Carter Bankshares, Inc. (CARE): Análisis PESTLE [Actualizado en Ene-2025]

En el panorama dinámico de la banca regional, Carter Bankshares, Inc. (cuidado) se encuentra en la intersección de fuerzas externas complejas que dan forma a su trayectoria estratégica. Este análisis integral de la mano presenta los desafíos y oportunidades multifacéticas que enfrentan esta institución financiera con sede en Virginia, explorando cómo los factores políticos, económicos, sociológicos, tecnológicos, legales y ambientales influyen intrincadamente en su ecosistema operativo. Al diseccionar estas dimensiones críticas, descubriremos los impulsores matizados que impulsan la estrategia comercial y el posicionamiento competitivo de Care en un mercado financiero en constante evolución.

Carter Bankshares, Inc. (cuidado) - Análisis de mortero: factores políticos

Regulaciones bancarias regionales en Virginia y los estados circundantes

Carter Bankshares opera bajo el marco regulatorio de las leyes bancarias de Virginia, con requisitos específicos de cumplimiento:

Aspecto regulatorio	Requisitos específicos
Relación de adecuación de capital	10.5% mínimo a partir de 2024
Restricciones de préstamos a nivel estatal	Límite máximo de préstamo comercial de $ 20.7 millones por prestatario
Informes de cumplimiento	Estados financieros trimestrales requeridos por la Comisión de Corporación Estatal de Virginia

Impactos de la política bancaria federal

Las influencias regulatorias federales en las estrategias operativas de la atención incluyen:

• Cumplimiento de requisitos de capital de Basilea III
• Estándares de rendimiento de la Ley de Reinversión Comunitaria (CRA)
• Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform Informes Mandates

Evaluación de estabilidad política

Métricas de estabilidad política regional del Atlántico medio para el sector bancario:

Indicador de estabilidad política	2024 datos
Índice de riesgo político del estado de Virginia	1.2 (bajo riesgo)
Consistencia regional de política económica	87% Calificación de previsibilidad

Influencias de la política monetaria de la Reserva Federal

Los impactos de la política de la Reserva Federal en las estrategias financieras de la atención:

• Tasa de fondos federales: 5.33% a partir de enero de 2024
• Medidas de ajuste cuantitativas que afectan la liquidez bancaria
• Requisitos de cumplimiento de la prueba de estrés

La política monetaria actual modifica directamente los cuidados:

Componente de estrategia financiera	2024 Ajuste
Tasas de interés de préstamo	Tasa de préstamos comerciales promedio de 8.25%
Asignación de cartera de inversiones	37% de valores gubernamentales
Reservas de gestión de riesgos	$ 42.3 millones asignados

Carter Bankshares, Inc. (cuidado) - Análisis de mortero: factores económicos

Crecimiento económico regional en Virginia

El PIB de Virginia en 2023 fue de $ 624.6 mil millones, con una tasa de crecimiento del 2.1%. La tasa de desempleo del estado fue de 2.9% a diciembre de 2023.

Indicador económico	Valor (2023)
PIB de estado	$ 624.6 mil millones
Tasa de crecimiento del PIB	2.1%
Tasa de desempleo	2.9%

Impacto en la tasa de interés

Tasa de fondos federales a partir de enero de 2024: 5.33%. El margen de interés neto de Carter Bankshares fue de 3.52% en el tercer trimestre de 2023.

Métrica financiera	Valor
Tasa de fondos federales	5.33%
Margen de interés neto	3.52%

Diversificación económica local

Los principales sectores económicos de Virginia:

• Defensa y gobierno federal: 33.2% de la economía estatal
• Servicios profesionales y comerciales: 17.5%
• Atención médica: 12.3%
• Comercio minorista: 8.7%

Recuperación económica de las pequeñas empresas

Estadísticas de pequeñas empresas de Virginia:

• Total de pequeñas empresas: 154,773
• Empleo de pequeñas empresas: 1,4 millones de trabajadores
• La demanda de préstamos para pequeñas empresas aumentó en un 6.2% en 2023

Métrica de pequeñas empresas	Valor
Total de pequeñas empresas	154,773
Empleo de pequeñas empresas	1.4 millones
Crecimiento de la demanda de préstamos para pequeñas empresas	6.2%

Carter Bankshares, Inc. (cuidado) - Análisis de mortero: factores sociales

El envejecimiento de la población en Virginia cambia el servicio bancario y la demanda de productos

Según la Oficina del Censo de EE. UU., La población de más de 65 años de Virginia alcanzó los 1.185.124 en 2022, lo que representa el 13.8% de la población total del estado. Las proyecciones demográficas indican que este segmento crecerá al 20.4% para 2030.

Grupo de edad	Recuento de población	Porcentaje de población total
65-74 años	723,456	8.4%
75-84 años	309,876	3.6%
85+ años	151,792	1.8%

Aumento de las preferencias de banca digital entre la demografía más joven

Pew Research Center informa que el 79% de los estadounidenses de 18 a 49 años usan plataformas de banca móvil en 2023. Las tasas de adopción de banca digital muestran:

Grupo de edad	Adopción de banca móvil
18-29 años	91%
30-49 años	85%
50-64 años	63%

Las tendencias laborales remotas afectan a los bienes inmuebles comerciales y a la banca comercial

La Oficina de Estadísticas Laborales indica el 27.5% de la fuerza laboral de Virginia involucrada en entornos de trabajo híbridos o remotos en 2023, impactando la dinámica bancaria comercial.

Ambiente de trabajo	Porcentaje
Completamente remoto	12.3%
Híbrido	15.2%
In situ	72.5%

Creciente preferencia por servicios bancarios personalizados y centrados en la comunidad

J.D. Power 2023 El estudio de satisfacción de la banca minorista de EE. UU. Revela el 62% de los clientes prefieren experiencias bancarias locales basadas en relaciones.

Métrica de preferencia bancaria	Porcentaje
Preferencia bancaria comunitaria	62%
Importancia del servicio personalizada	73%
Valor de interacción de la rama local	58%

Carter Bankshares, Inc. (cuidado) - Análisis de mortero: factores tecnológicos

Inversiones de plataforma de banca digital

Carter Bankshares invirtió $ 3.2 millones en infraestructura de banca digital en 2023. La plataforma digital del banco vio un aumento del 27% en la adopción del usuario, con 68,500 usuarios de banca en línea activos a partir del cuarto trimestre de 2023.

Métrica de plataforma digital	2023 datos
Inversión digital total	$ 3.2 millones
Usuarios bancarios en línea	68,500
Tasa de adopción de usuarios	27%

Inversiones de ciberseguridad

El banco asignó $ 1.7 millones a medidas de ciberseguridad en 2023, lo que representa el 3.4% de su presupuesto de tecnología total. Se informaron infracciones de seguridad principales cero durante el año fiscal.

Métrica de ciberseguridad	2023 datos
Inversión de ciberseguridad	$ 1.7 millones
Porcentaje de presupuesto tecnológico	3.4%
Incidentes de seguridad	0

AI y tecnologías de aprendizaje automático

Los algoritmos de evaluación de riesgos redujeron las tasas de incumplimiento del préstamo en un 12,3%. El banco implementó modelos de aprendizaje automático que procesaron 45,600 solicitudes de préstamos en 2023, con una tasa de precisión del 94.2%.

Métrica de rendimiento de IA	2023 datos
Solicitudes de préstamo procesadas	45,600
Precisión de decisión de IA	94.2%
Reducción de la tasa de incumplimiento	12.3%

Aplicaciones de banca móvil

La aplicación de banca móvil de Carter Bankshares alcanzó 52,300 usuarios activos en 2023, lo que representa un crecimiento año tras año del 35%. Las transacciones móviles representaron el 42% de las interacciones bancarias totales.

Métrica de banca móvil	2023 datos
Usuarios de aplicaciones móviles	52,300
Tasa de crecimiento de los usuarios	35%
Porcentaje de transacción móvil	42%

Carter Bankshares, Inc. (atención) - Análisis de mortero: factores legales

Cumplimiento de las regulaciones bancarias

Métricas de cumplimiento de la Ley Dodd-Frank:

Aspecto regulatorio	Estado de cumplimiento	Costo de cumplimiento anual
Requisitos de adecuación de capital	Totalmente cumplido	$ 1.2 millones
Protocolos de gestión de riesgos	Implementación del 95%	$875,000
Prueba de estrés	Evaluación de la Reserva Federal aprobada	$650,000

Leyes de protección del consumidor

Regulaciones de práctica de préstamos:

• Presupuesto total de cumplimiento de préstamos al consumidor: $ 2.3 millones
• Tasa de cumplimiento de préstamos hipotecarios: 98.5%
• Hallazgos de la auditoría de préstamos justos: cero violaciones importantes

Regulaciones bancarias estatales de Virginia

Cumplimiento regulatorio específico del estado:

Categoría regulatoria	Porcentaje de cumplimiento	Costo anual de informes regulatorios
Requisitos de la comisión bancaria estatal	100%	$425,000
Protección al consumidor a nivel estatal	99.7%	$350,000

Requisitos de información financiera

Transparencia e informes Métricas:

• Cumplimiento de informes de la SEC: 100%
• Costo de auditoría externa anual: $ 1.1 millones
• Tasa de precisión de divulgación financiera: 99.9%

Carter Bankshares, Inc. (cuidado) - Análisis de mortero: factores ambientales

Aumento del enfoque en prácticas bancarias sostenibles y opciones de financiamiento verde

Asignación de cartera de préstamos verdes:

Año	Portafolio de préstamos verdes ($)	Porcentaje de préstamos totales
2022	37,500,000	2.4%
2023	62,800,000	3.9%

Evaluación de riesgos de cambio climático para carteras de préstamos comerciales y agrícolas

Análisis de exposición al riesgo climático:

Sector	Préstamos de alto riesgo climático ($)	Presupuesto de mitigación de riesgos ($)
Agrícola	22,300,000	1,750,000
Inmobiliario comercial	45,600,000	3,200,000

Inversiones de eficiencia energética en infraestructura bancaria

Desglose de inversión de eficiencia energética:

Área de infraestructura	Inversión 2023 ($)	Ahorro de energía proyectado (%)
Instalaciones de rama	675,000	18.5%
Centros de datos	1,250,000	22.3%
Equipo de TI	450,000	15.7%

Requisitos de cumplimiento ambiental e informes para instituciones financieras

Métricas de informes ambientales:

Categoría de informes	Costo de cumplimiento 2023 ($)	Marco regulatorio
Seguimiento de emisiones de carbono	325,000	Reglas de divulgación climática de la SEC
Informes de finanzas sostenibles	275,000	Pautas de TCFD

Carter Bankshares, Inc. (CARE) - PESTLE Analysis: Social factors

Accelerating shift of younger customers toward fully digital banking platforms.

You are seeing a fundamental shift in how people, especially younger generations, want to bank, and it's a massive challenge for a regional institution like Carter Bankshares, Inc. The data is clear: digital is the default. Across the US, 77% of all banking interactions now happen through digital channels, not in a branch. For your target growth segments, the preference is even stronger-80% of Millennials and 72% of Gen Z actively prefer to bank digitally in 2025. This digital-first mindset means they expect a seamless mobile experience.

The risk here is customer acquisition and retention. Midcap and smaller banks, including Carter Bankshares, Inc., currently only capture about 32% of the Millennial and Gen Z customer base, which is a lower share than larger banks. Plus, over half of Millennials (58%) and Gen Z (57%) are open to switching financial institutions in 2025 for better options. You must keep investing in your platform; the $2 million allocated in 2024 to enhance your digital platform was a necessary start, but it needs to be an ongoing, substantial commitment. The branch is no longer the main product.

Aging demographic base in core service areas requiring personalized, in-branch service.

To be fair, the digital shift is only half the story. Your current customer base is older, which creates a stable deposit base but also a high demand for in-person service. Approximately 42% of customers at midcap and smaller banks are Baby Boomers, a significantly higher share than the national average. This aging demographic holds substantial wealth; seniors (65+) hold over two times the deposit balances of the 55-64 age cohort.

This group still values the branch network. Only 15.3% of the 65+ age group primarily uses mobile banking, while 28.2% prefer online banking and a significant portion still relies on in-person or phone support. Your strategy must be dual-track: high-touch, personalized service for your current, deposit-rich base, and high-tech, seamless digital service for the next generation. What this estimate hides is the coming wealth transfer, where an estimated $80 trillion will move to younger, digital-native heirs over the next two decades.

Increased public focus on bank's local community reinvestment efforts.

As a community bank with 64 branches across Virginia and North Carolina, your social license to operate is tied to your local impact, which is formally measured by the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA). Public scrutiny on this is intense, especially in low- and moderate-income (LMI) neighborhoods. While the official 2025 CRA rating is pending, your recent efforts are a strong indicator of commitment.

Here's the quick math on your 2024 community impact, which sets the social expectation for 2025:

Community Reinvestment Metric	2024 Performance Data	Strategic Implication for 2025
Charitable Giving	$292,000 to 164 local organizations	Maintain or increase giving to support CRA Investment Test.
Volunteer Hours	4,200 hours by associates	Demonstrates strong Service Test performance and employee engagement.
Financial Education	84 financial education classes facilitated	Directly addresses community financial literacy needs in LMI areas.
Community Lending Focus	Range of financing solutions for affordable housing and economic development	Crucial for a favorable CRA Lending Test rating.

This level of local investment is defintely a competitive advantage against larger, less localized institutions, helping you maintain a high customer retention rate, which stood at 92% in a recent period.

Talent wars for skilled technology and compliance staff in competitive regional markets.

The push for digital banking and the complexity of regulation-especially with your recent move to become a state member bank of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond-have intensified the talent war for specialized roles. 39% of banking leaders cite retaining top talent as their primary hiring challenge for 2025. You need highly skilled staff in data analytics, cybersecurity, and compliance, and these roles command a premium.

The compensation gap for compliance staff between your core states is significant, which complicates recruitment:

• Average annual pay for a Bank Compliance Officer in Virginia is $40,152 (October 2025).
• Average annual pay for a Banking Compliance Officer in North Carolina is $89,925 (November 2025).

The wide salary range in North Carolina, with the 75th percentile reaching $104,500, shows that specialized, experienced compliance talent is scarce and expensive. You are competing not just with other regional banks but with major financial hubs for this talent. While the projected salary increase for banks' 2025 Merit Labor Budget is around 3.8%, you will need to exceed this for key tech and compliance roles to prevent turnover. You must recruit for skill, not just location.

Carter Bankshares, Inc. (CARE) - PESTLE Analysis: Technological factors

You're a regional bank like Carter Bankshares, Inc. (CARE), and the biggest strategic headwind you face isn't just interest rates-it's the exponential cost of technology required to keep up with the megabanks and fintechs. Your technology strategy is no longer about efficiency; it's a matter of survival, especially as your asset base reached $4.8 billion as of June 30, 2025.

The core challenge for CARE is balancing its community-bank model with the need for digital parity. This means significant, non-negotiable investments in core system modernization, AI-driven risk management, and a superior mobile experience. You can't afford to be a laggard here.

High capital expenditure required for core system upgrades and cloud migration.

The antiquated core banking systems (the mainframes that process transactions, deposits, and loans) are a massive liability. For a bank of CARE's size, moving away from these legacy systems is a multi-year, multi-million-dollar project, but it's defintely essential to enable modern features like real-time payments and embedded finance (integrating banking services into non-bank platforms). Almost all bankers surveyed in 2025 are planning to modernize their core systems.

The industry is moving to the cloud. Over the next two to five years, 82% of financial institutions plan to migrate more than half of their core systems to the cloud, a clear signal of where the capital is flowing. This shift is what will lower the long-term cost-per-transaction, but the near-term capital expenditure (CapEx) is substantial. This is a critical investment to boost the efficiency ratio, which for CARE was 78.63% in Q2 2025.

AI adoption starting to automate compliance checks and fraud detection.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is moving from a pilot program to a core operational tool, especially in the bank's non-interest expense line items. By 2025, an estimated 90% of financial institutions globally are deploying AI for fraud detection in some capacity. This isn't optional; it's a necessity to combat increasingly sophisticated financial crime.

AI's primary value proposition for a regional bank like Carter Bankshares is twofold: reducing fraud losses and automating compliance (RegTech). For firms that have adopted AI tools, about 40% reported cutting their fraud losses by 40-60%. Furthermore, the number of financial institutions expected to be using AI/Machine Learning (ML) for Anti-Money Laundering (AML) compliance is projected to reach 90% by 2025. This automation is vital for managing the increasing regulatory burden without ballooning the compliance team headcount.

AI/ML Adoption Metric (2025)	Industry-Wide Value/Percentage	Implication for Carter Bankshares, Inc.
Global FI AI Adoption for Fraud Detection	90%	Mandatory investment to meet competitive and security parity.
Fraud Loss Reduction via AI Tools	40%-60% (for 40% of firms)	Direct path to improving net income by cutting operational losses.
Projected AML Compliance AI/ML Use	90%	Critical for automating regulatory checks and lowering false-positive alerts.

Cybersecurity spending rising to counter sophisticated phishing and ransomware attacks.

Cybersecurity is the single biggest area of budget increase for most banks. In 2025, 88% of bank executives plan to increase their IT spend by at least 10%, with 86% citing cybersecurity as their top area of budget increase. This is a direct response to the escalating threat landscape.

The financial cost of failure is staggering: the average cost of a data breach in the financial industry rose to $6.08 million in 2024. For a regional bank, a breach of this magnitude would be catastrophic. Carter Bankshares, Inc. already saw its 'Data processing expenses' increase in Q1 2025 due to 'general inflationary cost increases for existing and new service agreements,' which is the real-world evidence of this rising spending pressure.

Need to enhance mobile app features to retain digitally-native customers.

Digital channels are the primary interface for a growing segment of customers. While Carter Bankshares, Inc. is a community bank, its customers expect the same level of mobile functionality as they get from national banks. The company is aware of this, having allocated $2 million in 2024 to enhance its digital banking platform, a commitment that must continue to grow in 2025 and beyond.

The focus must be on feature parity and user experience. This means moving beyond basic check deposits and balance checks to offer seamless, integrated services.

• Integrate Zelle® for instant peer-to-peer (P2P) payments.
• Offer biometric sign-in capabilities for security and speed.
• Provide robust debit card management controls within the app.

If the mobile app experience is clunky or lacks key features, digitally-native customers will churn to competitors. It's a simple equation: better app, better retention.

Carter Bankshares, Inc. (CARE) - PESTLE Analysis: Legal factors

Basel III Endgame Proposals and Capital Requirements

The proposed Basel III endgame rules, which aim to increase the capital and liquidity requirements for larger financial institutions, do not directly apply to Carter Bankshares, Inc. right now. The most stringent requirements are primarily targeted at banks with total assets over $100 billion. As of September 30, 2025, Carter Bankshares' total assets stood at approximately $4.8 billion, which keeps it well below the federal threshold for the most demanding Tier 1 capital and liquidity mandates. It's a huge regulatory advantage for a regional bank.

Still, the industry-wide shift in regulatory philosophy creates a risk. One key component of the Basel III endgame is the removal of the Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (AOCI) opt-out for banks over the threshold, forcing them to immediately recognize unrealized gains and losses on Available-for-Sale (AFS) securities in their regulatory capital. While the full rule doesn't hit Carter Bankshares, Inc., the underlying market risk is real, as seen in the bank's own portfolio.

Here is a quick look at the relevant AFS risk data as of Q3 2025:

Metric	Amount (as of 9/30/2025)	Context
Total Assets	$4.8 billion	Well below the $100 billion Basel III threshold.
AFS Securities Portfolio	$727.9 million	Represents 15.0% of total assets.
Gross Unrealized Losses on AFS Securities	$59.1 million	A significant unrealized loss exposure, though not currently impacting regulatory capital ratios like the Tier 1 Capital Ratio of 10.66%.

Stricter Enforcement of Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) and Anti-Money Laundering (AML) Controls

Regulatory scrutiny on compliance with the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) and Anti-Money Laundering (AML) controls is defintely intensifying across the entire banking sector in 2025, not just for the largest banks. Regulators like the OCC are demanding better transaction monitoring, system integration, and adequate staffing, especially for regional and community banks.

For Carter Bankshares, Inc., the cost of this heightened compliance environment is visible in their operating expenses. Year-to-date (YTD) 2025, the company reported a notable increase in professional and legal fees of +17.8%. This jump reflects the need to invest more heavily in external counsel, compliance technology, and internal training to meet stricter regulatory expectations. Failure to keep pace can lead to costly enforcement actions, including fines, consent orders, and even restrictions on growth, which is a major concern for any bank focused on expansion.

New State-Level Data Privacy and Consumer Consent Laws

The patchwork of state-level data privacy laws is a growing operational and legal challenge. Carter Bankshares, Inc. operates primarily in Virginia and North Carolina, meaning it must navigate the specific rules in both states.

The Virginia Consumer Data Protection Act (CDPA) is already in effect, granting Virginia residents the right to access, correct, and delete their personal data. More immediately, North Carolina has introduced comprehensive privacy legislation in 2025, which is highly relevant to the bank's operations.

• The proposed North Carolina law applies to entities that process the personal data of at least 35,000 consumers (excluding payment data).
• It requires explicit consumer consent to process sensitive data.
• The bill grants the North Carolina Attorney General exclusive enforcement authority, though it allows for a 60-day cure period before an enforcement action is initiated.

Compliance requires significant investment in data mapping, privacy notices, and consent management systems. You can't just ignore the new state laws; they directly impact how the bank uses customer data for marketing and service delivery.

Pending Litigation Risk Related to Commercial Real Estate (CRE) Valuations

The most acute legal risk for Carter Bankshares, Inc. in 2025 is tied directly to its Commercial Real Estate (CRE) loan portfolio, particularly its largest nonperforming credit relationship. The company has explicitly cited 'legal risk' as a factor in its valuation models for these troubled assets.

The bank's largest Nonperforming Loan (NPL) relationship had a balance of $228.6 million as of September 30, 2025. This single relationship represents a massive 88.4% of the bank's total NPLs and 6.0% of its total portfolio loans. The bank is actively working to resolve this, but the process is inherently legalistic and subject to litigation risk.

Plus, a new CRE loan of $14.6 million, secured by an office building, moved to nonaccrual status in the third quarter of 2025 because its government agency tenants are vacating. This highlights the immediate, ongoing threat of litigation and valuation disputes tied to the distressed office CRE market. The bank is closely reviewing this and other similar CRE loans for changes in valuation and market impacts, a clear signal that they anticipate legal challenges in the workout process.

Carter Bankshares, Inc. (CARE) - PESTLE Analysis: Environmental factors

Growing pressure from investors and regulators for climate-related financial risk disclosures.

You might think the regulatory heat on climate risk is intense, but for a regional bank like Carter Bankshares, Inc., the near-term pressure is actually complex and somewhat defintely muted at the federal level in 2025. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has paused its landmark climate disclosure rule due to legal challenges and a shift in political focus, meaning the immediate, mandated requirement to report Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions is on hold.

Still, the risk is real, and the bank acknowledges it. Carter Bankshares' filings, including its 2025 reports, explicitly state that weather-related disasters pose a potential adverse effect on borrower obligations and the value of collateral. While federal banking regulators rescinded their climate-related financial risk guidance for large institutions in October 2025, the foundational expectation remains: you must manage all material risks. This means institutional investors and proxy advisors are still pushing for voluntary disclosure aligned with frameworks like the Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures (TCFD), even without a federal mandate.

Increased demand for green lending products for commercial and residential clients.

The market demand for environmentally-focused financing-things like loans for solar panel installation, energy-efficient commercial building retrofits, or green mortgages-is growing, but Carter Bankshares has not publicly disclosed a dedicated suite of green lending products as of mid-2025. The bank's core loan portfolio, which totaled $3.7 billion at March 31, 2025, saw growth primarily in Commercial Real Estate (CRE) loans (up $46.0 million in Q1 2025) and residential mortgages (up $23.8 million). This shows a strong focus on traditional lending where climate risk is primarily viewed through the lens of physical collateral risk, not transition opportunity.

The opportunity here is clear: a regional bank serving Virginia and North Carolina could capture a significant, underserved market by offering specific products for resilience and energy efficiency. Failing to innovate in this area means leaving money on the table, especially as commercial clients look to reduce operating costs and secure their assets against increasingly volatile weather. It's a strategic gap in the current product mix.

Operational focus on reducing branch energy consumption and paper use.

Carter Bankshares' operational focus in 2025 has been heavily centered on core financial efficiency and optimization, not on publicly reported environmental metrics. The bank is actively managing its efficiency ratio, which stood at 75.7% in the first quarter of 2025. This efficiency drive is where environmental and financial goals intersect.

While the bank has 64 branches across Virginia and North Carolina as of May 2025, there are no public metrics detailing reductions in branch energy consumption, paper use, or waste volume. The shift to digital banking and branch network optimization (including a recent branch purchase that added two North Carolina branches) naturally reduces the physical footprint and, thus, the associated energy and paper consumption. However, without specific targets or disclosures, investors cannot quantify the environmental or long-term cost-saving benefits from these operational improvements.

Physical risk from extreme weather events impacting collateral value in coastal regions.

The most immediate and quantifiable environmental risk for Carter Bankshares lies in the physical risk to its collateral base in its primary operating markets. The bank's loan portfolio is concentrated in Virginia and North Carolina, both of which face heightened hurricane and storm surge risks.

Here's the quick math on coastal risk in their footprint, which directly affects the value of the residential and CRE collateral securing their $3.7 billion loan portfolio:

State	Percentage of Homes at Risk of Storm Surge Flooding (2025)	Impact on Collateral Liquidity (Time on Market Increase)
Virginia	13%	Homes in Virginia Beach, VA, stayed on the market 32% longer in 2025 than in early 2024.
North Carolina	7%	Homes in Wilmington, N.C., lingered 19% longer in 2025 than in early 2024.

This risk isn't just about property damage; it's a liquidity and credit risk. When properties in coastal areas like Virginia Beach or Wilmington take significantly longer to sell, it signals that buyers are pricing in higher insurance costs and future storm risk. This 'climate discount' directly erodes the value of the commercial and residential real estate collateral that backs a substantial portion of the bank's loans, increasing the loss-given-default (LGD) on those assets.