Western Alliance Bancorporation - 10-K annual report 2017

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

FORM 10-K

ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d)

(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act: None

INDEX

PART I

Forward-Looking Statements

WAL is a bank holding company headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona, incorporated under the laws of the state of Delaware. WAL provides a full spectrum of deposit, lending, treasury management, international banking, and online banking products and services through its wholly-owned banking subsidiary, WAB.

WAB operates the following full-service banking divisions: ABA, BON, Bridge, FIB, and TPB. The Company also serves business customers through a national platform of specialized financial services including AAB, Corporate Finance, Equity Fund Resources, HFF, Life Sciences Group, Mortgage Warehouse Lending, Public and Nonprofit Finance, Renewable Resource Group, Resort Finance, and Technology Finance. In addition, the Company has two non-bank subsidiaries, LVSP, which holds and manages certain non-performing loans and OREO and a captive insurance company formed and licensed under the laws of the State of Arizona, CS Insurance Company. CS Insurance Company was established as part of the Company's overall enterprise risk management strategy.

Bank Subsidiary

WAB also has the following significant wholly-owned subsidiaries:

Market Segments

The Company’s reportable segments are aggregated primarily based on geographic location, services offered, and markets served. The Company's regional segments, which include Arizona, Nevada, Southern California, and Northern California, provide full service banking and related services to their respective markets. The Company's NBL segments provide specialized banking services to niche markets. These NBLs are managed centrally and are broader in geographic scope, though still predominately within the Company's core market areas. The Corporate & Other segment primarily relates to the Company's Treasury division and also includes other corporate-related items, income and expense items not allocated to other reportable segments, and inter-segment eliminations.

Net interest income, provision for credit losses, and non-interest expense amounts are recorded in their respective segments to the extent that the amounts are directly attributable to those segments. Net interest income of a reportable segment includes a funds transfer pricing process that matches assets and liabilities with similar interest rate sensitivity and maturity characteristics. Using this funds transfer pricing methodology, liquidity is transferred between users and providers. Net income amounts for each reportable segment are further derived by the use of expense allocations. Certain expenses not directly attributable to a specific segment are allocated across all segments based on key metrics, such as number of employees, average loan balances, and average deposit balances. Income taxes are applied to each segment based on the effective tax rate for the geographic location of the segment. Any difference in the corporate tax rate and the aggregate effective tax rates in the segments are adjusted in the Corporate & Other segment.

General

Through WAB and its banking divisions and operating subsidiaries, the Company provides a variety of financial services to customers, including CRE loans, construction and land development loans, commercial loans, and consumer loans. The Company’s lending has focused primarily on meeting the needs of business customers.

The Company adheres to a specific set of credit standards within its banking subsidiary that are intended to ensure the proper management of credit risk. Furthermore, the Bank's senior management team plays an active role in monitoring compliance with such standards.

Loan originations are subject to a process that includes the credit evaluation of borrowers, utilizing established lending limits, analysis of collateral, and procedures for continual monitoring and identification of credit deterioration. Loan officers actively monitor their individual credit relationships in order to report suspected risks and potential downgrades as early as possible. The WAB BOD approves all material changes to loan policy, as well as lending limit authorities. The Bank's lending policies generally incorporate consistent underwriting standards across all geographic regions in which the Bank operates, customized as necessary to conform to state law and local market conditions. The Bank's credit culture has enabled management to identify troubled credits early, allowing management to take corrective action when necessary.

Loan Approval Procedures and Authority

The Company's loan approval procedures are executed through a tiered loan limit authorization process, which is structured as follows:

bank generally may not exceed 20% of the bank’s capital, plus an additional 10% of its capital if the additional amounts are fully secured by readily marketable collateral.

General

To measure asset quality, the Company has instituted a loan grading system consisting of nine different categories. The first five are considered “satisfactory.” The other four grades range from a “special mention” category to a “loss” category and are consistent with the grading systems used by federal banking regulators. All loans are assigned a credit risk grade at the time they are made, and each assigned loan officer reviews the credit with his or her immediate supervisor on a quarterly basis to determine whether a change in the credit risk grade is warranted. In addition, the grading of the Company's loan portfolio is reviewed on a regular basis by its internal Loan Review Department.

Collection Procedure

If a borrower fails to make a scheduled payment on a loan, Bank personnel attempt to remedy the deficiency by contacting the borrower and seeking payment. Contacts generally are made within 15 business days after the payment becomes past due. The Bank maintains regional Special Assets Departments, which generally services and collects loans rated substandard or worse. Each division is responsible for monitoring activity that may indicate an increased risk rating, including, but not limited to, past-dues, overdrafts and loan agreement covenant defaults. Loans deemed uncollectible are proposed for charge-off.

Nonperforming Assets

Criticized Assets

Federal bank regulators require banks to classify its assets on a regular basis. In addition, in connection with their examinations of the Bank, examiners have authority to identify problem assets and, if appropriate, re-classify them. A loan grade of six from the Company's internal loan grading system is utilized to identify potential problem assets and loans grades seven through nine are utilized to identify actual problem assets.

The following describes the potential and actual problem assets using the Company's internal loan grading system definitions:

Loans in this category are usually performing as agreed, although there may be non-compliance with financial covenants.

The Company must maintain an adequate allowance for credit losses. The allowance for credit losses is established through a provision for credit losses and is reflected as a reduction in earnings. Loans are charged against the allowance for credit losses when management believes that collectability of the contractual principal or interest is unlikely. Subsequent recoveries, if any, are credited to the allowance. The allowance is reported at an amount believed adequate to absorb probable losses on existing loans that may become uncollectable, based on evaluation of the collectability of loans and prior credit loss experience, together with other factors. For a detailed discussion of the Company’s methodology see “Management’s Discussion and Analysis and Financial Condition – Critical Accounting Policies – Allowance for Credit Losses” in Item 7 of this Form 10-K.

WAB and WAL have an investment policy, which was approved by their respective BODs. This policy dictates that investment decisions be made based on the safety of the investment, liquidity requirements of the Bank and holding company, potential returns, cash flow targets, and consistency with the Company's interest rate risk management. The Bank’s ALCO is responsible for making securities portfolio decisions in accordance with established policies. The CFO and Treasurer have the authority to purchase and sell securities within specified guidelines. All investment transactions for the Bank and for the holding company were reviewed by the ALCO and BOD.

Generally, the Company's investment policy limits new securities investments to the following: securities backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government, including U.S. treasury bills, notes, and bonds, direct obligations of Ginnie Mae, USDA and SBA loans; MBS or CMO issued by a GSE, such as Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac; debt securities issued by a GSE, such as Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and the FHLB; tax-exempt securities with a rating of “Single-A” or higher; preferred stock where the issuing company is rated “BBB” or higher; corporate debt with a rating of “Single-A” or better; investment grade corporate bond mutual funds; private label collateralized mortgage obligations with a single rating of “AA” or higher; commercial mortgage-backed securities with a rating of “AAA;” low income housing development bonds; and mandatory purchases of equity securities of the FRB and FHLB. Preferred stock holdings are limited to no more than 10% of the Bank’s Common Equity Tier 1; tax-exempt securities are limited to no more than 5% of the Bank's assets; investment grade corporate bond mutual funds are limited to no more than 5% of the Bank's Tier 1 capital; corporate debt holdings are limited to no more than 2.5% of the Bank’s assets; and commercial mortgage-backed securities are limited to an aggregate purchase limit of $50 million.

The Company no longer purchases (although it may continue to hold previously acquired) CDOs. The Company's policies also govern the use of derivatives, and provide that the Company prudently use derivatives in accordance with applicable regulations as a risk management tool to reduce the overall exposure to interest rate risk, and not for speculative purposes.

The competition for deposits in the Company's markets is strong. The Company has historically been successful in attracting and retaining deposits due to several factors, including its: 1) knowledgeable and empowered bankers committed to providing personalized and responsive service that translates into long-lasting relationships; 2) broad selection of cash management services offered; and 3) incentives to employees for business development and retention. The Company intends to continue its focus on attracting deposits from its business lending relationships in order to maintain its low cost of funds and improve its net interest margin. The loss of low-cost deposits could negatively impact future profitability.

Deposit balances are generally influenced by national and local economic conditions, changes in prevailing interest rates, internal pricing decisions, perceived stability of financial institutions and competition. The Company’s deposits are primarily obtained from communities surrounding its offices or from established relationships. In order to attract and retain deposits, the Company relies on providing quality service and introducing new products and services that meet the needs of its customers.

The following table shows the Company's deposit composition: 

Although the Company does not pay interest to depositors of non-interest bearing accounts, earnings credits are awarded to some account holders, which offset charges incurred by account holders for other services.

In addition to the Company's deposit base, it has access to other sources of funding, including FHLB and FRB advances, repurchase agreements, and unsecured lines of credit with other financial institutions. Previously, the Company has also accessed the capital markets through trust preferred, subordinated debt, and Senior Note offerings. For additional information concerning the Company's deposits, see “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations – Balance Sheet Analysis – Deposits” in Item 7 of this Form 10-K.

In addition to traditional commercial banking activities, the Company offers other financial services to its customers, including: internet banking, wire transfers, electronic bill payment and presentment, lock box services, courier, and cash management services.

The Company's lending activities, including those within its NBLs, are driven in large part by the customers served in the market areas where the Company has offices in the states of Arizona, Nevada and California. The following table presents a breakout of the in-footprint and out of footprint distribution of loans:

The Company is not dependent upon any single or limited number of customers, the loss of which would have a material adverse effect on the Company. Neither the Company nor any of its reportable segments have customer relationships that individually account for 10% or more of consolidated or segment revenues. No material portion of the Company’s business is seasonal.

The Company does not have significant foreign operations. The Company provides loans, letters of credit, foreign exchange, and other trade-related services to commercial enterprises that conduct business outside the U.S.

The financial services industry is highly competitive. Many of the Company's competitors are much larger in total assets and capitalization, have greater access to capital markets, and offer a broader range of financial services than the Company can offer, and may have lower cost structures.

This increasingly competitive environment is primarily a result of long-term changes in regulation that made mergers and geographic expansion easier; changes in technology and product delivery systems and web-based tools; and the accelerating pace of consolidation among financial services providers. The Company competes for loans, deposits, and customers with other banks, credit unions, brokerage companies, mortgage companies, insurance companies, finance companies, and other non-bank financial services providers. This strong competition for deposit and loan products directly affects the interest rates on those products and the terms on which they are offered to consumers.

Technological innovation continues to contribute to greater competition in domestic and international financial services markets.

Mergers between financial institutions have placed additional pressure on banks to consolidate their operations, reduce expenses, and increase revenues to remain competitive. The competitive environment is also significantly impacted by federal and state legislation that makes it easier for non-bank financial institutions to compete with the Company.

The Company and its subsidiaries are extensively regulated and supervised under both federal and state laws. A summary description of the laws and regulations which relate to the Company’s operations are discussed in Item 7 of this Form 10-K.

In addition, copies of the Company’s annual report will be made available, free of charge, upon written request. 

Investing in the Company’s common stock involves various risks, many of which are specific to the Company’s business. The discussion below addresses the material risks and uncertainties, of which the Company is currently aware, that could have a material adverse effect on the Company’s business, results of operations, and financial condition. Other risks that the Company does not know about now, or that the Company does not currently believe are significant, could negatively impact the Company’s business or the trading price of the Company’s securities. See additional discussions about credit, interest rate, market, and litigation risks in "Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations."

The Company’s financial performance is highly dependent upon the business environment in the markets where the Company operates and in the U.S. as a whole. Unfavorable or uncertain economic and market conditions can be caused by declines in economic growth, business activity, or investor or business confidence, limitations on the availability or increases in the cost of credit and capital, increases in inflation or interest rates, natural disasters, terrorist attacks, acts of war, or a combination of these or other factors. A worsening of business and economic conditions generally or specifically in the principal markets in which the Company conducts business could have adverse effects, including the following:

In the U.S. financial services industry, the commercial soundness of financial institutions is closely interrelated as a result of credit, trading, clearing or other relationships between the institutions. As a result, concerns about, or a default or threatened default by, one institution could lead to significant market-wide liquidity and credit problems, losses or defaults by other institutions. This is sometimes referred to as “systemic risk” and may adversely affect financial intermediaries, such as clearing agencies, clearing houses, banks, securities firms, and exchanges, with which the Company interacts on a daily basis, and therefore could adversely affect the Company.

It is possible that the business environment in the U.S. will experience volatility in the future. There can be no assurance that these conditions will improve in the near term or that conditions will not worsen. Such conditions could adversely affect the Company’s business, results of operations, and financial condition.

The Company is located in areas in which economic growth is largely dependent on the real estate market, and a majority of the Company’s loan portfolio is secured by or otherwise dependent on real estate. The market for real estate is cyclical and the outlook for this sector is uncertain. A decline in real estate activity would likely cause a decline in asset and deposit growth and negatively impact the Company’s earnings and financial condition.

The Company’s loan portfolio consists primarily of CRE and commercial and industrial loans, which contain concentrations in specialty business lines, such as mortgage warehouse, corporate finance, municipal and nonprofit loans, as well as loans in other business sectors such as technology and innovation. These loan concentrations present unique risks and involve specialized underwriting and management as these loans typically involve large loan balances to single borrowers or groups of

related borrowers. Consequently, an adverse development with respect to one commercial loan or one credit relationship may adversely affect the Company. In addition, based on the nature of lending to these specialty markets, repayment of loans may be dependent upon borrowers receiving additional equity financing, or in some cases, a successful sale to a third party, public offering, or other form of liquidity event. Although each specialty business has dedicated teams in place with specialized skills, tools, and resources available to monitor and evaluate risk specific to the industry, unforeseen adverse events, changes in regulatory policy, or a general decline in the borrower's industry may have a material adverse effect on the Company’s financial condition and results of operations.

Credit losses are inherent in the business of making loans. Management makes various assumptions and judgments about the collectability of the Company’s consolidated loan portfolio and maintains an allowance for estimated credit losses based on a number of factors, including the size of the portfolio, asset classifications, economic trends, industry experience and trends, industry and geographic concentrations, estimated collateral values, management’s assessment of the credit risk inherent in the portfolio, historical loan loss experience, and loan underwriting policies. In addition, the Company evaluates all loans identified as problem loans and augments the allowance based upon its estimation of the potential loss associated with those problem loans. Additions to the allowance for credit losses recorded through the Company’s provision for credit losses decreases the Company’s net income. If such assumptions and judgments are incorrect, the Company’s actual credit losses may exceed the Company’s allowance for credit losses.

Any increases in the provision or allowance for credit losses will result in a decrease in the Company’s net income and, potentially, capital, and may have a material adverse effect on the Company’s financial condition and results of operations. If actual credit losses materially exceed the Company’s allowance for credit losses, the Company may be required to raise additional capital, which may not be available to the Company on acceptable terms or at all. The Company’s inability to raise additional capital on acceptable terms when needed could materially and adversely affect the Company’s financial condition, results of operations, and capital.

The Company is subject to federal and applicable state income tax laws and regulations. Income tax laws and regulations are often complex and require significant judgment in determining the Company’s effective tax rate and in evaluating its tax positions. The Company’s determination of its tax liability is subject to review by applicable tax authorities. Any audits or challenges of such determinations may adversely affect the Company’s effective tax rate, tax payments or financial condition.

Recently enacted U.S. tax legislation made significant changes to federal tax law, including the taxation of corporations, by, among other things, reducing the corporate income tax rate, disallowing certain deductions that had previously been allowed, and altering the expensing of capital expenditures. The implementation and evaluation of these changes may require significant judgment and substantial planning on behalf of the Company. These judgments and plans may require the Company to take new and different tax positions that if challenged could adversely affect the Company’s effective tax rate, tax payments or financial condition.

In addition, the new tax legislation remains subject to potential amendments, technical corrections, and further regulatory guidance and interpretation, any of which could lessen or increase certain adverse impacts on the Company. Furthermore, as the new tax legislation goes into effect, future changes may occur at the federal or state level that could result in unfavorable adjustments to the Company’s tax liability.

The Company’s business is primarily concentrated in selected markets in Arizona, California, and Nevada. As a result of this geographic concentration, the Company’s financial condition and results of operations depend largely upon economic conditions in these market areas. Deterioration in economic conditions in these markets could result in one or more of the following: an increase in loan delinquencies and charge-offs; an increase in problem assets and foreclosures; a decrease in the demand for the Company’s products and services; or a decrease in the value of collateral for loans, especially real estate.

The Company holds certain financial instruments measured at fair value. For those financial instruments measured at fair value, the Company is required to recognize the changes in the fair value of such instruments in earnings or AOCI each quarter. Therefore, any increases or decreases in the fair value of these financial instruments have a corresponding impact on reported earnings or AOCI. Fair value can be affected by a variety of factors, many of which are beyond the Company’s control, including the Company’s credit position, interest rate volatility, capital markets volatility, and other economic factors. Accordingly, the Company is subject to mark-to-market risk and the application of fair value accounting may cause the Company’s earnings and AOCI to be more volatile than would be suggested by the Company’s underlying performance.

The Company’s profitability depends in part on successfully attracting and retaining a stable base of relatively low-cost deposits. The competition for these deposits in the Company's markets is strong and customers may demand higher interest rates on their deposits or seek other investments offering higher rates of return. The Company is a participant in the Promontory Interfinancial Network, and offers its reciprocal deposit products, such as CDARS and ICS, to customers seeking federal insurance for deposit amounts that exceed the applicable deposit insurance limit at a single institution. The Company also from time to time offers other credit enhancements to depositors, such as FHLB letters of credit and, for certain deposits of public monies, pledges of collateral in the form of readily marketable securities. Any event or circumstance that interferes with or limits the Company's ability to offer these products to customers that require greater security for their deposits, such as a significant regulatory enforcement action or a significant decline in capital levels at the Company's bank subsidiary, could negatively impact the Company's ability to attract and retain deposits. If the Company were to lose a significant portion of its low-cost deposits, the Company would be required to borrow from other sources at higher rates and the Company's liquidity and profitability would be adversely impacted.

As a financial institution, the Company is inherently exposed to operational risk in the form of theft and other fraudulent activity by employees, customers, and other third parties targeting the Company and/or the Company’s customers or data. Such activity may take many forms, including check fraud, electronic fraud, wire fraud, phishing, social engineering and other dishonest acts.

Although the Company devotes substantial resources to maintaining effective policies and internal controls to identify and prevent such incidents, given the increasing sophistication of possible perpetrators, the Company may experience financial losses or reputational harm as a result of fraud.

The Company’s operations rely on the secure processing, storage, and transmission of confidential and other information. Although the Company takes numerous protective measures to maintain the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of the Company’s and its customers’ information across all geographies and product lines, and endeavors to modify these protective measures as circumstances warrant, the nature of the threats continues to evolve. As a result, the Company’s computer systems, software, and networks and those of the Company’s customers and third party vendors may be vulnerable to unauthorized access, loss, or destruction of data (including confidential client information), account takeovers, unavailability of service, computer viruses, or other malicious code, cyber-attacks, and other events that could have an adverse security impact and result in significant losses to the Company and/or its customers. These threats may originate externally from third parties, including foreign governments, organized criminal groups, and other hackers, and outsourced or infrastructure-support providers and application developers, or the threats may originate from within the Company’s organization.

The Company also faces the risk of operational disruption, failure, termination, or capacity constraints of any of the third parties that facilitate the Company’s business activities, including vendors, exchanges, clearing agents, clearing houses, or other financial intermediaries. Such parties could also be the source or cause of an attack on, or breach of, the Company’s operational systems, data or infrastructure. In addition, the Company may be at risk of an operational failure with respect to its customers’ systems. The Company’s risk and exposure to these matters remains heightened because of, among other things, the evolving nature of these threats, the outsourcing of many of the Company’s business operations, and the continued uncertain global economic environment. As cyber threats continue to evolve, the Company may be required to expend significant additional resources to continue to modify or enhance its protective measures or to investigate and remediate any information security vulnerabilities.

The Company maintains insurance policies that it believes provide reasonable coverage at a manageable expense for an institution of the Company’s size and scope with similar technological systems. However, the Company cannot assure that these policies will afford coverage for all possible losses or would be sufficient to cover all financial losses, damages, penalties, including lost revenues, should the Company experience any one or more of its or a third party’s systems failing or experiencing an attack.

The Company relies on third parties to provide key components for its business operations, such as data processing and storage, recording and monitoring transactions, online banking interfaces and services, internet connections, and network access. While the Company selects these third-party vendors carefully, it does not control their actions. Any problems caused by these third parties, including those resulting from breakdowns or other disruptions in communication services provided by a vendor, failure of a vendor to handle current or higher volumes, cyber-attacks and security breaches at a vendor, failure of a vendor to provide services for any reason, or poor performance by a vendor, could adversely affect the Company’s ability to deliver

products and services to its customers and otherwise conduct its business. Financial or operational difficulties of a third-party vendor could also hurt the Company’s operations if those difficulties interfere with the vendor's ability to serve the Company. Replacing these third party vendors also could create significant delays and expense. Any of these things could adversely affect the Company’s business and financial performance.

Market participants regularly evaluate the Company’s creditworthiness and the creditworthiness of the Company’s long-term debt based on a number of factors, some of which are not entirely within the Company’s control, including the Company’s financial strength and the financial services industry generally. There can be no assurance that the Company's perceived creditworthiness will remain the same. Changes could adversely affect the cost and other terms upon which the Company is able to obtain funding and its access to the capital markets, and could increase the Company’s cost of capital. Likewise, any loss of or decline in the credit rating assigned to WAB could impair its ability to attract deposits or to obtain other funding sources, or increase its cost of funding.

The Company’s future success will depend on the ability of officers and other key employees to continue to implement and improve operational, credit, financial, management and other internal risk controls and processes, and improve reporting systems and procedures, while at the same time maintaining and growing existing businesses and client relationships. The Company may not successfully implement such changes or improvements in an efficient or timely manner, or it may discover deficiencies in its existing systems and controls that adversely affect the Company’s ability to grow its existing businesses and client relationships and could require the Company to incur additional expenditures to expand its administrative and operational infrastructure. If the Company is unable to maintain and implement improvements to its controls, processes, and reporting systems and procedures, the Company may lose customers, experience compliance and operational problems or incur additional expenditures beyond current projections, any one of which could adversely affect the Company’s financial results.

The Company continually evaluates expansion through acquisitions of banks and other financial businesses. Like previous acquisitions by the Company, any future acquisitions will be accompanied by risks commonly encountered in such transactions, including, among other things:

The Company expects that competition for suitable acquisition candidates may be significant. The Company may compete with other banks or financial service companies with similar acquisition strategies, many of which are larger and have greater financial and other resources. The Company cannot assure that it will be able to successfully identify and acquire suitable

acquisition targets on acceptable terms and conditions, or that it will be able to obtain the regulatory approvals needed to complete any such transactions.

The Company cannot provide any assurance that it will be successful in overcoming these risks or any other problems encountered in connection with acquisitions. Potential regulatory enforcement actions could also adversely affect the Company's ability to engage in certain acquisition activities. The Company’s inability to overcome the risks inherent in the successful completion and integration of acquisitions could have an adverse effect on the achievement of the Company's business strategy.

From time to time, the Company may implement new lines of business or offer new products and services within existing lines of business. There are substantial risks and uncertainties associated with these efforts, particularly in instances where the markets are not fully developed. In developing and marketing new lines of business and/or new products and services, the Company may invest significant time and resources. Initial timetables for the introduction and development of new lines of business and/or new products or services may not be achieved and price and profitability targets may not prove attainable. External factors, such as compliance with regulations, competitive alternatives, and shifting market preferences, may also impact the successful implementation of a new line of business or a new product or service. Furthermore, any new line of business and/or new product or service could have a significant impact on the effectiveness of the Company’s system of internal controls. Failure to successfully manage these risks in the development and implementation of new lines of business or new products or services could have a material adverse effect on the Company’s business, results of operations, and financial condition.

The Company faces substantial competition in all phases of its operations from a variety of different competitors. The Company’s competitors, including large commercial banks, community banks, thrift institutions, mutual savings banks, credit unions, finance companies, insurance companies, securities dealers, brokers, mortgage bankers, investment advisors, money market mutual funds, and other financial institutions, compete with lending and deposit-gathering services offered by the Company. Increased competition in the Company’s markets may result in reduced loans and deposits or less favorable pricing.

There is competition for financial services in the markets in which the Company conduct its businesses, including from many local commercial banks, as well as numerous national and regionally based commercial banks. In particular, the Company has experienced intense price and terms competition in some of the lending lines of business in recent years. Many of these competing institutions have much greater financial and marketing resources than the Company has. Due to their size, larger competitors can achieve economies of scale and may offer a broader range of products and services or more attractive pricing than the Company. In addition, some of the financial services organizations with which the Company competes are not subject to the same degree of regulation as is imposed on bank holding companies and federally insured depository institutions. As a result, these non-bank competitors have certain advantages over the Company in accessing funding and in providing various services.

The banking business in the Company’s primary market areas is very competitive, and the level of competition facing the Company may increase further, which may limit its asset growth and financial results. In particular, the Company's predominate source of revenue is net interest income from its loan portfolio. Therefore, if the Company is unable to compete effectively, including sustaining loan and deposit growth at its historical levels, its business and results of operations may be adversely affected.

The Company’s business plan includes and is dependent upon hiring and retaining highly qualified and motivated executives and employees at every level. In particular, the Company’s relative success to date has been partly the result of its management’s ability to identify and retain highly qualified employees in both administrative support roles, as well as those with expertise in certain specialty areas, or that have long-standing relationships in their communities. These professionals bring with them valuable knowledge, specialized skills and expertise, and customer relationships and have been an integral part of the Company’s ability to attract deposits and to expand its market share.

Additionally, as part of the Company's strategy, the Company depends on divisional and business line leadership and management teams in each of its significant geographic locations. In addition to their skills and experience as bankers, these persons provide the Company with extensive ties within markets upon which the Company’s competitive strategy is based.

The Company’s ability to retain these highly qualified and motivated persons may be hindered by the fact that it has not entered into employment agreements with most of them. The Company incentivizes employee retention through its equity incentive plans; however, the Company cannot guarantee the effectiveness of its equity incentive plans in retaining these key employees and executives. Were the Company to lose key employees, it may not be able to replace them with equally qualified persons who bring the same knowledge of and ties to the communities and markets within which the Company operates. If the Company is unable to hire or retain qualified employees, it may not be able to successfully execute its business strategy or may incur additional costs to achieve its objectives.

The Company believes that its senior management team, including, but not limited to, Robert Sarver, Chairman and CEO, have contributed greatly to its performance. Mr. Sarver is currently in the process of transitioning to a new role as Executive Chairman, and the current President, Kenneth Vecchione, will become the CEO on April 1, 2018. In addition, the Company from time to time experiences retirements and other changes to its senior management team, including the recent appointment of James Haught as President of the Company effective April 1, 2018. The Company's future performance depends on a smooth transition of its senior management, including finding and training highly qualified replacements who are properly equipped to lead the Company. The Company has adopted retention strategies, including equity awards, from which its senior management team benefits in order to achieve its goals, and employment agreements with each of Messrs. Vecchione and Haught. However, the Company cannot assure its succession planning and retention strategies will be effective. The loss of senior management, particularly during this transition period, could have an adverse effect on the Company’s business.

The Company's risk management framework seeks to mitigate risk and appropriately balance risk and return. The Company has established policies and procedures intended to identify, monitor, and manage the types of risk to which it is subject, including, but not limited to, credit risk, market risk, liquidity risk, operational risk, compliance risk, and reputational risk. A BOD level risk committee approves and reviews the Company's risk management policies and oversees operation of the Company's risk management framework. Although the Company has devoted significant resources to developing its risk management policies and procedures and expects to continue to do so in the future, these policies and procedures, as well as the Company's risk management techniques, may not be fully effective. In addition, as regulations and the markets in which the Company operates continue to evolve, the Company's risk management framework may not always keep sufficient pace with those changes. If the Company's risk management framework does not effectively identify or mitigate its risks, the Company could suffer unexpected losses and could be materially adversely affected. Management of the Company's risks in some cases depends upon the use of analytical and/or forecasting models. If the models the Company uses to mitigate these risks are inadequate, or are subject to ineffective governance policies, the Company may incur increased losses. In addition, there may be risks that exist, or that develop in the future, that the Company has not appropriately anticipated, identified, or mitigated.

The Company's management regularly reviews and updates its internal control over financial reporting, disclosure controls and procedures, and corporate governance policies and procedures. Any system of controls and procedures, however well designed and operated, is based in part on certain assumptions and can provide only reasonable, not absolute, assurances that the objectives of the system are met.  Any failure or circumvention of the Company's controls and procedures or failure to comply with regulations related to controls and procedures could result in materially inaccurate reported financial statements and/or have a material adverse effect on the Company's business, results of operations, and financial condition. Similarly, the Company's management makes certain estimates and judgments in preparing the Company's financial statements.  The quality and accuracy of those estimates and judgments will impact the Company's operating results and financial condition.

The financial services industry is continually undergoing rapid technological change with frequent introductions of new technology-driven products and services. The effective use of technology can increase efficiency and enable financial institutions to better serve customers and to reduce costs. However, some new technologies needed to compete effectively result in incremental operating costs. The Company’s future success depends, in part, upon its ability to address the needs of its customers by using technology to provide products and services that will satisfy customer demands, as well as to create additional efficiencies in operations. Many of the Company’s competitors, because of their larger size and available capital, have substantially greater resources to invest in technological improvements. The Company may not be able to effectively implement new technology-driven products and services or be successful in marketing these products and services to its customers. Failure to successfully keep pace with technological change affecting the financial services industry could have a material adverse impact on the Company’s business and, in turn, its financial condition and results of operations.

Many of the real and personal properties securing the Company's loans are located in California. California recently experienced significant wildfires and mudslides causing significant damage throughout the state. While these wildfires and mudslides did not significantly damage the Company's own properties, it is possible that its borrowers may experience losses as a result of these natural disasters, which may materially impair their ability to meet the terms of their obligations. California is also prone to other natural disasters, including, but not limited to drought, earthquakes, and flooding. Moreover, due to changes in the international political climate, it has been made known that were a foreign nation, such as North Korea, to attack the United States, it would likely target the state of California. Additional significant natural or manmade disasters in the state of California or in the Company's other markets could lead to damage or injury to the Company's own properties and/or employees, and could increase the risk that many of its borrowers may experience losses or sustained job interruption, which may materially impair their ability to meet the terms of their loan obligations. Therefore, additional natural disasters, manmade disaster or catastrophic event, or a combination of these or other factors, in any of the Company's markets could have a material adverse effect on the Company's business, financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows.

The Company is subject to extensive regulation, supervision, and legislation that govern almost all aspects of its operations. Intended to protect customers, depositors, and the DIF, these laws and regulations, among other matters, prescribe minimum capital requirements, impose limitations on the business activities in which the Company can engage, require monitoring and reporting of suspicious activity, limit the dividends or distributions that WAB can pay to the Company or that the Company can pay to its stockholders, restrict the ability of affiliates to guarantee the Company’s debt, impose certain specific accounting requirements on the Company that may be more restrictive and may result in greater or earlier charges to earnings or reductions in the Company’s capital than GAAP, among other things. Compliance with laws and regulations can be difficult and costly, and changes to laws and regulations often impose significant additional compliance costs. To the extent the Company continues to grow larger and become more complex, regulatory oversight and risk and the cost of compliance will likely increase, which may adversely affect the Company. See “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations - Supervision and Regulation” included in this Form 10-K for a more detailed summary of the regulations and supervision to which the Company are subject.

Changes to the legal and regulatory framework governing the Company’s operations, including the passage and continued implementation of the Dodd-Frank Act, have drastically revised the laws and regulations under which the Company operates. In general, bank regulators have increased their focus on risk management and regulatory compliance, and the Company expects this focus to continue. Additional compliance requirements may be costly to implement, may require additional compliance personnel, and may limit the Company’s ability to offer competitive products to its customers.

The Company is also subject to changes in federal and state law, as well as regulations and governmental policies, income tax laws, and accounting principles. Regulations affecting banks and other financial institutions are undergoing continuous review and frequently change, and the ultimate effect of such changes cannot be predicted. Regulations and laws may be modified at any time, and new legislation may be enacted that will affect the Company, WAB, and the Company’s other subsidiaries. Any changes in any federal and state law, as well as regulations and governmental policies, income tax laws, and accounting principles, could affect the Company in substantial and unpredictable ways, including ways that may adversely affect the Company’s business, financial condition, or results of operations. Failure to appropriately comply with any such laws, regulations or principles or an alleged failure to comply, even if the Company acted in good faith or the alleged failure reflects a difference in interpretation, could result in sanctions by regulatory agencies, civil money penalties or damage to the Company’s reputation, all of which could adversely affect the Company’s business, financial condition, or results of operations.

State and federal banking agencies periodically conduct examinations of the Company’s business, including for compliance with laws and regulations. If, as a result of an examination, an agency were to determine that the financial condition, capital resources, asset quality, earnings prospects, management, liquidity, or other aspects of any of the Company’s operations had become unsatisfactory, or that any of the Company’s banks or their management was in violation of any law or regulation, federal banking agencies may take a number of different remedial or enforcement actions it deems appropriate to remedy such a deficiency. These actions include the power to enjoin “unsafe or unsound” practices, to require affirmative actions to correct any conditions resulting from any violation or practice, to issue an administrative order that can be judicially enforced, to direct an increase in the bank’s capital, to restrict the bank’s growth, to assess civil monetary penalties against the bank’s officers or directors, to remove officers and directors and, if the FDIC concludes that such conditions cannot be corrected or there is an imminent risk of loss to depositors, to terminate the bank’s deposit insurance. Under Arizona law, the state banking supervisory authority has many of the same enforcement powers with respect to its state-chartered banks. Finally, the CFPB has the authority to examine the Company and has authority to take enforcement actions, including the issuance of cease-and-desist orders or civil monetary penalties against the Company if it finds that the Company offers consumer financial products and services in violation of federal consumer financial protection laws or in an unfair, deceptive, or abusive manner.

If the Company were unable to comply with regulatory directives in the future, or if the Company were unable to comply with the terms of any future supervisory requirements to which the Company may become subject, then it could become subject to a variety of supervisory actions and orders, including cease and desist orders, prompt corrective actions, MOUs, and/or other regulatory enforcement actions. If the Company’s regulators were to take such supervisory actions, then the Company could, among other things, become subject to restrictions on its ability to make acquisition and develop any new business, as well as restrictions on its existing business, and the Company could be required to raise additional capital, dispose of certain assets and liabilities within a prescribed period of time, or both. Failure to implement the measures in the time frames provided, or at all, could result in additional orders or penalties from federal and state regulators, which could result in one or more of the remedial actions described above. In the event WAB was ultimately unable to comply with the terms of a regulatory enforcement action, it could ultimately fail and be placed into receivership by the chartering agency. The terms of any such supervisory action and the consequences associated with any failure to comply therewith could have a material negative effect on the Company’s business, operating flexibility, and financial condition.

Most of the Company’s assets and liabilities are monetary in nature, which subjects the Company to significant risks from changes in interest rates and can impact the Company’s net income and the valuation of its assets and liabilities. Increases or decreases in prevailing interest rates could have an adverse effect on the Company’s business, asset quality, and prospects. The Company’s operating income and net income depend to a great extent on its net interest margin. Net interest margin is the difference between the interest yields the Company receives on loans, securities, and other earning assets and the interest rates the Company pays on interest bearing deposits, borrowings, and other liabilities. These rates are highly sensitive to many factors beyond the Company’s control, including competition, general economic conditions, and monetary and fiscal policies of various governmental and regulatory authorities, including the FRB. If the rate of interest the Company pays on its interest

bearing deposits, borrowings, and other liabilities increases more than the rate of interest the Company receives on loans, securities, and other earning assets increases, the Company’s net interest income, and therefore its earnings, would be adversely affected. The Company’s earnings also could be adversely affected if the rates on the Company’s loans and other investments fall more quickly than those on its deposits and other liabilities. The Company has recently experienced increased competition for loans on the basis of interest rates.

In addition, loan volumes are affected by market interest rates on loans. Rising interest rates generally are associated with a lower volume of loan originations, while lower interest rates are usually associated with higher loan originations. Conversely, in rising interest rate environments, loan repayment rates will decline and in falling interest rate environments, loan repayment rates will increase. The Company cannot guarantee that it will be able to minimize interest rate risk. In addition, an increase in the general level of interest rates may adversely affect the ability of certain borrowers to pay the interest on and principal of their obligations.

Interest rates also affect how much money the Company can lend. When interest rates rise, the cost of borrowing increases. Accordingly, changes in market interest rates could materially and adversely affect the Company’s net interest spread, asset quality, loan origination volume, business, financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows.

The price of the Company’s common stock on New York Stock Exchange constantly changes, and has increased substantially since the U.S. Presidential Election in November 2016. The Company expects that the market price of its common stock will continue to fluctuate and there can be no assurances about the market price for its common stock.

The Company’s stock price may fluctuate as a result of a variety of factors, many of which are beyond the Company’s control. These factors include:

The Company is not restricted from issuing additional common stock, including any securities that are convertible into or exchangeable for, or that represent the right to receive, common stock. The Company also grants a significant number of shares of common stock to employees and directors under the Company’s Incentive Plan each year. The issuance of any additional shares of the Company’s common stock or preferred stock or securities convertible into, exchangeable for or that represent the right to receive common stock, or the exercise of such securities could be substantially dilutive to stockholders of the Company’s common stock. Holders of the Company’s common stock have no preemptive rights that entitle such holders to purchase their pro rata share of any offering of shares of any class or series. Because the Company’s decision to issue securities in any future offering will depend on market conditions, its acquisition activity, and other factors, the Company cannot predict or estimate the amount, timing, or nature of its future offerings. Thus, the Company’s stockholders bear the risk of the Company’s future offerings reducing the market price of the Company’s common stock and diluting their stock holdings in the Company.

The Company’s BOD is authorized to issue one or more classes or series of preferred stock from time to time without any action on the part of the stockholders. The Company’s BOD also has the power, without stockholder approval, to set the terms of any such classes or series of preferred stock that may be issued, including voting rights, dividend rights, and preferences over the Company’s common stock with respect to dividends or upon the Company’s dissolution, winding-up, and liquidation and other terms. If the Company issues preferred stock in the future that has a preference over its common stock, with respect to the payment of dividends or upon the Company’s liquidation, dissolution, or winding up, or if the Company issues preferred stock with voting rights that dilute the voting power of its common stock, the rights of holders of its common stock, the market price of its common stock could be adversely affected.

Provisions of Delaware law and provisions of the Company’s Certificate of Incorporation, as amended, and its Amended and Restated Bylaws could make it more difficult for a third party to acquire control of the Company or have the effect of discouraging a third party from attempting to acquire control of the Company. Additionally, the Company’s Certificate of Incorporation, as amended, authorizes the Company’s BOD to issue additional series of preferred stock and such preferred stock could be issued as a defensive measure in response to a takeover proposal. These provisions could make it more difficult for a third party to acquire the Company even if an acquisition might be in the best interest of the Company’s stockholders.

None.

There are no material pending legal proceedings to which the Company is a party or to which any of its properties are subject. There are no material proceedings known to the Company to be contemplated by any governmental authority. See the “Supervision and Regulation” section of "Item 7. Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" of this Form 10-K for additional information. From time to time, the Company is involved in a variety of litigation matters in the ordinary course of its business and anticipates that it will become involved in new litigation matters in the future.

Not applicable.

Market Information

Holders

Dividends

WAL is a legal entity separate and distinct from its subsidiaries. As a holding company with limited significant assets other than the capital stock of its subsidiaries, WAL's ability to pay dividends depends primarily upon the receipt of dividends or other capital distributions from its subsidiaries. The Company's subsidiaries ability to pay dividends to WAL is subject to, among other things, their individual earnings, financial condition, and need for funds, as well as federal and state governmental policies and regulations applicable to WAL and each of those subsidiaries, which limit the amount that may be paid as dividends without prior approval. See the additional discussion in the “Supervision and Regulation” section of this report for information regarding restrictions on the ability to pay cash dividends. In addition, the terms and conditions of other securities the Company issues may restrict its ability to pay dividends to holders of the Company's common stock. For example, if any required payments on outstanding trust preferred securities are not made, WAL would be prohibited from paying cash dividends on its common stock. WAL has never paid a cash dividend on its common stock and currently has no plans to pay dividends in the future.

Share Repurchases

The following table provides information about the Company's purchases of equity securities that are registered by the Company pursuant to Section 12 of the Exchange Act for the periods indicated.

Performance Graph

The following graph summarizes a five year comparison of the cumulative total returns for the Company’s common stock, the Standard & Poor’s 500 stock index and the KBW Regional Banking Total Return Index, each of which assumes an initial value of $100.00 on December 31, 2012 and reinvestment of dividends.

The following discussion and analysis is designed to provide insight on the financial condition and results of operations of Western Alliance Bancorporation and its subsidiaries and should be read in conjunction with “Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data.” This discussion and analysis contains forward-looking statements that involve risk, uncertainties, and assumptions. Certain risks, uncertainties, and other factors, including, but not limited to, those set forth under “Forward-Looking Statements” at the beginning of Part I of this Form 10-K and those discussed in Part I, Item 1A of this Form 10-K under the heading "Risk Factors," may cause actual results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements.

WAL is a bank holding company headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona, incorporated under the laws of the state of Delaware. WAL provides a full spectrum of deposit, lending, treasury management, international banking, and online banking products and services through its wholly-owned banking subsidiary, WAB.

WAB operates the following full-service banking divisions: ABA, BON and FIB, Bridge, and TPB. The Company also serves business customers through a national platform of specialized financial services including AAB, Corporate Finance, Equity Fund Resources, HFF, Life Sciences Group, Mortgage Warehouse Lending, Public and Nonprofit Finance, Renewable Resource Group, Resort Finance, and Technology Finance.

As a bank holding company, management focuses on key ratios in evaluating the Company's financial condition and results of operations.

Results of Operations and Financial Condition

A summary of the Company's results of operations, financial condition, and selected metrics are included in the following tables: 

Asset Quality

For all banks and bank holding companies, asset quality plays a significant role in the overall financial condition of the institution and results of operations. The Company measures asset quality in terms of non-accrual loans as a percentage of gross loans and net charge-offs as a percentage of average loans. Net charge-offs are calculated as the difference between charged-off loans and recovery payments received on previously charged-off loans. The following table summarizes the Company's key asset quality metrics: 

Asset and Liability Growth