Company: FRME
Filing Date: 2025-02-24
Form Type: 10-K
Source: 0000712534-25-000058
Chunk: 85

Company: FIRST MERCHANTS CORP
Filing Date: 2025-02-24
Form: 10-K
Item: Item 8
Chunk 85
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 unrealized gains (losses) on cash flow hedges and related amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive income see NOTE 12. DERIVATIVE FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS of these Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.

NOTE 15

REGULATORY CAPITAL AND DIVIDENDSRegulatory CapitalCapital adequacy is an important indicator of financial stability and performance.  The Corporation and the Bank are subject to various regulatory capital requirements administered by the federal banking agencies and are assigned to a capital category.  The assigned capital category is largely determined by four ratios that are calculated according to the regulations: total risk-based capital, tier 1 risk-based capital, common equity tier 1 (“CET1”), and tier 1 leverage ratios.  The ratios are intended to measure capital relative to assets and credit risk associated with those assets and off-balance sheet exposures of the entity.  The capital category assigned to an entity can also be affected by qualitative judgments made by regulatory agencies about the risk inherent in the entity’s activities that are not part of the calculated ratios.There are five capital categories defined in the regulations, ranging from well capitalized to critically undercapitalized.  Classification of a bank in any of the undercapitalized categories can result in actions by regulators that could have a material effect on a bank’s operations.  Quantitative measures established by regulation to ensure capital adequacy require the Bank to maintain minimum amounts and ratios of total risk-based capital, tier 1 capital and CET1 capital, in each case, to risk-weighted assets, and of tier 1 capital to average assets, or leverage ratio, all of which are calculated as defined in the regulations.  Banks with lower capital levels are deemed to be undercapitalized, significantly undercapitalized or critically undercapitalized, depending on their actual levels.  The appropriate federal regulatory agency may also downgrade a bank to the next lower capital category upon a determination that the bank is in an unsafe or unsound practice.  Banks are required to monitor closely their capital levels and to notify their appropriate regulatory agency of any basis for a change in capital category.Basel III requires the Corporation and the Bank to maintain the minimum capital and leverage ratios as defined in the regulation and as illustrated in the following table, which capital to risk-weighted asset ratios include a 2.5 percent capital conservation buffer.  Under Basel III, in order to avoid limitations on capital distributions, including dividends, the Corporation must hold a 2.5 percent capital conservation buffer above the adequately capitalized CET1 to risk-weight