Company: WTFCN
Filing Date: 2025-02-28
Form Type: 10-K
Source: 0001015328-25-000093
Chunk: 222

Company: WINTRUST FINANCIAL CORP
Filing Date: 2025-02-28
Form: 10-K
Item: Item 1A
Chunk 222
---
 and stability and evaluate the risks of doing business with us. If we experience diminished financial strength or stability, actual or perceived, including due to market or regulatory developments, announced or rumored business developments or results of operations, or a decline in stock price, customers may withdraw their deposits or otherwise seek services from other banking institutions and prospective customers may select other service providers. The risk that we may be perceived as less creditworthy relative to other market participants is increased in the current market 

37

environment, where the consolidation of financial institutions, including major global financial institutions, is resulting in a smaller number of much larger counterparties and competitors. As our community banks become more closely identified with the Wintrust name, the impact of any perceived weakness or creditworthiness at either the holding company or our community banks may be greater than in prior periods. If customers reduce their deposits with us or select other service providers for all or a portion of the services that we provide them, net interest income and fee revenues will decrease accordingly, and could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations.

Loss of deposits or a change in the deposit mix could increase our funding costs.

Deposits are a low cost and stable source of funding. Wintrust competes with banks and other financial institutions for deposits and as a result, Wintrust could lose deposits in the future, clients may shift their deposits into higher cost products or Wintrust may need to raise interest rates to avoid deposit attrition. Funding costs may also increase if lost deposits are replaced with wholesale funding. Higher funding costs reduce Wintrust’s net interest margin, net interest income and net income. Any of a variety of single or combined factors could contribute to adverse movement in deposits or deposit costs, including but not limited to economic uncertainty, rapid movements in market interest rates or the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy, entrance of competitors, disruptive technology or decreased confidence in Wintrust or the banking industry.

If our credit rating is lowered, our financing costs could increase.

As of December 31, 2024, we have been rated by Fitch Ratings as "BBB+" and Morningstar DBRS as "A (low)". A credit rating is not a recommendation to buy, sell or hold securities and may be subject to revision or withdrawal at any time by the assigning rating organization.

Our creditworthiness is not fixed and should be expected to change over time as a result of company performance and industry conditions. We cannot give any assurances that our credit ratings will remain at current levels, and it is possible that our ratings could be