Jim Dobbs

The Small Business Administration has been covering six months of principal, interest and fees for loans that existed on Sept. 27. There are concerns the moves are masking weaknesses in lenders' 7(a) portfolios.

Low rates and intense competition might lead some banks to ease underwriting standards in 2021, when the economy may not yet have recovered.

Atlantic Community Bankers Bank must improve its anti-money- laundering and Bank Secrecy Act policies and procedures.

The pending sale of Umpqua Investments should free up funds for the company to invest in other businesses.

The moves are intended to offset a protracted period of historically low interest rates and expectations of higher credit costs in 2021.

The company, which expressed concerns about the validity of some of the loans it bought, renegotiated a lower price and protections from the seller involved in the deal.

Commercial real estate loans are vulnerable as financial assistance for tenants winds down and might not be fully renewed. Late rent payments could rise, leading lenders to press landlords to pay up.

The company also found a buyer for its portfolio of equipment finance loans as it tries to clean up credit and refocus on middle-market lending.

Deal activity, already on pace for its slowest year in more than two decades, will likely remain suppressed until bankers get a handle on credit exposure and more clarity on valuations.

More consumer and commercial borrowers are paying their loans, increasing the likelihood that charge-offs will be manageable for banks despite the ongoing pandemic.