The Wave: From the President's Desk

Most businesses set aside the third quarter of the year to review how they have performed and begin the process of planning and budgeting for the upcoming year. And while the undertaking is similar year-to-year, planning for 2022 will be particularly difficult because of the pandemic. At TASI Bank, we are in the midst of planning process and thought it might be helpful to our customers to understand how we are thinking.

The past 18 months have been challenging for almost every business, large or small, local, regional, national, or international. From the date (March 11, 2020) that the World Health Organization (WHO) declared a COVID-19 pandemic through the entire year and into 2021, organizations of all sizes faced challenges that most had never envisioned nor could have reasonably planned for.

At TASI Bank, we are gratified that our business is strong and that we have been able to support our customers remarkably well. One measure of the success of the financing programs that we provide is that we have no delinquent loans in our portfolio. While the overall economy was improving, we continued to see roller coaster ride in many sectors in 2020. As 2021 dawned, the national rollout of vaccination programs coupled with other government financial assistance programs, produced a first half of the year that was incredibly productive as the Bay Area and the rest of California began the reopening process.

For the first two quarters of the year, Gross Domestic Product (GDP), grew at the fastest pace since 1984. The elevated growth rates are largely attributable to two components: continued federal pandemic stimulus and pent-up consumer demand.

Multiple federal programs pumped more than $6 trillion dollars into the economy that continues work its way through the system providing liquidity to the economy. At TASI Bank we have additional deposits waiting to be deployed. We also can report that we completed 161 loans for a total of $23,671,880.69 in PPP loans to customers in support of their financial needs.

Consumers after being cooped up for over a year are ready to spend. Businesses are being aided by balances sheets that are significantly stronger compared to those in previous economic downturns. The caveat is that neither federal stimulus nor personal shopping sprees can go on indefinitely. The bottom line is that and our current level of growth is likely not sustainable.

The good news is that The Conference Board forecasts economic growth will be returning to normal. That kind of stability, 3% to 4% growth over the next couple of years, would indicate a healthy stable environment void of the whipsaw economy we’ve experienced since that fateful March 11, 2020 announcement.

We are optimistic. We are available to talk with you about your concerns. Don’t hesitate to ask about how our PLP status or MDI designation can make funding available to you that might not otherwise be available.