Strengthening Your Bank’s Balance Sheet Workshop

This workshop equips banking leaders with practical frameworks to defend core funding, optimize net interest margin, manage CRE risk and diversify into high-margin lending opportunities. Participants leave with actionable strategies tailored to the realities of community and regional banking.

9:30 AM – 10:00 AM
Breakfast & Registration

10:00 AM – 10:15 AM
Welcome & Introductions

10:15 AM – 11:15 AM
Peer Collaboration Session 1: Deposit Strategy & Core Funding Defense
This session examines the intensifying battle for deposits and how community banks can fight back. Participants analyze deposit beta trends and the competitive landscape shaped by fintechs, credit unions and neobanks, while learning what peer institutions are experiencing. The session explores building multi-channel retention and growth strategies that deepen relationships through bundled services, personalized pricing and proactive relationship management – giving banks a sustainable advantage that rate-only competitors cannot easily replicate.

11:15 AM – 12:15 PM
Peer Collaboration Session 2: NIM Management & Asset/Liability Strategy
This session provides banking executives with practical tactics for navigating interest rate risk and liquidity management in an uncertain rate environment. Participants learn how to plan for multiple interest rate scenarios rather than betting on a single outcome and explore strategies for optimizing the balance sheet mix between loans and securities. The session emphasizes building flexibility into asset and liability structures so institutions can protect margin regardless of which way rates move, while maintaining the liquidity needed to fund growth.

12:15 PM – 1:15 PM
Lunch

1:15 PM – 2:15 PM
Peer Collaboration Session 3: CRE Portfolio Management & Credit Quality
This session addresses the growing scrutiny around CRE concentrations and equips participants to stay ahead of both credit deterioration and examiner expectations. Participants learn to identify early warning indicators, establish meaningful concentration limits and implement stress testing protocols that reveal hidden vulnerabilities. The session also covers developing strategies for working proactively with troubled CRE borrowers before problems escalate and understanding examiner priorities for CRE documentation – helping banks demonstrate strong risk management rather than scrambling to respond after findings.

2:15 PM – 2:30 PM
Refreshment Break

2:30 PM – 3:30 PM
Peer Collaboration Session 4: Loan Portfolio Diversification & Growth
This session challenges banking leaders to look beyond traditional CRE lending and identify high-margin opportunities that reduce concentration risk while driving revenue growth. Participants explore data-driven approaches to identifying small and mid-sized business market opportunities within their footprint, assess lending verticals that align with their institution’s strengths and risk appetite and develop a diversification roadmap that balances growth ambitions with credit discipline. The session emphasizes practical strategies for building a more resilient and profitable loan portfolio for the long term.

3:30 PM – 3:45 PM
Wrap Up and Q&A

4:00 PM – 5:00 PM
Welcoming Peer & Guest Reception
To kick off the Summit, we invite all participants – and their guests – to join us for refreshments and light hors d’oeuvres.