer term specific or aggregate effect of the full implementation of Dodd-Frank on us.

We face a risk of noncompliance and enforcement action with the Bank Secrecy Act and other anti-money laundering statutes and regulations

The Bank Secrecy Act, the USA PATRIOT Act of 2001, and other laws and regulations require financial institutions, among other duties, to institute and maintain an effective anti-money laundering program and file suspicious activity and currency transaction reports as appropriate. The federal Financial Crimes Enforcement Network is authorized to impose significant civil money penalties for violations of those requirements and has recently engaged in coordinated enforcement efforts with the individual federal banking regulators, as well as the U.S. Department of Justice, Drug Enforcement Administration, and Internal Revenue Service. We are also subject to scrutiny of compliance with the rules enforced by the Office of Foreign Assets Control and compliance with the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. If our policies, procedures and systems are deemed deficient, we would be subject to liability, including fines and regulatory actions, which may include restrictions on our ability to pay dividends and the necessity to obtain regulatory approvals to proceed with certain aspects of our business plan. Failure to maintain and implement adequate programs to combat money laundering and terrorist financing could also have serious reputational consequences for us. Any of these results could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Mortgage regulations may adversely impact our business

Revisions made pursuant to Dodd-Frank to Regulation Z, which implements the Truth in Lending Act (TILA), effective in January 2014, apply to all consumer mortgages (except home equity lines of credit, timeshare plans, reverse mortgages, or temporary loans), and mandate specific underwriting criteria and “ability to repay” requirements for home loans. This may impact our offering and underwriting of single family residential loans in our residential mortgage lending operation and could have a resulting unknown effect on potential delinquencies. In addition, the relatively uniform requirements may make it difficult for regional and community banks to compete against the larger national banks for single family residential loan originations.

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The impact of current capital rules imposed enhanced capital adequacy requirements on us and may materially affect our operations

We are subject to more stringent capital requirements. Pursuant to Dodd-Frank and to implement for U.S. banking institutions the principles of the international “Basel III” standards, the federal banking agencies have adopted a set of rules on minimum leverage and risk-based capital that will apply to both insured banks and their holding companies.

The current capital rules, which have now been fully implemented, may adversely affect our ability to pay dividends, or require us to reduce business levels or raise capital, including in ways that may adversely affect our business, liquidity, financial condition and results of operations.

Under the current capital standards, if our Common Equity Tier 1 Capital does not include the required “capital conservation buffer,” we will be prohibited from making distributions to our stockholders. The capital conservation buffer requirement, which is measured in addition to the minimum Common Equity Tier 1 capital of 4.5%, was phased in over four years, starting at 0.625% for 2016, and is now 2.5%. Additionally, under the capital standards, if our Common Equity Tier 1 Capital does not include the “capital conservation buffer,” we will also be prohibited from paying discretionary bonuses to our executive employees. This may affect our ability to attract or retain employees, or alter the nature of the compensation arrangements that we may enter into with them.

Managing reputational risk is important to attracting and maintaining customers, investors and employees

Threats to our reputation can come from many sources, including adverse sentiment about financial institutions generally, unethical practices, employee mistakes, misconduct or fraud, failure to deliver minimum standards of service or quality, failure of any product or service offered by us to meet our customers’ expectations, compliance deficiencies, government investigations, litigation, and questionable or fraudulent activities of our customers. We have policies and procedures in place to protect our reputation and promote ethical conduct, but these policies and procedures may not be fully effective. Negative publicity regarding our business, employees, or customers, with or without merit, may result in the loss of customers, investors and employees, costly litigation, a decline in revenues and increased governmental scrutiny and regulation.

We are subject to legal and litigation risk which could adversely affect us

Because our Company is extensively regulated by a variety of federal and state agencies, and because we are subject to a wide range of business, consumer and employment laws and regulations at the federal, state and local levels, we are at risk of governmental investigations and lawsuits as well as claims and litigation from private parties. We are from time to time involved in disputes with and claims from investors, customers, government agencies, vendors, employees and other business parties, and such disputes and claims may result in investigations, litigation or settlements, any one of which or in the aggregate could have an adverse impact on the Company’s operating flexibility, employee relations, financial condition or results of operations, as a result of the costs of any judgment, the terms of any settlement and/or the expenses incurred in defending the applicable claim.

We are unable, at this time, to estimate our potential liability in these matters, but we may be required to pay judgments, settlements or other penalties and incur other costs and expenses in connection with any one or more of these investigations or lawsuits, which in turn could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition. In addition, responding to requests for information in connection with discovery demanded by a government agency or private plaintiffs in any of these lawsuits may be costly and divert internal resources away from managing our business. See Item 3 —

Legal Proceedings

below.

We may be subject to customer claims and government or legal actions pertaining to our ability to safeguard our customers’ information and the performance of our fiduciary responsibilities. Whether or not such

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customer claims and legal actions are founded or unfounded, if such claims and legal actions are not resolved in a manner favorable to us, they may result in significant financial liability and/or adversely affect the market perception of us and our products and services, as well as impact 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 and results of operations.

Federal and state laws and regulations may restrict our ability to pay dividends

The ability of the Bank to pay dividends to the Company and of the Company to pay dividends to its shareholders is limited by applicable federal and California law and regulations. . If the Bank is unable to meet regulatory requirements to pay dividends or make other distributions to CVB, CVB will be unable to pay dividends to its shareholders.

See “Business — Regulation and Supervision” and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations — Liquidity and Cash Flow.”

Risks Associated with our Common Stock

The price of our common stock may be volatile or may decline

The trading price of our common stock may fluctuate widely 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 its share prices and trading volumes that affect the market prices of the shares of many companies. These specific and 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 fluctuations in our operating results and financial condition;

•

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

•

credit events or losses;

•

failure to meet analysts’ revenue or earnings estimates;

•

speculation in the press or investment community;

•

strategic actions by us or our competitors, such as acquisitions or restructurings;

•

actions or trades by institutional shareholders or other large shareholders;

•

our capital position;

•

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

•

actions by hedge funds, short term investors, activist shareholders or shareholder representative organizations;

•

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

•

proposed or adopted regulatory changes or developments;

•

anticipated or pending investigations, proceedings or litigation that involve or affect the Company and/or the Bank;

•

fraud losses or data or privacy breaches; or

•

domestic and international economic factors, whether related or unrelated to the Company’s performance.

The market price of our common stock and the trading volume in our common stock may fluctuate and cause significant price variations to occur. The trading price of the shares of our common stock and the value of our other securities will depend on many factors, which may change from time to time, including, without limitation, our financial condition, performance, creditworthiness and prospects, future sales of our equity or equity related securities, and other factors identified above in “Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements”. A significant decline in our stock price could result in substantial losses for individual shareholders and could lead to costly and disruptive securities litigation. Extensive sales by large shareholders could also exert sustained downward pressure on our stock price.

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An investment in our common stock is not an insured deposit

Our common stock is not a bank deposit and, therefore, is not insured against loss by the FDIC, any other deposit insurance fund or by any other public or private entity. Investment in our common stock is inherently risky for the reasons described in this “Risk Factors” section and elsewhere in this report and is subject to the same market forces that affect the price of common stock in any company. As a result, if you acquire our common stock, you could lose some or all of your investment.

Our common stock is subordinate to our existing and future indebtedness and preferred stock.

Shares of our common stock are equity interests and do not constitute indebtedness. As such, our common stock ranks junior to all our customer deposits and indebtedness, whether now existing or hereafter incurred, and other

non-equity

claims on us, with respect to assets available to satisfy claims. Additionally, holders of common stock are subject to the prior liquidation rights of the holders of any debt we may issue in the future and may be subject to the prior dividend and liquidation rights of any series of preferred stock we may issue in the future.

Anti-takeover provisions and federal law may limit the ability of another party to acquire us, which could cause our stock price to decline

Various provisions of our articles of incorporation and

by-laws

and certain other actions we have taken could delay or prevent a third-party from acquiring us, even if doing so might be beneficial to our shareholders. The Bank Holding Company Act of 1956, as amended, and the Change in Bank Control Act of 1978, as amended, together with federal regulations, require that, depending on the particular circumstances, regulatory approval and/or appropriate regulatory filings may be required from either or all the Federal Reserve, the FDIC, the DFPI prior to any person or entity acquiring “control” (as defined in the applicable regulations) of a state

non-member

bank, such as the Bank. These provisions may prevent a merger or acquisition that would be attractive to shareholders and could limit the price investors would be willing to pay in the future for our common stock.

We may face other risks

From time to time, we detail other risks with respect to our business and/or financial results in our filings with the SEC. For further discussion on additional areas of risk, see “Item 7.

Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

.”

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ITEM 1B.

UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS

None

ITEM 2.

PROPERTIES

The principal executive offices of the Company and the Bank are located in Ontario, California, and are owned by the Company.

As of December 31, 2020, the Bank occupied a total of 60 premises consisting of (i) 57 Banking Centers (“Centers”) of which one Center is located at our Corporate Headquarters in Ontario California, (ii) three operation and technology centers, and (iii) one loan production office in Modesto, California. We own 15 of these locations and the remaining properties are leased under various agreements with expiration dates ranging from 2020 through 2028. All properties are located in Southern and Central California.

For additional information concerning properties, see Note 9 —

Premises and Equipment

of the Notes to the consolidated financial statements included in this report. See “Item 8 —

Financial Statements and Supplemental Data

.”

ITEM 3.

LEGAL PROCEEDINGS

The Company and its subsidiaries are parties to various lawsuits and threatened lawsuits in the ordinary and

non-ordinary

course of business. From time to time, such lawsuits and threatened lawsuits may include, but are not limited to, actions involving securities litigation, employment matters, wage-hour and labor law claims, consumer claims, regulatory compliance claims, data privacy claims, lender liability claims and negligence claims, some of which may be styled as “class action” or representative cases. Some of these lawsuits may be similar in nature to other lawsuits pending against the Company’s competitors. For additional information concerning legal proceedings, see Note 14

Commitments and Contingencies

of the Notes to the consolidated financial statements included in this report.

For lawsuits where the Company has determined that a loss is both probable and reasonably estimable, a liability representing the best estimate of the Company’s financial exposure based on known facts has been recorded in accordance with FASB guidance over loss contingencies (ASC 450). However, as a result of inherent uncertainties in judicial interpretation and application of a myriad of laws and regulations applicable to the Company’s business, and the unique, complex factual issues presented in any given lawsuit, the Company often cannot determine the probability of loss or estimate the amount of damages which a plaintiff might successfully prove if the Company were found to be liable. For lawsuits or threatened lawsuits where a claim has been asserted or the Company has determined that it is probable that a claim will be asserted, and there is a reasonable possibility that the outcome will be unfavorable, the Company will disclose the existence of the loss contingency, even if the Company is not able to make an estimate of the possible loss or range of possible loss with respect to the action or potential action in question, unless the Company believes that the nature, potential magnitude or potential timing (if known) of the loss contingency is not reasonably likely to be material to the Company’s liquidity, consolidated financial position, and/or results of operations.

Our accruals and disclosures for loss contingencies are reviewed quarterly and adjusted as additional information becomes available. We disclose a loss contingency and/or the amount accrued if we believe it is reasonably likely to be material or if we believe such disclosure is necessary for our financial statements to not be misleading. If we determine that an exposure to loss exists in excess of an amount previously accrued or disclosed, we assess whether there is at least a reasonable possibility that a loss, or additional loss, may have been incurred, and we adjust our accruals and disclosures accordingly.

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We do not presently believe that the ultimate resolution of any lawsuits currently pending against the Company will have a material adverse effect on the Company’s results of operations, financial condition, or cash flows. The outcome of litigation and other legal and regulatory matters is inherently uncertain, however, and it is possible that one or more of the legal matters currently pending or threatened against the Company could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations, financial condition or cash flows.

ITEM 4.

MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES

Not applicable.

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PART II

ITEM 5.

MARKET FOR THE REGISTRANT’S COMMON EQUITY, RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS AND ISSUER PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES

CVB’s common stock is traded on the NASDAQ Global Select National Market under the symbol “CVBF.” CVB had approximately 135,873,607 shares of common stock outstanding with 1,573 registered shareholders of record as of February 12, 2021.

For information on the statutory and regulatory limitations on the ability of the Company to pay dividends to its shareholders and on the Bank to pay dividends to CVB, see “Item 1.

Business-Regulation and Supervision — Dividends

” and “Item 7.

Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations — Liquidity and Cash Flow

.”

Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities

On August 11, 2016, our Board of Directors approved a program to repurchase up to 10,000,000 shares of CVB common stock in the open market or in privately negotiated transactions, at times and at prices considered appropriate by us, depending upon prevailing market conditions and other corporate and legal considerations. There is no expiration date for this repurchase program. For the year ended December 31, 2020, the Company repurchased 4,944,290 shares of CVB common stock outstanding under this program. During the fourth quarter ended December 31, 2020, the Company did not repurchase any shares of common stock under this program. As of December 31, 2020, we have 4,585,145 shares of CVB common stock remaining that are eligible for repurchase under the common stock repurchase program.

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Performance Graph

The following Performance Graph and related information shall not be deemed “soliciting material” or be “filed” with the Securities and Exchange Commission, nor shall such information be incorporated by reference into any future filing under the Securities Act of 1933 or Securities Exchange Act of 1934, each as amended, except to the extent that the Company specifically incorporates it by reference into such filing.

The following graph compares the yearly percentage change in CVB’s cumulative total shareholder return (stock price appreciation plus reinvested dividends) on common stock (i) the cumulative total return of the Nasdaq Composite Index; and (ii) a published index comprised by Morningstar (formerly Hemscott, Inc.) of banks and bank holding companies in the Pacific region (the peer group line depicted below). The graph assumes an initial investment of $100 on December 31, 2015, and reinvestment of dividends through December 31, 2020. Points on the graph represent the performance as of the last business day of each of the years indicated. The graph is not necessarily indicative of future price performance.

ASSUMES $100 INVESTED ON DECEMBER 31, 2015

ASSUMES DIVIDEND REINVESTED

FISCAL YEAR ENDING DECEMBER 31, 2020


Company/Market/Peer Group	12/31/2015		12/31/2016		12/31/2017		12/31/2018		12/31/2019		12/31/2020

CVB Financial Corp.		100.00		138.47		145.52		128.08		141.16		133.78
NASDAQ Composite		100.00		108.87		141.13		137.12		187.44		271.64
Peer Group Index		100.00		138.17		158.23		127.37		159.28		163.05

Source: Research Data Group, Inc., www.researchdatagroup.com

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ITEM 6.

SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA

The following table reflects selected financial information at and for the five years ended December 31. Throughout the past five years, the Company has acquired other banks. This may affect the comparability of the data.


	Year Ended December 31,
	2020		2019		2018		2017			2016
	(Dollars in thousands, except per share amounts)

Interest income	$	430,337	$	457,850	$	361,860	$	287,226		$	265,050
Interest expense		14,284		22,078		12,815		8,296			7,976

Net interest income before provision for (recapture of) credit losses		416,053		435,772		349,045		278,930			257,074

Provision for (recapture of) credit losses		23,500		5,000		1,500		(8,500	)		(6,400	)
Net interest income after provision for (recapture of) credit losses		392,553		430,772		347,545		287,430			263,474
Noninterest income		49,870		59,042		43,481		42,118			35,552
Noninterest expense		192,903		198,740		179,911		140,753			136,740

Earnings before income taxes		249,520		291,074		211,115		188,795			162,286
Income taxes		72,361		83,247		59,112		84,384			60,857

Net Earnings	$	177,159	$	207,827	$	152,003	$	104,411		$	101,429

Basic earnings per common share	$	1.30	$	1.48	$	1.25	$	0.95		$	0.94
Diluted earnings per common share	$	1.30	$	1.48	$	1.24	$	0.95		$	0.94
Cash dividends declared per common share	$	0.72	$	0.72	$	0.56	$	0.54		$	0.48
Dividend pay-out ratio (1)		55.13%		48.57%		46.19%		56.97%			51.12%
Weighted average common shares:
Basic		136,030,613		139,757,355		121,670,113		109,409,301			107,282,332
Diluted		136,206,210		139,934,211		121,957,364		109,806,710			107,686,955
Common Stock Data:
Common shares outstanding at year end		135,600,501		140,102,480		140,000,017		110,184,922			108,251,981
Book value per share	$	14.81	$	14.23	$	13.22	$	9.70		$	9.15
Financial Position:
Assets	$	14,419,314	$	11,282,450	$	11,529,153	$	8,270,586		$	8,073,707
Investment securities		2,977,549		2,414,709		2,478,525		2,910,875			3,182,142
Net loans (2)		8,255,116		7,495,917		7,700,998		4,771,046			4,333,524
Deposits		11,736,501		8,704,928		8,827,490		6,546,853			6,309,680
Borrowings		444,406		428,659		722,255		553,773			656,028
Junior subordinated debentures		25,774		25,774		25,774		25,774			25,774
Stockholders’ equity		2,007,990		1,994,098		1,851,190		1,069,266			990,862
Equity-to-assets ratio (3)		13.93%		17.67%		16.06%		12.93%			12.27%