# Community bank

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> Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Community_bank
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For other uses, see [Community Bank (disambiguation)](/source/Community_Bank_(disambiguation)).

Not to be confused with [Community banking models](/source/Community_banking_models).

A **community bank** is a [depository institution](/source/Depository_institution) that is typically locally owned and operated.[1][2][3][4] Community banks tend to focus on the needs of the businesses and families where the bank holds [branches](/source/Branch_(banking)) and offices. [Lending](/source/Loan) decisions are made by people who understand the local needs of families, businesses, and farmers.[2] Employees often reside within the communities they serve.[1]

In the [United States](/source/United_States), community banks are not clearly defined.[5] Most U.S. agencies[6] base this term on aggregate [assets](/source/Assets) size with varying definitions such as less than $1 billion ([Office of the Comptroller of the Currency](/source/Office_of_the_Comptroller_of_the_Currency)) up to less than $10 billion (Federal Reserve Board and Government Accountability Office).[7] Beyond size (as measured by assets), the [Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation](/source/Federal_Deposit_Insurance_Corporation) (FDIC) imposes a number of additional requirements on institutions classified as community banks.[8] From 1985 to 2004 community banks comprised roughly 94% of all commercial banks in the United States, but the proportion of total national deposits held by community banks declined from about 25.89% of all U.S. deposits in 1985 to 13.55% of the U.S. deposits in 2003.[7][9][10] The decline in community banking prevalence in the United States has drawn the attention of [economists](/source/Economists) and policymakers, some of whom have argued that community banks play an important role in [macroeconomic](/source/Macroeconomic) stability.[11][12][13]

## See also

- [United States Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation](/source/United_States_Federal_Deposit_Insurance_Corporation)
- [Credit unions in the United States](/source/Credit_unions_in_the_United_States)
- [Mutual savings bank](/source/Mutual_savings_bank)
- [Regional bank](/source/Regional_bank)
- [Community development financial institution](/source/Community_development_financial_institution)

## References

1. ["Putting the Community into Community Banking | Shore United Bank"](https://www.shoreunitedbank.com/shore-articles/putting-the-community-into-community-banking#:~:text=Community%20banks%20are%20depository%20institutions%20that%20are,jobs**%20*%20**Develop%20meaningful%20relationships%20with%20customers**). *www.shoreunitedbank.com*. Retrieved 2026-04-20.

1. ["FDIC Community Banking Study - Chapter 1"](https://www.fdic.gov/resources/community-banking/report/2012/2012-cbi-study-1.pdf). *Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation*. December 2012.

1. ["The Fed - Supervisory Policy and Guidance Topics - Community Banking"](https://www.federalreserve.gov/supervisionreg/topics/community_banking.htm#:~:text=Community%20banks%20are%20banks%20owned%20by%20organizations,are%20supervised%20by%20the%20Federal%20Reserve%20System.). *www.federalreserve.gov*. Retrieved 2026-04-20.

1. ["Community Bank: Understanding Its Legal Definition | US Legal Forms"](https://legal-resources.uslegalforms.com/c/community-bank). *legal-resources.uslegalforms.com*. Retrieved 2026-04-20.

1. Petropoulou, Athina; Pappas, Vasileios; Ongena, Steven; Gounopoulos, Dimitrios; Fairchild, Richard (2025-03-01). ["The performance of FDIC-identified community banks"](https://pdf.sciencedirectassets.com/273210/1-s2.0-S1572308925X00024/1-s2.0-S1572308925000233/main.pdf?X-Amz-Security-Token=IQoJb3JpZ2luX2VjEE0aCXVzLWVhc3QtMSJHMEUCIDP8gAxg74aIb%2BQLFbeGObzI86eoSeYtDI%2FAJIjAaU8UAiEA%2FDN2KPfQWHr8CMACUngTyVpf%2FOESUTs%2FLF0xQHIqJ1cqsgUIFhAFGgwwNTkwMDM1NDY4NjUiDBazqLp%2FpU3iWI18nSqPBSNkrSYLmOAKh671JtrWnttvR7At6PpElVile17WuUbttVAcV6WSvW5p9F9NkWjlh4rkYVRZs%2FuM8DQjn5HeoBMO5q5Z2%2FzBcY4U30ag5msOh2%2F7ECocp9f%2FhV82zVubLh%2Bk3dyT57ie%2Fa5Ux1i0mwZ7ZVQycS95fMEkse0eHtmeADVkGUM3VMAd%2F8Xddq%2BWRrMSjhX%2BD5Dc2y5aGwgr6snCyZt1mNTjPqnpCd35kuCKlLjBmPHpvCm6U09kXl2%2F%2Bjqz2EPGe9p9os9TQDI0U7H%2FhTNDZI%2B4KcturUT%2BoJUXiI6KEze0vSIAg6WiRCZ0wERgLlgFji%2F4rC%2F68nPAJhmv9CaKgs0s8gbhKEiAdl1qLXMJv9XR9MOcIJEE1imfAiSGThXAkqJZC%2FnppY212heU3tITZ61qOHxJEMTVptSId3PYDij0zkVKYyRCqNy%2BJCNawjQCPAl5%2BpY42fz%2BLdjRdQ6LngR99GAN3I2y53E3aJRn%2Fxcy%2BS0KY8EWOu3kq1t%2BcksDEILYSkIX0q6v2sXuToiV33ohoE4e9k1mTilm9ZviCz5Qk17Q%2Fz0wxujxWkySptc%2BtZ7vciONG2ffhoa6fXO5n4NQaxim%2B7f0WAIipptUGal%2BQ%2BEXPb3k08wSTb0i9EZC4bAnhKQU6paAO%2FzKyVd0B%2BkLumH%2FHcPauvnHgwb0I9Y2nQdBeWltLldQqLOdL6L0DIB4YO8vsWQ0AgVMTuoEvbP0CxIp6zabhQ%2BuNoOARWU0s0pkCDcSEYh4YDbMK60xXdx4DzQVsHplgAgriJbH80G8SPOMSquWJD8BvcI1ONbjIJ6SFI6RLC%2BKG79J7fZlvF7ROZIVnV27F11T0j7AH%2B9pF3y%2Fn2qd4VkwwOCWzwY6sQE1yMnMLr6tE%2BK1Z07DVA2R%2BKN8hhyCysO7J5pISpANWsHRLx%2FC8LuHIBh257t2lQcxIwiIiuj3alUgR69KCn%2BHtF9MXDHthSm44yYhayVuushD4lPpoE2MUaiJMuuCh258QdEcz%2FAGYzi22IdeyK3Z5MQaTNLjs288aXR7edAn0jX7CHiuVMAcCMinuNo99QoRFhlv%2FgrBrKKK4iIS4tF62bdD4MXT1fnrEPlx2oPNf3c%3D&X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Date=20260420T055517Z&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&X-Amz-Expires=300&X-Amz-Credential=ASIAQ3PHCVTY2YQMDAYD%2F20260420%2Fus-east-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Signature=2b01ce3fa439be3e86de4a85c0a824cdecf19c7d4de3b9c41469025c8a0a37d7&hash=b6d31055a8c8e7ee48c8369ca82c58258e37a0f480a1057e80157b6fca71c535&host=68042c943591013ac2b2430a89b270f6af2c76d8dfd086a07176afe7c76c2c61&pii=S1572308925000233&tid=spdf-747fbb90-3551-4b3d-8e3c-6dc224a286f3&sid=d79fb2748b20954f8f6973b-14c41441e94cgxrqa&type=client&tsoh=d3d3LnNjaWVuY2VkaXJlY3QuY29t&rh=d3d3LnNjaWVuY2VkaXJlY3QuY29t&ua=0f15590707510152515a5e&rr=9ef1e6349d4fdd92&cc=us). *Journal of Financial Stability*. **77**. [doi:10.1016/j.jfs.2025.101394](https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jfs.2025.101394). [ISSN 1572-3089](https://www.worldcat.org/issn/1572-3089)

1. ["Speech by Governor Tarullo on a tiered approach to regulation and supervision of community banks"](https://www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/speech/tarullo20141107a.htm). *Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System*. Retrieved 2026-04-20.

1. ["Trends in Community Banking"](http://www.fdic.gov/bank/analytical/fyi/2004/051804fyi.html). *FYI: An Update on Emerging Issues in Banking*. Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). 18 May 2004. Retrieved 3 November 2011.

1. ["Appendix A: Study Definitions"](https://www.fdic.gov/resources/community-banking/report/2020/2020-cbi-study-app-a.pdf). *FDIC Community Banking Study 2020*. Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. 16 Dec 2020. Retrieved 6 June 2021.

1. Tim Critchfield; Tyler Davis; Lee Davison; Heather Gratton; George Hanc; Katherine Samolyk. (January 2005). ["The Future of Banking in America Community Banks: Their Recent Past, Current Performance, and Future Prospects"](http://www.fdic.gov/bank/analytical/banking/2005jan/article1.pdf). *FDIC Banking Review (Volume 16, NO. 3)*. Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). Retrieved April 30, 2012.

1. Jones, Kenneth D. & Critchfield, Tim (January 2006). ["Consolidation in the U.S. Banking Industry: Is the "Long, Strange Trip" About to End?"](http://www.fdic.gov/bank/analytical/banking/2006jan/article2/index.html#2). *FDIC Banking Review (Vol. 17 No. 4)*. FDIC. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20120716021225/http://fdic.gov/bank/analytical/banking/2006jan/article2/index.html#2) July 16, 2012 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved April 30, 2012.

1. Luke Petach; Tessa Conroy; Stephan Weiler (May 2021). ["It's a wonderful loan: local financial composition, community banks, and economic resilience."](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0378426621000352). *Journal of Banking and Finance*. **126**. Elsevier. [doi:10.1016/j.jbankfin.2021.106077](https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbankfin.2021.106077). [S2CID 233917395](https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:233917395). Retrieved June 8, 2021.

1. Allan Berger; Iftekhar Hasan; Leora Klapper (April 2004). ["Further Evidence on the Link between Finance and Growth: An International Analysis of Community Banking and Economic Performance"](https://link.springer.com/article/10.1023/B:FINA.0000020659.33510.b7). *Journal of Financial Services Research*. **25** (2/3): 169–202. Springer. [doi:10.1023/B:FINA.0000020659.33510.b7](https://doi.org/10.1023/B:FINA.0000020659.33510.b7). [hdl:10986/18128](https://hdl.handle.net/10986/18128). [S2CID 189929482](https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:189929482). Retrieved June 8, 2021.

1. ["The State and Fate of Community Banking"](https://www.hks.harvard.edu/centers/mrcbg/publications/awp/awp37). *www.hks.harvard.edu*. Retrieved 2024-06-12.

## External links

- [FDIC Future of Community Banking Conference](http://www.fdic.gov/news/conferences/communitybanking/conf-agenda-21612.html) (February 2012) Statistics and conference presentations.
- [ICBA (Independent Community Bankers of America - ICBA)](http://www.icba.org/)
- [ICBA - Community Bank Locator](http://www.icba.org/consumer/BankLocator.cfm) [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20110508025452/http://www.icba.org/consumer/BankLocator.cfm) 2011-05-08 at the Wayback Machine
- [Switch to Community - Community Banking News and Locator](http://www.switchtocommunity.com/) [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20171012010243/http://www.switchtocommunity.com/) 2017-10-12 at the Wayback Machine

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Community bank](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Community_bank) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Community_bank?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.