By CSBS Chief Economist Thomas F. Siems, Ph.D. The CSBS first quarter 2022 Community Bank Sentiment Index (CBSI) indicates that community bankers have returned to a pessimistic outlook driven primarily by diminished expectations regarding future business conditions. Answering an open-ended question, community bankers expressed concerns over rising inflation (especially higher oil and gas prices), mounting geopolitical tensions and government regulations

By CSBS Data Scientist Carlos Cordova, Senior Policy Analyst Joey Samowitz, and Senior Economist and Director of Research Thomas F. Siems, Ph.D. Community banks have been at the forefront in providing needed funds to small businesses across the country as the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdowns have severely restricted U.S. economic activity. Our analysis of the Paycheck Protection Program

The latest CBSI shows that even as bankers expect business conditions to improve, rising profitability is not inevitable, and they are concerned about a weightier regulatory burden.

CSBS Senior Economist and Director of Research Tom Siems considers results for 10 economic sectors in the latest CBSI.

CSBS Senior Economist Tom Siems explores what future economic activities concern community bankers the most, based on the most recent CBSI.

CSBS's Tom Siems and Nathan Ross reflect on the legacy of Milton Friedman, born 108 years ago today.

State-chartered banks were the primary distributor of relief funds to communities, according to a new analysis by CSBS. The analysis matched recently available loan-level Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) data with lender demographic data, providing the first estimate of how different types of lenders originated PPP loans for small businesses around the country. Specifically, the analysis revealed that, as of July

James Madison University won this year’s annual CSBS Community Bank Case Study Competition. The competition, now finishing its fifth year, provides undergraduate students an opportunity to conduct research and gain first-hand knowledge of the banking industry. The team of five examined how their partner institution, Farmers and Merchant Bank, approached banking challenges over the past ten years and will predict

The CSBS Community Bank Sentiment Index for September shows that bank optimism remains strong.

By Michael L. Stevens, CSBS Senior Executive Vice President The fourth quarter Community Bank Sentiment Index (CBSI) had a slight uptick to 123, reflecting an overall positive outlook for the economy and community banks. This quarter 208 bankers from 43 states participated in the survey, providing a good geographic mix. The index, first calculated in the second quarter of 2019