FinWise Bancorp (NASDAQ:FINW) Q4 2022 Earnings Call Transcript

Andrew Terrell: Hey, maybe if I could start with Kent, I think you gave a lot of good color in some of the opening remarks just around, kind of, how you’re thinking about the business model into future years. I was hoping just to maybe get a little more color there. I don’t know the best way to phrase the question from a timing standpoint, but if we look over the next kind of one, three, five years, I know we talked about you mentioned the three components of that including payments, you mentioned the leasing business, they are obviously incremental kind of partners that you would like to bring onboard? I’m sure, can you just talk about over the next kind of few years how we should be thinking about the growth and the development of your franchise?

Kent Landvatter: Yes, sure. First off, let me say that even though the economy has been challenging, of course, this last year. We feel confident that the business model will continue to play out as we’ve expected. So we’re very confident that continuation of execution the way we have in the past will be in the future for us. So when I say investing in the company, this is in line with the evolution of our business model that we’ve been describing since we went public. We haven’t and this is an important point. We haven’t pivoted at all because of the macro environment that we’re in. It’s just the next phase in our evolution. And so when I think about that, when we think about that, we’re talking about building an infrastructure that not only further pulls us into the banking-as-a-service ecosystem, but also positions ourselves to springboard when the market returns.

And so the one thing I would just add to this is that I’ve — in my experience, I’ve been through many cycles. And I’ve seen that the banks that are well positioned prior to a down cycle and build within the cycle usually come out very strong when the economy turns and that’s what we’re looking for. And so specific to your question of what comes out and when, we don’t have that type of guidance, but I can tell you that we are looking very closely this year at deposits and payments and expanding the lending aspect of our banking-as-a- service and we’ll keep you posted as we make progress there, but it is a major focus once again in natural evolution of the bank.

Andrew Terrell: Understood. That’s very helpful. I appreciate it. As we think about kind of specifically in the payments arena. Would you be interested in acquisitions or in order to kind of develop the payments type offering? Or are we talking more just kind of incremental partnerships with the bank?

Kent Landvatter: So we would actually think of not only incremental partnerships at the bank that allow us to — and also with existing partners to provide stickier relationships from our services within that. We also definitely would explore something beyond that as well. But right now it’s focused on what I’ve just said.

Andrew Terrell: Understood, okay. Can you maybe just speak briefly about appetite for capital return, I saw you were active on the buyback in the fourth quarter. I’m presuming just given where capital levels are at today and the valuation that, that would remain the case moving forward, but I would love to hear just updated capital kind of return thoughts?

Kent Landvatter: Yes. So Let me start at and Javvis if you want to add anything, please feel so. But we feel that when you’re buying yourself, investing in ourselves basically as especially at the low tangible book value. That was a real good move for the bank and for the shareholders. I think that we will consider that strongly going forward. This is a decision made by the Board, but we’ve been very active and we — the one thing as I’ve mentioned before is we just want to make certain that we have enough capital should some opportunity arise and that we don’t find ourselves short on something like that.