Bridgewater Bancshares, Inc. Annual Report

loan losses is affected by, among other things, changes in economic, operating and other conditions within our market, which may be beyond our control, and such losses may exceed current estimates. As of December 31, 2019, our allowance for loan losses as a percentage of total gross loans was 1.18% and as a percentage of total nonperforming loans was 4,886.3%. Although management believes that the allowance for loan losses was adequate on such date to absorb probable losses on existing loans that may become uncollectible, losses in excess of the existing allowance will reduce our net income and could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and growth prospects. We may also be required to take additional provisions for loan losses in the future to further supplement the allowance for loan losses, either due to management’s assessment that the allowance is inadequate or as required by our banking regulators. Our banking regulators periodically review our allowance for loan losses and the value attributed to nonaccrual loans or to real estate acquired through foreclosure and may require us to adjust our determination of the value for these items. These adjustments may have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and growth prospects. A new accounting standard could require us to increase our allowance for loan losses and may have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations. In June 2016, the FASB issued a new accounting standard that will replace the current approach under accounting principles generally accepted in the United States, or GAAP, for establishing the allowance for loan losses which generally considers only past events and current conditions, with a forward-looking methodology that reflects the expected credit losses over the lives of financial assets, starting when such assets are first originated or acquired. This standard, referred to as Current Expected Credit Loss, or CECL, will require financial institutions to determine periodic estimates of lifetime expected credit losses on loans and recognize the expected credit losses as allowances for loan losses. Under the revised methodology, credit losses will be measured based on past events, current conditions and reasonable and supportable forecasts of future conditions that affect the collectability of financial assets. The new standard is expected to generally result in increases to allowance levels and will require the application of the revised methodology to existing financial assets through a one-time adjustment to retained earnings upon initial effectiveness. The change will also likely greatly increase the types of data we will need to collect and analyze to determine the appropriate level of the allowance for loan losses. Any increase in our allowance for loan losses or expenses incurred to determine the appropriate level of the allowance for loan losses will result in a decrease in net income and capital and may have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations. Moreover, the CECL model may create more volatility in our level of allowance for loan losses and could result in the need for additional capital. As an emerging growth company, this standard is expected to become applicable to us on January 1, 2023, after the FASB recently elected to delay implementation for private companies. In connection with our initial public offering, we elected to use the extended transition period available to emerging growth companies, which means that we are not subject to all new or revised accounting standards generally applicable to public companies until those standards apply to private companies. Many of our loans are to commercial borrowers, which have a higher degree of risk than other types of loans. Commercial and industrial loans represented 14.5% of our total gross loan portfolio at December 31, 2019. Because payments on such loans are often dependent on the successful operation of the business involved, repayment of such loans is often more sensitive than other types of loans to the general business climate and economy. Accordingly, a challenging business and economic environment may increase our risk related to commercial loans. Unlike residential mortgage loans, which generally are made on the basis of the borrowers’ ability to make repayment from their employment and other income and which are secured by real property whose value tends to be more easily ascertainable, commercial loans typically are made on the basis of the borrowers’ ability to make repayment from the cash flow of the commercial venture. Our commercial and industrial loans are primarily made based on the identified cash flow of the borrower and secondarily on the collateral underlying the loans. Most often, this collateral consists of accounts receivable, inventory and equipment. Inventory and equipment may depreciate over time, may be difficult to appraise and may fluctuate in value based on the success of the business. If the cash flow from business operations is reduced, the borrower’s ability to repay the loan may be impaired. Due to the larger average size of each commercial loan as compared with other loans such as residential loans, as well as collateral that is generally less readily-marketable, losses

20