East West Bancorp, Inc. (“East West” or the “Company”) (Nasdaq: EWBC), parent company of East West Bank, today reported its financial results for the third quarter of 2021. Third quarter 2021 net income was $225.4 million, or $1.57 per diluted share; return on average assets was 1.46%, and return on average equity was 15.75%.

“This was another quarter of outstanding results. Our total loans reached a record $40.5 billion as of September 30, 2021. Loans grew by 11% annualized from June 30, 2021, and by 11% from September 30, 2020, excluding the impact of the Paycheck Protection Program. This growth has come from all of our major loan portfolios of commercial, residential mortgage and commercial real estate,” stated Dominic Ng, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of East West.

“Total deposits reached a record $53.4 billion as of September 30, 2021, driven by excellent growth in demand deposits. This has transformed our deposit mix. Noninterest-bearing demand deposits now make up 43% of total balances, compared with 36% a year ago.”

“Our robust organic balance sheet growth drove a 21% annualized increase in revenue quarter-over-quarter, even as interest rates remained low. This revenue expansion was achieved while maintaining solid expense discipline, resulting in adjusted pre-tax, pre-provision income¹ growth of 26% annualized from the second quarter,” continued Ng. “Overall, we earned an attractive return on average tangible equity² of 17.25% in the third quarter of 2021.”

“We are looking forward to finishing the year on a high note, and extending the momentum and excellent performance from 2021 into continued growth and success in 2022,” concluded Ng.

FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

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¹ See reconciliation of GAAP to non-GAAP financial measures in Table 12.

² See reconciliation of GAAP to non-GAAP financial measures in Table 13.

BALANCE SHEET

• Record Assets – Total assets reached $61.0 billion as of September 30, 2021, up by $1.1 billion, or 7% annualized, from $59.9 billion as of June 30, 2021. Year-over-year, total assets grew 21% from $50.4 billion as of September 30, 2020.
  
  
  
  Third quarter 2021 average interest-earning assets of $58.2 billion grew by $3.3 billion, or 24% linked quarter annualized. The growth in average interest-earning assets mainly consisted of a $2.0 billion increase in average interest-bearing cash and deposits with banks, a $785.7 million increase in average available-for-sale (“AFS”) debt securities, and a $337.9 million increase in average loans. Excluding Paycheck Protection Program (“PPP”) loans, average loans grew by $1.1 billion.

• Record Loans – Total loans reached $40.5 billion as of September 30, 2021, up by $408.4 million, or 4% annualized, from $40.1 billion as of June 30, 2021. Excluding PPP loans, total loans grew by $1.0 billion, or 11% linked quarter annualized. During the third quarter of 2021, $645.0 million of PPP loans outstanding were forgiven by the Small Business Administration (“SBA”). PPP loans totaled $807.3 million as of September 30, 2021. Year-over-year, total loans, excluding PPP, grew 11% from $35.7 billion as of September 30, 2020.
  
  
  
  Third quarter 2021 average loans of $40.0 billion grew by $337.9 million, or 3% linked quarter annualized. Excluding PPP loans, average loans grew by $1.1 billion, or 12% annualized, from the second quarter of 2021. The strongest growth was from average C&I loans excluding PPP, which increased 16% linked quarter annualized, followed by residential mortgage loans, which also increased 16% linked quarter annualized. Average total CRE loans grew by 5% linked quarter annualized.

• Record Deposits – Total deposits reached $53.4 billion as of September 30, 2021, up by $773.6 million, or 6% annualized, from $52.6 billion as of June 30, 2021, and up 28% year-over-year from $41.7 billion as of September 30, 2020. Noninterest-bearing demand deposits reached a record $23.2 billion as of September 30, 2021, up by $1.4 billion, or 25% annualized, from $21.8 billion as of June 30, 2021, and up 55% year-over-year from $14.9 billion as of September 30, 2020. Noninterest-bearing demand deposits made up 43% of total deposits as of September 30, 2021, up from 41% as of June 30, 2021 and 36% as of September 30, 2020.
  
  
  
  Third quarter 2021 average deposits of $53.5 billion grew by $3.3 billion, or 26% linked quarter annualized. Growth in the third quarter was led by noninterest-bearing demand deposits, which increased by $3.5 billion or 69% linked quarter annualized. Time deposits decreased quarter-over-quarter, reflecting run-off of higher rate certificates of deposit.

• Strong Capital Levels – As of September 30, 2021, stockholders’ equity was $5.7 billion, or $40.10 per common share, and tangible equity³ per common share was $36.75. Tangible equity per common share increased by 3% quarter-over-quarter and increased by 12% year-over-year. As of September 30, 2021, the tangible equity to tangible assets ratio³ was 8.62%, the common equity tier 1 (“CET1”) capital ratio was 12.8%, and the total risk-based capital ratio was 14.2%.

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³ See reconciliation of GAAP to non-GAAP financial measures in Table 13.

OPERATING RESULTS

Third Quarter Earnings – Third quarter 2021 net income was $225.4 million, or $1.57 per diluted share, compared with $224.7 million, or $1.57 per diluted share, for the second quarter of 2021.

Third Quarter 2021 Compared to Second Quarter 2021

Net Interest Income and Net Interest Margin

Net interest income (“NII”) totaled $395.7 million, an increase of 20% annualized from $376.5 million. Net interest margin (“NIM”) of 2.70% decreased by five basis points from 2.75%.

• Excluding the impact of PPP loans, adjusted NII⁴ totaled $380.5 million, an increase of 21% annualized from $361.1 million. PPP loans contributed $15.2 million to NII in the third quarter, compared with $15.4 million in the second quarter.
• NII growth reflected growth in average balances of loans, securities and other earning assets, as well as the benefit of a lower cost of funds, partially offset by lower yields on earning assets.
• Adjusted NIM⁴ of 2.64% declined by nine basis points from 2.73%. The quarter-over-quarter adjusted NIM compression was largely due to the $2.0 billion growth in average interest-bearing cash and deposits with banks, which earned an average yield of 0.25% in the third quarter. Strong deposit growth in excess of loan growth drove the increase in these assets.
• The third quarter adjusted average loan yield⁴ of 3.56% was two basis points lower than 3.58% for the second quarter.
• The average cost of funds of 0.14% decreased by four basis points from 0.18%. This reflected growth in noninterest-bearing demand deposits, the payoff of higher-cost FHLB advances that matured during the second quarter, and a continued decline in the cost of interest-bearing deposits.

Noninterest Income

Noninterest income totaled $73.1 million in the third quarter, up $4.7 million, or 7%, from $68.4 million in the second quarter.

• Quarter-over-quarter, deposit account fees grew, due to growth in treasury management services, and gains on sale of SBA loans increased, due to a higher volume of SBA 7A loans sold. This was offset by decreases in lending fees and wealth management fees.
• Interest rate contracts (“IRC”) and other derivative income was $7.2 million in the third quarter, compared to a loss of $3.2 million in the second quarter. The quarter-over-quarter increase was due to a favorable change in credit valuation adjustment, which reflected an increase in long-term benchmark interest rates, as well as higher customer-driven IRC revenue.

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⁴ See reconciliation of GAAP to non-GAAP financial measures in Table 14.

Noninterest Expense

Noninterest expense totaled $205.4 million. Third quarter noninterest expense consisted of $166.7 million of adjusted noninterest expense⁵, $38.0 million in amortization of tax credit and other investments, and $0.7 million in amortization of core deposit intangibles.

• Adjusted noninterest expense of $166.7 million increased by 3% from $161.5 million in the second quarter. The largest quarter-over-quarter change was in other operating expense, which increased to $21.0 million, compared with $17.9 million in the second quarter, due to higher loan-related expenses and charitable contributions.
• Amortization of tax credit and other investments totaled $38.0 million, compared with $27.3 million in the second quarter. The quarter-over-quarter change in the amortization of tax credits and other investments partially reflects the impact of investments that closed in the third quarter. For the fourth quarter, the Company expects the amortization of tax credit and other investments to be approximately $30 million.
• The adjusted efficiency ratio⁵ was 35.6% in the third quarter, compared with 36.3% in the second quarter.

TAX RELATED ITEMS

Third quarter 2021 income tax expense was $48.0 million and the effective tax rate was 17.5%. Year-to-date through the third quarter of 2021, the effective tax rate was 16%. For the full year, the Company expects the effective tax rate to be approximately 17%.

ASSET QUALITY

Quarter-over-quarter, nonperforming assets decreased by 24%, to 0.28% of total assets, and criticized loans were down 2%, to 2.50% of loans held-for-investment (“HFI”). The allowance for loan losses (“ALLL”) totaled $560.4 million, or 1.38% of loans HFI, as of September 30, 2021, compared with $585.7 million, or 1.46% of loans HFI, as of June 30, 2021.

• Quarter-over-quarter, the ALLL decreased by $25.3 million, and the ALLL coverage ratio of loans HFI decreased by eight basis points. The change in the ALLL largely reflects an improved macroeconomic forecast as of September 30, 2021, compared with June 30, 2021. Consequently, the Company recorded a negative $10.0 million provision for credit losses during the third quarter of 2021.
• Third quarter 2021 net charge-offs were $13.5 million, or annualized 0.13% of average loans HFI, essentially unchanged from $13.3 million, or annualized 0.13% of average loans HFI, for the second quarter of 2021.
• Quarter-over-quarter, nonperforming assets decreased by $53.1 million, or 24%, and the nonperforming asset ratio improved by 10 basis points. As of September 30, 2021, nonperforming assets were $172.6 million, or 0.28% of total assets, compared with $225.7 million, or 0.38% of total assets, as of June 30, 2021.
• Quarter-over-quarter, criticized loans decreased by $21.7 million, or 2%, and the criticized loans ratio improved by eight basis points. As of September 30, 2021, criticized loans totaled $1,010 million, or 2.50% of loans HFI, compared with $1,032 million, or 2.58% of loans HFI, as of June 30, 2021.

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⁵ See reconciliation of GAAP to non-GAAP financial measures in Table 12.

CAPITAL STRENGTH

Capital levels for East West are strong. The following table presents the regulatory capital ratios as of September 30, 2021, June 30, 2021, and September 30, 2020.

1. The Company has elected to use the 2020 CECL transition provision in the calculation of its September 30, 2021, June 30, 2021, and September 30, 2020 regulatory capital ratios. The Company’s September 30, 2021 regulatory capital ratios and RWA are preliminary.
2. Under regulatory guidelines, on-balance sheet assets and credit equivalent amounts of derivatives and off-balance sheet items are assigned to one of several broad risk categories based on the nature of the obligor, or, if relevant, the guarantor or the nature of any collateral. The aggregate dollar value in each risk category is then multiplied by the risk weight associated with that category. The resulting weighted values from each of the risk categories are aggregated for determining total RWA.

DIVIDEND PAYOUT AND CAPITAL ACTIONS

East West’s Board of Directors has declared fourth quarter 2021 dividends for the Company’s common stock. The common stock cash dividend of $0.33 per share is payable on November 15, 2021, to stockholders of record on November 1, 2021.

On March 3, 2020, East West’s Board of Directors authorized the repurchase of up to $500 million of East West’s common stock. East West did not repurchase any shares during the third quarter of 2021, and has not repurchased any shares since the first quarter of 2020, under this authorization.

Conference Call

East West will host a conference call to discuss third quarter 2021 earnings with the public on Thursday, October 21, 2021, at 8:30 a.m. PT/11:30 a.m. ET. The public and investment community are invited to listen as management discusses third quarter 2021 results and operating developments.

• The following dial-in information is provided for participation in the conference call: calls within the U.S. – (877) 506-6399; calls within Canada – (855) 669-9657; international calls – (412) 902-6699.
• A presentation to accompany the earnings call will be available on the Investor Relations page of the Company’s website at www.eastwestbank.com/investors.
• A listen-only live broadcast of the call will also be available on the Investor Relations page of the Company’s website at www.eastwestbank.com/investors.
• A replay of the conference call will be available on October 21, 2021, at 11:30 a.m. PT through November 21, 2021. The replay numbers are: within the U.S. – (877) 344-7529; within Canada – (855) 669-9658; international calls – (412) 317-0088; and the replay access code is: 10160606.

About East West

East West Bancorp, Inc. is a public company with total assets of $61.0 billion and is traded on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the symbol “EWBC”. The Company’s wholly owned subsidiary, East West Bank, is one of the largest independent banks headquartered in California, operating over 120 locations in the United States and in China. The Company’s markets in the United States include California, Georgia, Massachusetts, Nevada, New York, Texas and Washington. In China, East West’s presence includes full-service branches in Hong Kong, Shanghai, Shantou and Shenzhen, and representative offices in Beijing, Chongqing, Guangzhou, and Xiamen. For more information on East West, visit the Company’s website at www.eastwestbank.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain matters set forth herein (including any exhibits hereto) contain forward-looking statements that are intended to be covered by the safe harbor for such statements provided by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. In addition, the Company may make forward-looking statements in other documents that it files with, or furnishes to, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) and management may make forward-looking statements to analysts, investors, media members and others. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts, and are based on current expectations, estimates and projections about the Company’s industry, management’s beliefs and certain assumptions made by management, many of which, by their nature, are inherently uncertain and beyond the Company’s control, such as the future impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. These statements relate to the Company’s financial condition, results of operations, plans, objectives, future performance and/or business. They usually can be identified by the use of forward-looking language, such as “likely result in,” “expects,” “anticipates,” “estimates,” “forecasts,” “projects,” “intends to,” “assumes,” “believes,” “plans,” “trend,” “objective,” “continues,” “remains,” “will,” “would,” “should,” “could,” “may,” “might,” “can,” or similar expressions, and the negative thereof. You should not place undue reliance on these statements, as they are subject to risks and uncertainties, including, but not limited to, those described in the documents incorporated by reference. When considering these forward-looking statements, you should keep in mind these risks and uncertainties, as well as any cautionary statements the Company may make. Moreover, you should treat these statements as speaking only as of the date they are made and based only on information then actually known to the Company.

There are a number of important factors that could cause future results to differ materially from historical performance and these forward-looking statements. Factors that might cause such differences, some of which are beyond the Company’s control, include, but are not limited to: changes in the U.S. economy, including an economic slowdown, inflation, deflation, housing prices, employment levels, rate of growth and general business conditions; changes in local, regional and global business, economic and political conditions and geopolitical events; the economic, financial, reputational and other impacts of the ongoing COVID-19 global pandemic and variants thereof and any other pandemic, epidemic or health-related crisis, as well as a deterioration of asset quality and an increase in credit losses due to the COVID-19 global pandemic; changes in laws or the regulatory environment including regulatory reform initiatives and policies of the U.S. Department of Treasury, the Federal Reserve, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the SEC, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and the DFPI; the changes and effects thereof in trade, monetary and fiscal policies and laws, including the ongoing trade dispute between the U.S. and the People’s Republic of China; changes in the commercial and consumer real estate markets; changes in consumer or commercial spending, and savings and borrowing habits, patterns and behaviors; fluctuations in the Company’s stock price; changes in income tax laws and regulations; the Company’s ability to compete effectively against financial institutions in its banking markets and other entities, including as a result of emerging technologies; the soundness of other financial institutions; success and timing of the Company’s business strategies; the Company’s ability to retain key officers and employees; impact on the Company’s funding costs, net interest income and net interest margin from changes in key variable market interest rates, competition, regulatory requirements and the Company’s product mix; changes in the Company’s costs of operation, compliance and expansion; the Company’s ability to adopt and successfully integrate new technologies into its business in a strategic manner; impact of the benchmark interest rate reform in the U.S. including the transition away from USD LIBOR to alternative reference rates; impact of a communications or technology disruption, failure in, or breach of, the Company’s operational or security systems or infrastructure, or those of third parties with whom the Company does business, including as a result of cyber-attacks, and other similar matters which could result in, among other things, confidential and/or proprietary information being disclosed or misused and materially impact the Company’s ability to provide services to its clients; adequacy of the Company’s risk management framework, disclosure controls and procedures and internal control over financial reporting; future credit quality and performance, including the Company’s expectations regarding future credit losses and allowance levels; impact of adverse changes to the Company’s credit ratings from major credit rating agencies; impact of adverse judgments or settlements in litigation; impact on the Company’s operations due to political developments, disease pandemics, wars, civil unrest, terrorism or other hostilities that may disrupt or increase volatility in securities or otherwise affect business and economic conditions; heightened regulatory and governmental oversight and scrutiny of the Company’s business practices, including dealings with consumers; impact of reputational risk from negative publicity, fines and penalties and other negative consequences from regulatory violations, legal actions and the Company’s interactions with business partners, counterparties, service providers and other third parties; impact of regulatory enforcement actions; changes in accounting standards as may be required by the Financial Accounting Standards Board or other regulatory agencies and their impact on critical accounting policies and assumptions; impact of other potential federal tax changes and spending cuts; the Company’s capital requirements and its ability to generate capital internally or raise capital on favorable terms; impact on the Company’s liquidity due to changes in the Company’s ability to pay dividends and repurchase common stock and to receive dividends from its subsidiaries; any future strategic acquisitions or divestitures; changes in the equity and debt securities markets; fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates; impact of increased focus on social, environmental and sustainability matters, which may affect the Company’s operations as well as those of its customers and the economy more broadly; significant turbulence or disruption in the capital or financial markets, which could result in, among other things, a reduction in the availability of funding or increases in funding costs, declines in asset values and/or recognition of allowance for credit losses on securities held in the Company’s AFS debt securities portfolio; and impact of climate change, natural or man-made disasters or calamities, such as wildfires, droughts and earthquakes, all of which are particularly common in California, or other events that may directly or indirectly result in a negative impact on the Company’s financial performance.

For a more detailed discussion of some of the factors that might cause such differences, see the Company’s 2020 Form 10-K under the heading Item 1A. Risk Factors and the information set forth under Item 1A. Risk Factors in the Company’s Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q. The Company does not undertake, and specifically disclaims any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect the occurrence of events or circumstances after the date of such statements except as required by law.