Wintrust Financial Corp (WTFCN) 2026 Q1 法說會逐字稿

Welcome to Wintrust Financial Corporation's first-quarter 2026 earnings conference call. A review of the results will be made by Tim Crane, President and Chief Executive Officer; David Dykstra, Vice Chairman and Chief Operating Officer; and Richard Murphy, Vice Chairman and Chief Lending Officer.

歡迎參加 Wintrust Financial Corporation 2026 年第一季財報電話會議。本次將由總裁兼執行長 Tim Crane、副董事長兼營運長 David Dykstra，以及副董事長兼首席放款長 Richard Murphy 進行業績回顧。

As part of their reviews, the presenters may make reference to both earnings press release and the earnings release presentation. Following their presentations, there will be a formal question-and-answer session.

在回顧過程中，簡報人可能會同時引用盈餘新聞稿與盈餘發布簡報資料。在他們的簡報結束後，將進行正式的問答環節。

During the course of today's call, Wintrust management may make statements that constitute projections, expectations, beliefs, or similar forward-looking statements. Actual results could differ materially from the results anticipated or projected in any such forward-looking statements. The company's forward-looking assumptions that could cause the actual results to differ materially from the information discussed during this call are detailed in our earnings press release and in the company's most recent Form 10-K.

在今日電話會議期間，Wintrust 管理層可能會發表構成預測、預期、信念或類似之前瞻性陳述的說法。實際結果可能與任何此類前瞻性陳述中所預期或推估的結果存在重大差異。可能導致實際結果與本次電話會議所討論資訊出現重大差異的公司前瞻性假設，已詳載於我們的盈餘新聞稿以及公司最新的 Form 10-K。

Also, our remarks may reference certain non-GAAP financial measures. Our earnings press release and earnings release presentation include a reconciliation of each non-GAAP financial measure to the nearest comparable GAAP financial measure. As a reminder, this conference call is being recorded.

此外，我們的發言可能會提及若干非 GAAP 財務衡量指標。我們的盈餘新聞稿與盈餘發布簡報資料包含各項非 GAAP 財務衡量指標與最接近之可比 GAAP 財務衡量指標的調節表。提醒各位，本次電話會議將被錄音。

I will now turn the conference call over to Mr. Tim Crane.

現在我將把電話會議交給 Tim Crane 先生。

Good morning and thank you for joining us for Wintrust's first-quarter 2026 earnings call. In addition to the introductions that Lateef made, I'm joined by our Chief Financial Officer, Dave Stoehr; and our Chief Legal Officer, Kate Boege.

各位早安，感謝各位參加 Wintrust 2026 年第一季財報電話會議。除了 Lateef 剛才的介紹外，我也與我們的財務長 Dave Stoehr，以及法務長 Kate Boege 一同出席。

We'll follow our usual format this morning. I'll begin with a few highlights. Dave Dykstra will review the financial results. Rich will share some thoughts on loan activity and credit quality, and I'll be back with some closing thoughts, including a look at expectations for the second quarter and generally for the remainder of the year. As always, we'll be happy to take your questions.

今天早上我們將依照一貫的流程進行。我會先談幾個重點。接著由 Dave Dykstra 回顧財務結果。Rich 將分享一些關於放款動能與信用品質的看法，之後我會回來做一些結語，包括對第二季以及今年剩餘期間整體展望的說明。一如往常，我們也很樂意回答各位的問題。

Before we begin, I would like to bring your attention to some changes to the presentation document that accompanies the release of our result. We've modified the design, making some updates to how we present the data based on valuable feedback we've received from many of you. We hope you find the format helpful and informative as we continue to try and provide clear information that highlights our strong market position and our disciplined operating approach.

在開始之前，我想請各位注意隨同我們發布業績所附的簡報文件有一些變更。我們調整了設計，並根據許多各位提供的寶貴回饋，更新了我們呈現數據的方式。我們希望各位覺得這個格式有幫助且資訊清楚；我們也將持續努力提供清晰資訊，以凸顯我們強勁的市場地位與嚴謹自律的營運方式。

I'm very pleased that we delivered a fifth consecutive quarter of record net income. Overall, it was a very solid and straightforward quarter. We continue to focus on our strategic priorities of providing an exceptional customer experience, delivering disciplined and strategic growth across our businesses with a focus on prudent risk management, and investing to build upon our foundation to drive a successful future.

我非常高興我們連續第五個季度創下淨利新高。整體而言，這是一個非常穩健且明確的季度。我們持續聚焦於策略重點：提供卓越的客戶體驗、在審慎風險管理的前提下於各項業務推動自律且具策略性的成長，以及持續投資以鞏固基礎、驅動未來成功。

That said, despite two fewer days in the quarter, we achieved net income of $227 million, up from $223 million last quarter and $189 million in the first quarter of 2025. While Dave and Rich will provide more detail, in summary, net interest income, net interest margin, and both loan and deposit growth were in line with our expectations. We delivered solid growth in non-interest income led by our Wealth Management business. Expenses were well managed and credit quality remained stable.

也就是說，儘管本季少了兩個營業日，我們仍達成 2.27 億美元的淨利，高於上季的 2.23 億美元，也高於 2025 年第一季的 1.89 億美元。Dave 與 Rich 會提供更多細節；總結而言，淨利息收入、淨利息利差，以及放款與存款成長皆符合我們的預期。在財富管理業務帶動下，我們的非利息收入實現穩健成長。費用控管良好，信用品質維持穩定。

I would highlight that all of our growth is organic. We continue to see good new customer acquisition and market momentum as our clients appreciate our differentiated approach and relentless focus on customer service. In fact, during the quarter, we were recognized once again by JD Power for Illinois Banking Services and by Coalition Greenwich with multiple awards for our commercial middle-market banking services. These awards are evidence of our continued success in delivering for our clients in ways that many of our competitors cannot. Overall, a solid quarter.

我要特別強調，我們所有的成長皆為有機成長。我們持續看到良好的新客戶取得與市場動能，因為客戶認同我們差異化的作法，以及對客戶服務的持續專注。事實上，本季我們再次獲得 JD Power 對伊利諾伊州銀行服務的肯定，並獲 Coalition Greenwich 頒發多項商業中型市場（middle-market）銀行服務獎項。這些獎項證明我們持續以許多競爭對手無法做到的方式為客戶創造價值。整體而言，是一個穩健的季度。

Let me turn it over to Dave.

接下來交給 Dave。

Great. Thanks, Tim. Let me start with the balance sheet.

好的。謝謝你，Tim。我先從資產負債表談起。

Specifically, deposit growth was right at $1.2 billion during the quarter, representing an 8% increase over the prior quarter on an annualized basis. This deposit growth helped to fund continued solid first-quarter loan growth of approximately $1 billion, representing a 7% growth rate on an annualized basis.

具體而言，本季存款成長正好約 12 億美元，按年化計算較前一季增加 8%。這項存款成長有助於支應第一季持續穩健的放款成長，約 10 億美元，按年化計算成長率為 7%。

Yields and rates on the major balance sheet categories were slightly lower because of the recent market declines in short-term interest rates, with loan yields moving down 13 basis points in the first quarter from the prior quarter, while interest-bearing deposit costs declined 16 basis points from the prior quarter, thus resulting in a slightly improved growth spread.

由於近期市場短期利率下滑，資產負債表主要類別的收益率與利率略為下降；第一季放款收益率較前一季下滑 13 個基點，而計息存款成本較前一季下降 16 個基點，因此成長利差略有改善。

I'd like to note that loan growth during the quarter was heavily back-end loaded, and accordingly, period-end loans were approximately $1.2 billion higher than average loans for the first quarter. That's giving us a great start on achieving higher average earning assets in the second quarter of 2026.

我想補充說明，本季放款成長主要集中在季末，因此期末放款餘額約比第一季平均放款高出 12 億美元。這讓我們在 2026 年第二季提高平均生息資產方面有一個很好的起點。

Turning to the income statement, this was a very solid operating quarter, producing record levels of quarterly net income. Net interest income declined slightly compared to the fourth quarter of 2025. The benefit to net interest income from an increase of $555 million in average earning asset growth and a 2-basis-point increase in the net interest margin was almost enough to offset having two fewer days in the quarter.

接著看損益表，這是一個非常穩健的營運季度，創下單季淨利的歷史新高。與 2025 年第四季相比，淨利息收入略有下降。平均生息資產增加 5.55 億美元所帶來的淨利息收入提升，以及淨利息利差增加 2 個基點的效益，幾乎足以抵銷本季少了兩個營業日的影響。

The net interest margin was 3.56% for the first quarter, and the two fewer days in the quarter positively impacted net interest margin by 2 basis points. The net interest margin has ranged from 3.50% to 3.59% during the last nine quarters, exhibiting sustainability of our net interest margin.

第一季淨利息利差為 3.56%，而本季少了兩個營業日對淨利息利差有 2 個基點的正面影響。過去九個季度的淨利息利差介於 3.50% 至 3.59% 之間，顯示我們的淨利息利差具備可持續性。

The provision for credit losses was relatively consistent with prior quarters, remaining in the $20 million to $30 million range experienced in all the quarterly periods of 2025, as the overall credit environment and our asset quality has remained stable as we enter 2026.

信用損失準備金與前幾季相對一致，維持在 2,000 萬至 3,000 萬美元區間，這也是 2025 年各季度期間所呈現的水準；整體信用環境與我們的資產品質在進入 2026 年之際仍保持穩定。

Regarding other non-interest income and non-interest expense sections, total non-interest income amounted to $134.1 million in the first quarter, which was an increase from the $130.4 million recorded in the prior quarter. The increase was primarily a result of strong Wealth Management and operating lease revenues. Mortgage banking activity continued to be subdued, and production-related volumes and revenue were essentially unchanged from the prior quarter.

就其他非利息收入與非利息費用部分而言，第一季非利息收入合計為 1.341 億美元，高於前一季的 1.304 億美元。增加主要來自強勁的財富管理與營運租賃收入。房貸銀行業務活動仍偏疲弱，與產出相關的量與收入基本上與前一季持平。

As the non-interest expense categories, total non-interest expenses were $382.6 million in the first quarter, which was slightly lower than the $384.5 million recorded in the prior quarter. Increases in salaries and employee benefits were primarily due to annual merit increases that were offset by lower OREO expenses, travel and entertainment, and various other small expense decreases. Overall expenses were very well controlled. Additionally, both the quarterly net overhead ratio and efficiency ratio improved slightly relative to the prior quarter.

至於非利息費用各項目，第一季非利息費用合計為 3.826 億美元，略低於前一季的 3.845 億美元。薪資與員工福利的增加主要來自年度績效調薪，但被較低的 OREO 費用、差旅與交際費，以及其他各項小幅費用下降所抵銷。整體費用控管非常到位。此外，單季淨管理費用比率（net overhead ratio）與效率比率（efficiency ratio）相較前一季皆略有改善。

In summary, I'll reiterate this was a very solid quarter. The company accomplished good loan and deposit growth, a stable net interest margin, a record level of net income, sustained growth and tangible book value per share, and a continued low level of non-performing assets.

總結來說，我要再次強調，這是一個非常穩健的季度。公司達成了良好的放款與存款成長、穩定的淨利差、創紀錄的淨利水準、每股有形帳面價值的持續成長，以及持續維持在低水準的不良資產。

So with that, I'll conclude my comments and turn it over to Rich Murphy to discuss credit.

因此，我就先結束我的評論，接下來交給 Rich Murphy 來談信用狀況。

Thanks, Dave.

謝謝你，Dave。

As detailed on slide 6 of the investor presentation, the solid loan growth of approximately $966 million, or 7% on an annualized basis, was broad-based. Commercial loans grew by $719 million, including growth in mortgage warehouse of approximately $286 million. Commercial real estate loans grew by $222 million. The Wintrust Life Finance team continue to build their portfolio by $173 million and our residential mortgage group also had a very solid quarter.

如投資人簡報第 6 頁投影片所詳述，約 9.66 億美元（年化約 7%）的強勁放款成長是全面性的。商業放款增加 7.19 億美元，其中包含約 2.86 億美元的房貸倉儲融資成長。商用不動產放款增加 2.22 億美元。Wintrust Life Finance 團隊持續將其投資組合增加 1.73 億美元，而我們的住宅房貸團隊本季表現也非常穩健。

From a credit quality perspective, as detailed on slide 14, we continue to see strong credit performance across the portfolio. This can be seen in a number of metrics. Non-performing loans decreased slightly from $185.8 million, or 0.35% of total loans, to 182.8%, or 34% of total loans, and remained at very manageable levels. Charge-offs for the quarter were 14 basis points, down from 17 basis points in the prior quarter.

從資產品質角度來看，如第 14 頁投影片所詳述，我們持續看到整體投資組合的信用表現強勁。這可從多項指標看出。不良放款略微下降，從 1.858 億美元（占總放款 0.35%）降至 1.828 億美元（占總放款 0.34%），且仍維持在相當可控的水準。本季核銷為 14 個基點，低於前一季的 17 個基點。

We believe that the level of NPLs and charge-offs in the first quarter reflect a stable credit environment, as evidenced by the chart of historical non-performing asset levels on slide 15 and the consistent level of our special mention and substandard loans on slide 14. This quarter is another example of our commitment to identify problems early and charging them down where appropriate. Our goal, as always, is to stay ahead of any credit challenges.

我們認為，第一季的不良放款與核銷水準反映了穩定的信用環境；這點可由第 15 頁投影片的不良資產歷史水準圖表，以及第 14 頁投影片中我們「特別關注」與「次級」放款維持一致的水準所佐證。本季再次展現我們致力於及早辨識問題，並在適當情況下予以減記。我們的目標一如既往，是在任何信用挑戰出現之前保持領先。

Turning to slide 21, I want to briefly highlight our exposure to non-depository financial institutions, which totals approximately $3.2 billion or about 6% of our overall loan portfolio. Importantly, the majority of this exposure is in areas where we have long-standing experience and strong performance.

轉到第 21 頁投影片，我想簡要說明我們對非存款類金融機構的曝險，合計約 32 億美元，約占整體放款投資組合的 6%。重要的是，這些曝險多數集中在我們長期深耕、且表現強勁的領域。

Of our $3.2 billion exposure, approximately $1.8 billion is tied to our mortgage warehouse business, a line of business we've been into for over 30 years with deep client relationships, robust operating systems, and well-established risk management practices. In addition, about $341 million consists of capital call facilities, which are structured with strong underlying investor support and have historically demonstrated very favorable credit characteristics.

在 32 億美元的曝險中，約 18 億美元與我們的房貸倉儲融資業務相關；這項業務我們經營超過 30 年，擁有深厚的客戶關係、健全的營運系統，以及成熟的風險管理作法。此外，約 3.41 億美元為資本募集承諾融資（capital call facilities），其結構具備強而有力的底層投資人支持，且歷來展現非常有利的信用特性。

The balance of the portfolio is broadly diversified across a granular group of relationships with leasing companies, captive finance companies, associated with commercial borrowers, insurance carriers, and broker-dealers. Overall, we view this portfolio as well diversified and aligned with our disciplined approach to specialty finance, focused on areas where we have expertise, strong structures, and a track record of consistent performance.

其餘投資組合則廣泛分散於一組細分且多元的往來關係，包括租賃公司、附屬融資公司（captive finance companies）、與商業借款人相關的機構、保險公司，以及券商／經紀自營商（broker-dealers）。整體而言，我們認為此投資組合分散良好，並符合我們對專業融資一貫的紀律作法：聚焦於我們具備專業能力、結構健全、且有一致績效紀錄的領域。

Also, as noted in the last few earnings calls, we continue to be highly focused on our exposure to commercial real estate loans, which comprise roughly one-quarter of our total loan portfolio. As detailed on slide 18, we continue to see signs of stabilization during the first quarter as CRE NPLs remained at very low levels, decreasing from 0.18% to 0.12%, and CRE charge-offs continue to remain at historically low levels.

另外，如同過去幾次法說會所提到的，我們仍高度關注商用不動產放款曝險，其約占我們總放款投資組合的四分之一。如第 18 頁投影片所詳述，我們在第一季持續看到穩定跡象：商用不動產不良放款（CRE NPLs）維持在非常低的水準，從 0.18% 降至 0.12%，而商用不動產核銷也持續維持在歷史低檔。

On slide 24, we continue to provide enhanced detail on our CRE office exposure. Currently, this portfolio remains steady at $1.7 billion, or 11.7% of our total CRE portfolio and only 3.1% of our total loan portfolio. We monitor this portfolio very closely and we will continue to perform deep-dive analysis on a quarterly basis. The most recent deep-dive analysis showed very consistent results when compared to prior quarters.

在第 24 頁投影片中，我們持續提供更詳盡的商用不動產辦公室曝險資訊。目前該投資組合維持在 17 億美元，約占我們商用不動產投資組合的 11.7%，且僅占總放款投資組合的 3.1%。我們非常密切監控此投資組合，並將持續以季度為基礎進行深入分析。最近一次的深入分析結果與前幾季相比非常一致。

Finally, as we have discussed on previous calls, our team stay in very close contact with our customers, and those conversations continue to reflect measured optimism around the business climate.

最後，如同我們在先前電話會議中所討論的，我們的團隊與客戶保持非常密切的聯繫，而這些對話仍反映出對商業環境的審慎樂觀。

That concludes my comments on credit, and I'll turn it back to Tim.

以上是我對信用狀況的評論，接下來交回給 Tim。

Great. Thank you, Rich.

很好。謝謝你，Rich。

At the beginning of the call, I briefly mentioned our three strategic priorities: delivering an exceptional customer service, generating disciplined and strategic growth across our businesses with prudent risk management, and I would add through all market cycles, and investing in our foundation and the future of our bank. I want to spend just one minute on the first one.

在電話會議一開始，我簡要提到我們的三項策略優先事項：提供卓越的客戶服務、在審慎風險管理下於各項業務實現有紀律且具策略性的成長——我也要補充，涵蓋所有市場循環——以及投資於我們的基礎與銀行的未來。我想花一分鐘談第一項。

Whether high-tech or high-touch, we offer a more personalized level of service than our larger bank or money center bank competitors. And relative to our smaller competitors, we offer more tools and sophistication to meet their needs. As a result, we occupy a unique and advantaged position in what we believe to be attractive markets and in attractive businesses.

無論是高科技或高接觸（high-touch），我們提供的服務都比大型銀行或貨幣中心銀行競爭對手更為個人化。而相較於規模較小的競爭對手，我們提供更多工具與更高的專業度來滿足其需求。因此，我們在我們認為具吸引力的市場與具吸引力的業務中，占據獨特且具優勢的位置。

In the second half of the year, we will open several branches to continue to expand market share and to build franchise value in key communities. We will also supplement that with combined continued investment in the digital capabilities that provide flexibility and convenience for our customers. For us, it's all about the customer, and this unwavering focus is largely what has led to the consistent results we have delivered.

在下半年，我們將開設數家分行，以持續擴大市占率，並在關鍵社區建立特許經營價值（franchise value）。我們也將搭配持續投資數位能力，為客戶提供彈性與便利。對我們而言，一切以客戶為中心；而這份堅定不移的專注，正是我們能持續交出穩健成果的主要原因。

So what does this mean for the second quarter and, to a degree, for the remainder of the year? We expect outsized loan growth in the second quarter largely from our property and casualty premium finance business, which was seasonally very strong in Q2. Longer term, our pipelines are solid and we expect to deliver mid- to high-single-digit loan growth for the remainder of the year.

那麼，這對第二季以及某種程度上對今年剩餘時間意味著什麼？我們預期第二季放款成長將顯著偏強，主要來自我們的產險與意外險保費融資（property and casualty premium finance）業務，該業務在第二季具有季節性強勁表現。從較長期來看，我們的案源管線穩健，並預期今年剩餘時間可達成中至高個位數的放款成長。

Combined with the stable margin Dave mentioned earlier at around 3.5%, we expect solid net interest income growth in the coming quarters. As always, we will work hard to fund our loan growth with a similar level of deposit growth, expanding our base of deposit clients and building franchise value.

再加上 Dave 先前提到約 3.5% 的穩定利差，我們預期未來幾季淨利息收入將有穩健成長。一如既往，我們將努力以相近幅度的存款成長來支應放款成長，擴大存款客戶基礎並建立特許經營價值。

Expenses will be seasonally higher in Q2 as a result of a full quarter of annual salary increases, increased marketing expense, and you can expect a normalized tax rate for the remainder of the year. That said, we expect overall expenses will be well managed, in line with our revenue growth, and will result in operating leverage for the year.

由於全年薪資調升將在第二季反映完整一季、行銷費用增加，因此第二季費用將呈現季節性較高；此外，您也可預期今年剩餘時間的稅率將回到常態水準。儘管如此，我們預期整體費用將被妥善管理，與營收成長保持一致，並在今年帶來營運槓桿。

With respect to capital, we have reviewed the new proposal. With the proposed standardized approach, we estimate an approximate 6% to 7% reduction in risk-weighted assets or, said differently, about a 60-basis-point to 70-basis-point improvement in CET1 if adopted in their present form.

就資本而言，我們已審視新的提案。在所提議的標準化方法下，我們估計風險加權資產將約減少 6% 至 7%；換句話說，若以目前形式採納，CET1 將改善約 60 至 70 個基點。

We're evaluating the ERBA approach, which is a bit more involved and requires some assumptions at this point. If it turns out to be more beneficial, it would likely be a result of the treatment on investment-grade loans and some of the retail activity. Overall, we feel good about our momentum and believe we are well positioned for the remainder of 2026.

我們正在評估 ERBA 方法，這個方法相對更為複雜，且在現階段需要一些假設。如果結果顯示更有利，可能主要來自對投資級貸款的處理方式，以及部分零售業務活動。整體而言，我們對目前的動能感到樂觀，並相信我們已為 2026 年剩餘期間做好充分準備。

One final note, I'd like to take a moment to thank two of our long-standing Board members who will conclude their service at our Annual Meeting next month: Pat Hackett joined our Board in 2008 and has served as Chairman of the Board for the past nine years; and Bill Doyle, who joined the Board in 2017. Both Pat and Bill have provided invaluable guidance over the years, and we are grateful for all they have done to help us deliver value for our shareholders.

最後補充一點，我想藉此機會感謝兩位長期任職的董事會成員，他們將在下個月的年度股東大會後結束任期：Pat Hackett 於 2008 年加入董事會，並在過去九年擔任董事長；以及於 2017 年加入董事會的 Bill Doyle。Pat 與 Bill 多年來提供了無可取代的指導，我們非常感謝他們為協助我們為股東創造價值所做的一切。

I also want to congratulate Brian Kenney, who's expected to succeed Pat as Chairman pending his re-election at the upcoming Annual Meeting. We are very fortunate to have an engaged and thoughtful group of directors. Their perspective and insights are helpful to me and our entire management team and are certainly a big part of our success.

我也要恭喜 Brian Kenney，預計在即將召開的年度股東大會上完成連任後，接任 Pat 擔任董事長。我們非常幸運能擁有一群積極投入且深思熟慮的董事。他們的觀點與洞見對我以及整個管理團隊都很有幫助，並且無疑是我們成功的重要因素。

With that, Lateef, we're happy to take questions.

接下來，Lateef，我們很樂意回答問題。

(Operator Instructions) Jon Arfstrom, RBC Capital Markets.

(接線員指示) Jon Arfstrom，RBC Capital Markets。

Hey. Thanks. Good morning, everyone. Maybe Rich or Tim, a question for you on the period-end loan growth that you talked about, the period end being higher than average. Anything you would call out in terms of the trends from early in the quarter versus the period-end strength? And then any impacts you've seen at all from some of the macro uncertainty in terms of the pipelines?

嗨。謝謝。各位早安。或許請 Rich 或 Tim 回答一個關於你們提到的期末貸款成長的問題：期末水準高於平均。就本季初期的趨勢相較於期末的強勁表現，有沒有什麼特別值得指出的？另外，宏觀不確定性對於業務管線（pipelines）是否有任何影響？

No. We had some payoffs at the first part of the year that kind of subdued some of that growth. I mean, it was just kind of timing, nothing more than that. Good momentum really through the quarter. We did have some strong warehouse line growth right at the end of the quarter that helped as well. But yeah, I wouldn't say anything really atypical that I would point to, just kind of timing on prepayments and some end-of-quarter warehouse line growth.

沒有。年初前段有一些到期清償（payoffs），在某種程度上抑制了部分成長。我的意思是，這主要只是時間點因素，沒有其他特別原因。整個季度的動能其實都不錯。我們在季度末也有一些強勁的倉儲授信（warehouse line）成長，這也有所助益。但對，我不會說有什麼特別異常值得指出，主要就是提前還款的時間點，以及季末倉儲授信的一些成長。

And as it relates to overall sentiment out there, I think that we still feel pretty good. The customers we talk to, I'd say, feel that the economy, certainly in the Midwest, still feels pretty good. Tim pointed this out, we're having our pipelines in the C&I space right now are probably as good as they've ever been. Part of that is because of some of that optimism, part of it is just because where we sit relative to the competition in Chicago. So right now, it feels like we're in a pretty good spot there.

至於外部整體情緒，我認為我們仍然感覺相當不錯。我們接觸的客戶，我會說他們覺得經濟狀況——尤其在中西部——仍然相當不錯。Tim 也提到，我們目前在 C&I（商業與工業）領域的業務管線可能是歷來最好的水準。部分原因來自一些樂觀情緒，部分原因則是我們在芝加哥相對於競爭對手的定位。所以目前看起來，我們在那方面處於相當不錯的位置。

Okay, good. And then maybe for you, Dave, on mortgage, it's probably the quarter to ask about mortgage given some of the typical seasonalities, but I think it was a little better than I expected. And just curious what kind of an outlook you have for the typical seasonal increase in volumes, and then I guess warehouse balances as well, some of the puts and takes. Thanks.

好的，很好。接著可能想請教 Dave 關於房貸：考量一些典型的季節性因素，這一季大概是最適合問房貸的季度，但我覺得表現比我預期稍好一些。想請問你對於通常季節性帶動的量能增加有什麼展望？另外倉儲餘額（warehouse balances）方面也請談談，包含一些增減因素。謝謝。

Yeah. I guess I'd say it was a little bit better first quarter than maybe we'd expect, as you said. Because during part of the quarter, rates got down below 6% for just a little bit of time. So there was a period there where applications did pick up. But then rates popped back up and really applications came down to sort of scraping the bottom again. So I think for three years now, I said I've been hopeful about a good spring buying season and we are hopeful again this year. But given our rates, that we aren't seeing a huge pickup yet, but hopefully as we get into the spring season here, that does pick up.

是的。我想我會說，第一季確實比我們原本可能預期的稍好一些，如你所說。因為在本季的部分期間，利率曾短暫降到 6% 以下。所以那段時間申請量確實有所回升。但之後利率又彈回來，申請量也就回落到幾乎又接近谷底。所以我想，這三年來我一直期待春季會有不錯的購屋旺季，而今年我們也再次抱持希望。但以目前利率來看，我們還沒有看到明顯的大幅回升；不過希望隨著進入春季旺季，情況會有所改善。

Again, I think we think that rates have to get down around 6% or below for there to be any meaningful pickup. So barring that, I think we'd probably stick with our revenue in the $20 million to $30 million range as we've been fairly consistently for a number of quarters here. And if you remember, half of that is servicing in income.

再說一次，我們認為利率必須降到大約 6% 或以下，才會出現任何有意義的回升。因此在沒有這種情況之前，我們大概會維持營收在 2,000 萬到 3,000 萬美元的區間，這也是我們過去好幾個季度相當一致的水準。而且如果你記得，其中一半是服務（servicing）收入。

So mortgage warehouse, again, I think that's going to just be dependent upon rates. If we see the rates continue to come down and mortgage rates get close to 6%, and I think we do pretty well in that regard, if they stay up in the mid-6s, as far as mortgage rates go, it's probably again subdued on that front also.

至於房貸倉儲（mortgage warehouse），同樣地，我認為這將取決於利率。如果我們看到利率持續下行、房貸利率接近 6%，我想我們在那方面會表現得相當不錯；但如果房貸利率仍維持在 6% 中段左右，那麼在那一端可能也會再次偏向低迷。

Yeah. I would only add on the mortgage warehouse, our growth is a little larger there than it is mortgage in general because we've taken share from some of our competitors and continue to do a nice job of adding very high-quality mortgage originators generally on the larger side.

是的。我只想補充房貸倉儲這塊：我們在那裡的成長比整體房貸業務更大一些，因為我們從部分競爭對手手中取得了市占，並且持續成功新增非常高品質的房貸承作機構（mortgage originators），通常規模也較大。

Yeah, okay. All right. Thanks a lot. Appreciate it.

好，了解。好。非常感謝。感激不盡。

Nathan Race, Piper Sandler.

Nathan Race，Piper Sandler。

Hey, guys. Good morning. Thanks for taking the questions. Tim, going back to your comments around the insurance view finance portfolio and the upsized growth that you expect here in 2Q, as we discussed in the past, I mean, overall loan growth is, I think, 19% in the quarter annualized in the second quarter of last year, led by the P&C portfolio. I guess I'm just curious, are you seeing any softening in volumes just given what's going on in the P&C market these days and also kind of what you're seeing within pricing as well within that book?

嗨，各位。早安。謝謝讓我提問。Tim，回到你對保險保費融資（insurance premium finance）投資組合的看法，以及你預期在第二季會有放大的成長；如同我們過去討論的，整體貸款成長我記得去年第二季按年化計算約為 19%，主要由 P&C（財產與意外險）投資組合帶動。我想請教的是，考量目前 P&C 市場的情況，你是否看到量能有任何趨緩？以及在該業務組合的定價方面，你們觀察到什麼變化？

Yeah. And Rich can help me here, but we don't have as much tailwind as we've had from premium growth in prior years. I think premiums are pretty flat to maybe up slightly as opposed to up quite a bit in prior periods. So that will play a little bit of a role, but we continue to grow units, which is encouraging for the growth of our business.

是的。Rich 也可以補充，但我們不像前幾年那樣，能從保費成長獲得那麼大的順風助力。我認為保費大致持平，或僅小幅上升，而不是像先前期間那樣大幅成長。因此這會在一定程度上產生影響，但我們仍持續增加件數（units），這對我們業務成長而言是令人鼓舞的。

I think pricing is fairly rational in that market. As we've talked about in the past, a lot of these are smaller loans where clients, frankly, are just managing their cash flow. And so small differences in rate tend not to move that very much. And so we continue to expect a good second quarter from a volume standpoint and pricing is rational.

我認為那個市場的定價相當理性。如同我們過去談過的，這裡面很多是較小額的貸款，坦白說，客戶只是為了管理他們的現金流。因此，利率上的小幅差異通常不太會造成太大的變動。所以我們仍然預期從量的角度來看第二季表現會不錯，而且定價是理性的。

Yeah. The only thing I would add is we've made a significant investment in the technology associated with that business. And I think that, as Tim pointed out, the volume that you see is reflective of that. I think that for our customers, they really do see us as the go-to provider in that space.

是的。我唯一想補充的是，我們在與該業務相關的技術上做了相當大的投資。而且我認為，正如 Tim 指出的，你看到的量能反映了這一點。我認為對我們的客戶而言，他們確實把我們視為該領域的首選供應商。

And so we're just going to continue to do that. The overall market can move up or down. Our job is just to provide -- be the premier provider in that space and it continues to, as Tim pointed out, show in the numbers.

所以我們會持續這麼做。整體市場可能上上下下。我們的工作就是提供——成為那個領域的頂尖供應商，而且正如 Tim 指出的，這也持續反映在數字上。

Okay, great. That's helpful. And then question for Dave, maybe curious if you can help us just in terms of kind of a guidepost in terms of a starting point for expenses in light of the seasonality and the fourth-quarter impact of the increases that you mentioned within the comp line for the second quarter. And if you're still kind of thinking about annualizing the 4Q expense number from last year and layer on some mid-scale digit growth to get to the full-year number for 2026.

好的，很棒。這很有幫助。接著想問 Dave 的問題：考量到季節性，以及你提到第二季在薪酬（comp）項下加薪對第四季費用的影響，你能否就費用的起點提供一些指引性的參考？以及你是否仍在考慮以去年第四季的費用數字年化，並再疊加一些中等個位數的成長，來推估 2026 全年的數字。

Yeah. The first quarter tends to be a low expense quarter. I think the last three years now, we've seen it actually dip a little bit from the fourth quarter. So that trend is consistent with what we've seen in the last couple of years.

是的。第一季通常是費用較低的一季。我想過去三年，我們確實看到它相較第四季還會小幅下降。所以這個趨勢與我們過去幾年看到的情況一致。

And I'd say our outlook is still -- I guess, the way I'll frame it is mid-single-digit year-over-year expense growth, which means, as you know, we generally have a pickup in the second quarter and the third quarter because of the advertising and marketing spends that we have for baseball sponsorships and summertime sponsorships and the like. And we also generally have a little bit higher base salaries because we get a full quarter of the base salary increases that are going into effect February 1 versus two months. And then T&E is generally seasonally lower than the first quarter, so you'd expect a little increase there.

我會說我們的展望仍然——我想我會這樣表述：費用年增率為中等個位數。這也意味著，如你所知，我們通常在第二季與第三季會增加一些支出，因為我們有棒球贊助與夏季贊助等相關的廣告與行銷費用。另外，我們的基本薪資通常也會略高一些，因為自 2 月 1 日生效的基本薪資調整，在第二季會反映完整一季，而不是只有兩個月。此外，差旅與交際（T&E）通常在季節性上會低於第一季，所以你會預期那裡會有一些增加。

So I would say if you looked at the increases from the prior few years, quarters, and looked at that directionally, I think you could look at that as a guide to what to expect as far as overall expense growth going into the second quarter here. But overall, we still expect sort of mid-single-digit year-over-year expense growth, '26 versus '25.

所以我會說，如果你看看過去幾年的增幅、各季的變化，並以那個方向性來看，我認為你可以把它當作一個指引，來預期第二季整體費用成長大概會是什麼樣子。但整體而言，我們仍預期費用年增率大致是中等個位數，'26 相較 '25。

Okay, great. If I could just sneak one last one in on the margin. It seems like you guys have kind of outperformed kind of the expectations within the last couple of quarters. And I imagine with some of the swaps and (inaudible) you have rolling off this year, there may not be a need or an appetite to replace some of those.

好的，很棒。如果可以的話，我想再偷偷問最後一個關於利差（margin）問題。看起來你們在過去幾季的表現有點超出市場預期。我想隨著今年有一些利率交換（swaps）和（聽不清）到期，你們可能不一定需要或有意願去替換其中一些。

So I'm just curious or kind of thinking about kind of can the margin grind higher, you think, from here as long as the Fed remains on pause, particularly with some of the hedges rolling off and just given the more rational deposit pricing competition should cover these days. And I imagine new loan production is probably accretive to the portfolio yield of, call it, 6.14% coming out of the quarter.

所以我只是好奇，或是在想，只要聯準會維持暫停升降息，你們認為利差是否能從這裡開始逐步走高，特別是在部分避險到期、以及目前存款定價競爭更理性的情況下。而且我想新承作的放款利率，可能也會對投資組合收益率（portfolio yield）有增益；該收益率在本季結束時大約是 6.14%。

Yeah. I think our view on that is, like we said before, we think we're fairly neutral on the margin now, even if rates go up one or two times or down one or two times, we really feel we're fairly neutral. You'll notice in the deck, we added three new swaps during the quarter, with swap rates ranging in the mid-3 range up into the 3.60s, so they're actually very close to what the one-month SOFR is right now.

是的。我認為我們的看法是，如同之前說過的，我們認為目前在利差上相當中性；即使利率上升一到兩次或下降一到兩次，我們都覺得我們相當中性。你會注意到在簡報裡，我們在本季新增了三筆新的利率交換，交換利率大約落在 3% 中段到 3.60% 多的區間，所以其實非常接近目前的一個月期 SOFR。

So we continue to replace the swaps out into the future because we do think that managing the margin to try to stay still prudent. We believe we'll stay there. We actually think probably loans are coming on in the low-6% range and deposits will be relatively flat too. So we just -- we think we sort of hold the yields and the rates right now and hold the margin relatively flat in the 3.50s range going forward.

所以我們會持續把交換合約往未來做替換，因為我們確實認為管理利差、力求維持穩健仍然是必要的。我們相信會維持在那個水準。我們其實認為新進來的貸款利率大概在 6% 出頭，而存款也會相對持平。所以我們——我們認為目前大致能把收益率與利率維持住，並在未來把利差相對維持平坦，大約在 3.50% 多的區間。

Okay.

好的。

And remember, this quarter had 2 basis points of benefit from the day count. So you'll get one of those back next quarter because you have one more day in the quarter. But it's very neutral, very flat, and we're trying to maintain that.

另外提醒一下，本季因為天數計算（day count）有 2 個基點的正面效益。所以下一季因為該季多一天，你會拿回其中一個。但整體非常中性、非常平坦，而我們也在努力維持這樣的狀態。

And just to clarify, Dave, you mentioned kind of incremental deposit growth these days is kind of neutral to your all-in and interest-bearing deposit costs. Is that what you were alluding to?

再確認一下，Dave，你提到現在新增的存款成長，對你們的全成本（all-in）以及計息存款成本大致是中性的。你指的是這個意思嗎？

Yeah, I would think that the loan rates and the deposit rates will be relatively consistent next quarter, barring some move by the Fed and our market rates.

是的，我認為在下一季，貸款利率與存款利率會相對一致，除非聯準會或我們市場利率有一些變動。

Understood. Appreciate all the color. Congrats on another great quarter, guys. Thanks.

了解。感謝提供這麼多細節。恭喜各位又交出一個很棒的季度。謝謝。

Janet Lee, TD Cowen.

Janet Lee，TD Cowen。

So not only is your period-end loans almost $1.2 billion above your average for the quarter, but your period-end non-interest-bearing deposit is also $1.1 billion above the average. I would assume a lot of that is you're just taking market share with your service as a differentiator, but I wanted to see if there is any adjustments that should be happening in the second quarter. Or is that a good run rate heading into the second quarter?

所以你們期末貸款不僅比本季平均值高出將近 12 億美元，你們期末的非計息存款也比平均值高出 11 億美元。我猜其中很大一部分是你們以服務作為差異化而取得市占，但我想確認第二季是否需要做任何調整。或者說，這就是進入第二季的一個不錯的運行水準（run rate）？

Yeah. Janet, a couple of things there. One, you're correct, we think we continue to win business in the market and grow our deposit base. End of year is a little bit lumpy with respect to non-interest-bearing deposits. I think the better way to look at that is probably to look at the average non-interest-bearing deposits over the period. It will continue to move around a little bit, but we had a very nice quarter-end and continue to look to build the deposit franchise at the bank.

是的。Janet，這裡有幾點。第一，你說得沒錯，我們認為我們持續在市場上贏得業務並擴大存款基礎。年底在非計息存款方面會有一些波動（lumpy）。我認為更好的看法可能是看該期間的非計息存款平均值。它仍會有些許起伏，但我們在季末表現非常不錯，並會持續致力於在本行建立更強的存款業務基礎。

Got it. Thank you. And for -- so your net interest margin and the 3.5% handle for the rest of the three quarters in 2026, your second-quarter NII should be -- it should benefit a lot from that strength and period-end balances. It seems to me that double-digit kind of NII growth in 2026 is not unrealistic.

了解。謝謝。另外，關於——也就是你們的淨利差，以及2026年其餘三個季度約3.5%的水準，你們第二季的淨利息收入（NII）應該會——應該會從這個強勢表現與期末餘額中大幅受益。在我看來，2026年出現雙位數的NII成長並非不切實際。

Am I -- is there anything that I'm missing here? And would you still be looking for that mid-single-digit kind of growth in expenses? If that were to be the case, how should we think about the level of POL that you want to achieve for the year? Thanks.

我是不是——有什麼我漏掉的地方嗎？另外，你們仍然會預期費用呈現中個位數成長嗎？如果真是如此，我們應該如何看待你們希望全年達成的稅前營運利潤（POL）水準？謝謝。

Well, I don't think if we have a stronger loan growth, for instance, I don't think we're going to have a significant increase in our expenses. I think we have an infrastructure that can handle that. And you're right that the second quarter will be a very strong quarter because of the seasonality of the premium finance loans. Generally, that's sort of plus or minus $1 billion in the second quarter, and we would expect just the premium finance to be that way.

嗯，我不認為即使我們的放款成長更強，例如，我不認為我們的費用會顯著增加。我認為我們的基礎設施足以應付。而且你說得對，第二季會非常強，因為保費融資貸款具有季節性。一般來說，第二季大概會上下波動約10億美元，我們預期僅保費融資就會呈現這種情況。

And we do expect a very strong second quarter, which should be above, obviously, our range. But looking out two more quarters beyond that, given the volatile interest rate environment, I think we can still stay in that in the high-single-digit year expectations.

我們確實預期第二季會非常強，顯然會高於我們的區間。但再往後看兩個季度，考量利率環境波動，我認為我們仍可維持在高個位數的全年預期。

Is it possible that the economy keeps plugging along really great and we do better than expected? Possibly. But we've always consistently thought that the pipelines and the business plan would produce at least mid- to high-single-digit loan growth. And we think for the year, that's probably still something we'll be with, although given the results so far, you'd probably be at the higher end of that range.

經濟是否可能持續表現得非常好，讓我們優於預期？有可能。但我們一直一致認為，業務管線與商業計畫至少能帶來中到高個位數的放款成長。我們認為全年大概仍會落在這個範圍內，雖然以目前的結果來看，你可能會落在區間的較高端。

Thank you.

謝謝。

David Chiaverini, Jefferies.

David Chiaverini，Jefferies。

Hi. Thanks for taking the questions. So I wanted to drill into deposit competition. We're hearing some mixed messages from one of the larger regional banks in the Midwest and saying competition is fairly intense in the Midwest. Is this impacting Wintrust much?

嗨。謝謝讓我提問。我想深入了解存款競爭。我們從一家中西部較大型的區域銀行那裡聽到一些不同的說法，表示中西部的競爭相當激烈。這對Wintrust影響大嗎？

I'd say it's still actually fairly reasonable in Chicago. As you know, we have a strong market share in kind of three markets: Southeastern Wisconsin, Northern Illinois, Chicago, area, and Grand Rapids. Pretty rational pricing, promotional CDs kind of at the 4% range, promotional money market in the low-3s. I don't think we're seeing anything atypical at this point, but we appreciate that certainly other markets and maybe some of the Midwest markets are a little frothy, but it feels okay to us.

我會說在芝加哥其實仍算相當合理。如你所知，我們在三個市場有很強的市占：威斯康辛州東南部、伊利諾伊州北部（芝加哥地區），以及大急流城（Grand Rapids）。定價相當理性，促銷定存（CD）大約在4%區間，促銷貨幣市場存款在3%出頭的低檔。我不認為我們目前看到任何不尋常的情況，但我們也理解其他市場、或許一些中西部市場可能有點過熱，不過對我們而言感覺還可以。

Thanks for that. And then shifting over to -- you touched on expenses earlier. Just in terms of positive operating leverage, I think you've spoken previously about 200 basis points or so for this year. Is that still the expectation? Or could we do a little bit better?

謝謝說明。接著談到——你先前提到費用。就正向營運槓桿而言，我記得你們之前提過今年大約200個基點左右。這仍是目前的預期嗎？還是我們可能做得更好一些？

Well, we obviously had a strong first quarter and, to some of the other questions we've answered here, expect a good second quarter. We'll have to see. We continue to invest in the business. We want to make sure that we're positioning the bank for growth going forward. But to your point, the 200 basis points isn't out of the question, and we would obviously work harder to improve on that.

嗯，我們第一季表現確實強勁，而且如同我們在這裡回答的其他問題，我們也預期第二季會不錯。我們還得再觀察。我們持續投資於業務。我們希望確保銀行在未來成長上有良好的布局。但如你所說，200個基點並非不可能，我們也會更努力去改善。

Very helpful. Thank you.

非常有幫助。謝謝。

Brandon Rud, Stephens, Inc.

Brandon Rud，Stephens, Inc.。

Hi. I guess a few of the questions have been already answered. If I could ask one on credit, I noticed that special mention increased about 20% during the quarter. If I could connect the dots with the allowance by loan portfolios, it looks like it stemmed from the commercial portfolio. Is that accurate? And if not, could you maybe go into that increase a bit?

嗨。我想有幾個問題已經被回答了。如果我可以問一個關於信用的問題，我注意到本季「特別關注」（special mention）增加了大約20%。如果我把它和依放款組合拆分的備抵損失（allowance）連起來看，似乎是來自商業放款組合。這樣判斷正確嗎？如果不是，你能否多談談這個增加的原因？

Yeah, it is accurate. I mean, it's in the commercial portfolio. It's hard when you look at those numbers because we're at such low levels that periodic increases draw attention like this does. We try to be very active in our loan ratings, and when there are customers that have a little bit of a miss on a quarter, we will make that adjustment.

是的，你的判斷正確。也就是在商業放款組合。看這些數字時會比較困難，因為我們的水準非常低，所以期間性的增加就會像這樣引起注意。我們在放款評等上力求非常積極，當有客戶某一季表現稍微失準時，我們就會做出調整。

But I don't think there's anything systemic here. I think it's really just kind of one-off situations and a couple of different customers, really no, I'd say, consistency in terms of industry or anything like that. So I think it's really just more coincidental. We would anticipate that it will probably hang around this level here for the next few quarters as far as we can see. And customers generally are operating reasonable results so far, so nothing that I would read into it.

但我不認為這裡有任何系統性問題。我認為真的只是一些一次性的情況、以及幾位不同的客戶；我會說在產業別或其他方面並沒有一致性。所以我認為更多只是巧合。就我們目前所能看到的，我們預期接下來幾季大概會維持在這個水準附近。而且到目前為止，客戶整體營運結果普遍合理，所以我不會過度解讀。

Got it. Okay, thank you. If I could ask one on fees, the step-up in the operating lease income, I think if I look back historically, it's not abnormal to see one or two quarters where it steps up and then goes back down again. So on a go-forward basis, should we look at that as more as like a $15 million, $16 million run rate? Or is this $19 million really the new rate going forward?

了解。好，謝謝。如果我可以問一個關於手續費的問題，營運租賃收入（operating lease income）的跳升，我回頭看歷史，看到有一兩季跳升、之後又回落其實並不罕見。所以往後看，我們應該把它視為大約1,500萬到1,600萬美元的常態水準（run rate）嗎？還是說1,900萬美元才是未來的新常態？

It's probably somewhere between the $16 million and the $19 million. Occasionally, you get some gains on some sale of equipment during the quarter, but that's normal course of business. We get those each quarter, so it's just sort of what's the size of each of those, but probably somewhere in between there would be a good bet.

可能會落在1,600萬到1,900萬美元之間。偶爾某一季會因出售設備而有一些收益，但那是正常的日常業務。我們每一季都會有，只是每次的金額大小不同；所以我認為落在兩者之間會是比較合理的估計。

But it's not out of the question. It could be $19 million again next quarter. But there's just some residual gains that come into the portfolio off and on, and they have been on a recurring basis It's just you can't always judge the size of them each quarter.

但也不是不可能。下季也可能再是1,900萬美元。只是投資組合中會不時出現一些剩餘收益，而且確實是經常性發生；只是你無法每一季都準確判斷其金額大小。

Sure. Okay, thank you for taking my questions.

當然可以。好的，謝謝讓我提問。

Jeff Rulis, D.A. Davidson.

Jeff Rulis，D.A. Davidson。

Thanks. Good morning. Just sticking on the fee income conversation in the Wealth Management side, really pretty impressive. And wanted to reorient with your thoughts on kind of year-over-year growth or how you see that line item at $42 million is pretty strong, just the outlook you see from here for this year.

謝謝。早安。我想延續財富管理這邊的手續費收入話題，表現確實相當亮眼。想請教你們對年增成長的看法，或你們如何看待這個科目；目前在4,200萬美元的水準相當強勁，想了解你們對今年接下來的展望。

Yeah. Good question, Jeff.

是的。好問題，Jeff。

On the wealth side, a really nice quarter and a business we like and one that we're growing steadily. There is an element to the strong growth this quarter that's seasonal and accounts for a little bit more revenue than we would expect in coming quarters. But overall, good news and good momentum for us in that business. Kind of to Dave's answer to the prior question, I would look for something in between kind of the fourth quarter and the first quarter as a better number going forward.

在財富管理方面，這一季表現非常不錯，也是我們喜歡、並且持續穩健成長的業務。本季強勁成長有一部分是季節性因素，帶來的收入會比我們預期未來幾季的水準略高一些。但整體而言，這對我們是好消息，也代表該業務動能良好。呼應Dave對上一題的回答，往後我會把介於第四季與第一季之間的水準，視為較合理的參考數字。

Okay. Appreciate it. And then maybe just checking in on maybe the M&A conversations on as you guys target smaller institutions, just trying to get a sense for the appetite and the level of conversations on that front. Thanks.

了解。謝謝。另外想請教一下併購（M&A）方面：你們鎖定較小型機構時，目前在這方面的意願與對話熱度大概如何？謝謝。

Yeah. I would say not much changed since we last spoke. Obviously, some high-level conversations, but I'd characterize some of that as more exploration than anything else.

是的。我會說跟我們上次談的相比沒有太大變化。當然有一些高層次的對話，但我會把其中不少視為探索性質多於其他。

And no change to our posture; we consider ourselves a disciplined and skilled acquirer. We'll look at opportunities and believe we're well positioned to take advantage of them if they present themselves, but it'd be based on a good strategic fit, good cultural fit. And we'll see how things play out here, but well equipped to be opportunistic if the opportunities arise.

而且我們的立場沒有改變；我們自認是紀律嚴謹且具備能力的收購方。我們會評估機會，也相信若機會出現，我們具備良好條件把握，但前提會是策略契合、文化契合。接下來就看事情如何發展；若機會浮現，我們也很有能力採取機會主義的做法。

Sounds good. Thank you.

聽起來不錯。謝謝。

Ben Gerlinger, Citi.

Ben Gerlinger，花旗（Citi）。

Hey. Good morning. I was wondering if we could talk about the branch buildout. In your prepared remarks, I think you said seven. Were these Chicago, and then for Dykstra, I'm assuming that's in the expense card you provided?

嗨。早安。我想聊一下分行擴建。在你們事先準備的講稿裡，我記得你說是七家。這些是在芝加哥嗎？另外關於Dykstra，我猜這已經包含在你們提供的費用項目裡？

Yeah. Ben, I should enunciate, I said several, not seven. But there -- in each of our three markets, we actually have new branch activity for the second half of the year. These are, in some cases, markets, sub-markets that we're not in in other cases, opportunistic to kind of build as the populations move in these various areas. But nice opportunities for us, and they'll just help us to continue to build out the franchise and the deposit base of the company.

是的。Ben，我應該說清楚一點，我說的是「幾家」（several），不是「七家」（seven）。不過——在我們三個市場中，下半年其實都有新的分行動作。有些是我們原本未進入的市場或次市場；另一些則是因應各地人口移動，在不同區域採取較具機會性的布局。但對我們而言都是不錯的機會，也將有助於我們持續擴大特許經營版圖，以及公司的存款基礎。

And it would be included in our expense forecast that we just talked about.

而且這些都會包含在我們剛剛談到的費用預測裡。

Got you. Okay, that's helpful. And then with these kind of new branches, should we expect any sort of kind of intentional marketing potentially like over market rate? I know you guys are usually the price setter because you're growing faster, but is there anything that we should maybe expect in terms of like just spinning up deposits faster given that branches take roughly three or four years to break even?

了解。好，這很有幫助。那這些新分行方面，我們是否應該預期你們會有一些刻意的行銷策略，例如提供高於市場利率？我知道你們通常因為成長較快而是定價者，但考量分行大約需要三到四年才能損益兩平，是否有什麼我們應該預期、用來更快拉升存款的作法？

Well, yes would be the answer to that question. I mean, when we enter new markets, we would want to be aggressive and we would want to build the size of those branches quickly. I don't think on an overall basis, it's going to change much the trajectory of the financials. So I don't think you're going to see something that is easily recognizable, but we will try to be very aggressive in the markets we enter.

嗯，是的，答案是會。我的意思是，當我們進入新市場時，我們會希望採取更積極的策略，並且希望快速把分行規模做起來。但我不認為從整體來看，這會大幅改變財務走勢。所以我不覺得你會看到非常容易辨識的變化，但我們在進入的市場會努力做到非常積極。

Got it. That's helpful. Appreciate it.

了解。這很有幫助。謝謝。

Jared Shaw, Barclays.

Jared Shaw，巴克萊（Barclays）。

Thanks. Good morning. Just, I guess, listening to the optimism around loan growth and the ability for more of a stable margin, I don't know, I guess it feels like mid- to high-single-digit revenue growth feels pretty conservative, just given some of those tailwinds. Is that the right way to think about it that maybe there's a little bit of conservatism built in on economic uncertainty, or as we get through second quarter and some of the benefits from the premium finance growth that maybe third and fourth quarter tail off a little bit?

謝謝。早安。我想，聽到你們對貸款成長以及維持較穩定利差的能力都很樂觀，我不確定，但感覺中到高個位數的營收成長指引似乎相當保守，畢竟有這些順風因素。這樣理解對嗎？也就是說，可能是因為對經濟不確定性保留一些保守假設；或者是等到第二季走完、保費融資（premium finance）成長帶來的一些效益之後，第三、第四季可能會稍微趨緩？

Yeah, I don't know what I would add to what we've already said. I mean, we have visibility to what we think is a very good start to the second quarter and then obviously the seasonal P&C business. Pipelines look good for the second half of the year. So to Dave's point earlier, if that continues, we might be on the high end.

是的，我不確定我還能在我們已經說過的內容上補充什麼。我的意思是，我們對第二季開局非常好的狀況有一定能見度，另外還有季節性的產險（P&C）業務。下半年的案源管線看起來也不錯。所以如同Dave先前提到的，如果這些延續下去，我們可能會落在區間的高端。

We're certainly working to be on the high end, but just don't know what's going on sort of in the market right now with some of the geopolitical stuff. And to Rich's point, our clients are still cautiously optimistic, but you get out much more than the six months or so and the visibility gets a little less clear.

我們當然也在努力朝高端表現，但目前市場上有一些地緣政治因素，我們也不確定會怎麼發展。而且如同Rich所說，我們的客戶仍然是審慎樂觀，但當你把時間拉長到六個月以上，能見度就會變得比較不清楚。

Okay. Thanks. And then on capital, appreciate the comments on sort of the M&A side, but how should we think about capital continuing to grow from here? And if there isn't a deal, is there a limit to how high you want to see that go in the near to midterm?

了解。謝謝。另外在資本方面，謝謝你們對併購（M&A）面的說明，但我們應該如何看待資本從現在開始持續成長？如果沒有交易案，在短到中期你們希望資本比率提高到多高？是否有上限？

Yeah, sure. So we ended the quarter CET1 at 10.4%. With substantial growth in the second quarter, that number probably won't move much, and if we do really well, it might actually move down a little bit. But we would expect to grow CET1 the remainder of the year at mid- to high-single-digit loan growth.

好的。所以我們本季結束時，普通股權益第一類資本比率（CET1）為10.4%。若第二季有顯著成長，這個數字可能不會變動太多；如果我們表現非常好，它甚至可能會小幅下降。但我們預期在今年剩餘時間，在貸款中到高個位數成長的情境下，CET1會持續增加。

Once we sort of cross 10.5% or so, and depending what happens with these proposals, we'll evaluate appropriate capital levels and make some decisions. But our approach is probably still ordered in the same fashion. Organic growth, if we happen to find an appropriate acquisition, there may be a need for capital there. And then as most of you know, we have an authorization in place for stock buybacks. And certainly, if we ended up with a lot more capital, we could consider that as an alternative. So hope that helps.

當我們大概跨過10.5%之後，並且視這些提案的進展而定，我們會評估適當的資本水準並做出一些決策。但我們的做法大概仍會依同樣的優先順序。先是有機成長；如果剛好找到合適的收購案，可能會需要資本。再來如各位多數人所知，我們也有股票回購的授權。而且如果最後我們的資本明顯多出不少，我們也可以把回購視為替代方案之一。希望這樣有幫助。

Yeah. Thanks.

是的。謝謝。

Brian Foran, Truist.

Brian Foran，Truist。

Maybe actually piggybacking off that if no M&A emerges scenario, with some activity happening in and around some markets you touched, are there any opportunities you're watching for team hires, de novo market expansion, opportunistic client acquisitions? Any benefit from M&A happening around you right now?

或許接續你剛才提到的、在沒有出現併購（M&A）的情境下——你提到的一些市場周邊仍有一些活動——你們是否在關注任何機會，例如團隊招募、從零開始（de novo）的市場擴張、或是機會型的客戶收購？目前你們周遭正在發生的併購，對你們有任何好處嗎？

Well, let me try to take pieces of that. We certainly would always look for talented people that we could hire. That tends to happen when somebody gets frustrated with their ability to take care of customers at their financial institution. And we've had some success in that area. We typically don't highlight it on these calls.

好，我試著把這些問題拆開來回答。我們當然一直都會尋找可以延攬的人才。這通常發生在有人對其金融機構無法好好照顧客戶的能力感到挫折時。我們在這方面也有一些成功案例。不過我們通常不會在這些電話會議中特別強調。

The de novo expansion, we're certainly excited about. A number of these communities that we'll enter are very attractive and we believe represent good opportunities. And on the M&A front, it happens when it happens. We'll continue to talk to institutions we think would be a cultural and strategic fit. But again, I would say more exploration at this point than serious conversation. That obviously can change, but I'd be candid right now.

至於從零開始（de novo）的擴張，我們確實感到很振奮。我們將進入的若干社區都非常具吸引力，我們相信代表著不錯的機會。而在併購（M&A）方面，該發生時就會發生。我們會持續與我們認為在文化與策略上契合的機構交流。但同樣地，我會說目前更多是在探索，而不是嚴肅的對話。這當然可能改變，但我現在會坦白這麼說。

Okay. And then on the expenses, the mid-single digit is off the fourth-quarter annualized base, not the full year 2025?

好的。那在費用方面，中個位數（mid-single digit）的增幅是以第四季年化的基期為準，而不是以2025年全年的基期嗎？

Yeah. I think you could -- I think the way to just simplify this is the full year 2025 the full year 2026 mid-single digits.

是的。我想你可以——我想簡化的說法是：2025全年、以及2026全年，都是中個位數。

Okay. All right. Thank you.

好的。好。謝謝。

Christopher McGratty, KBW.

Christopher McGratty，KBW。

Hey. Good morning. Tim or Dave, on the capital, we've heard from some of your peers, like the rating agencies are obviously one of the constituents you have to be mindful of as you consider the Basel III opportunities. How important is the TCE ratio over the next couple of years? I had one bank said that 8% is kind of a fine line, but any thoughts on balancing the ratios would be great.

嗨。早安。Tim或Dave，關於資本方面，我們聽到你們一些同業提到，當你們考量巴塞爾協議III（Basel III）的機會時，評級機構顯然是你們必須留意的利害關係人之一。未來幾年TCE比率有多重要？我有一家銀行說8%算是一條微妙的界線，你們對於如何平衡各項比率有什麼看法會很有幫助。

Yeah. The rating agencies, I think, acknowledge that our capital levels are sufficient given our risk profile. I think most of them understand that a third of our portfolio is in premium finance, which is low risk, and life, which is, unfortunately for us, it's been zero basis points of loss over the years. So from a risk-adjusted perspective, I think our capital is more than sufficient, and I think the rating agencies understand that.

是的。我認為評級機構也承認，以我們的風險概況來看，我們的資本水準是足夠的。我想他們大多了解，我們投資組合有三分之一在保費融資（premium finance），風險很低；以及人壽（life），對我們來說不幸的是，多年來損失一直是零個基點。所以從風險調整的角度來看，我認為我們的資本綽綽有餘，而我也認為評級機構理解這一點。

So we're very comfortable with where we're at right now. Our ratings have stayed stable and our capital has been growing. So even if we did a buyback and brought that down a little bit, I think we have room there. So we're comfortable with our capital levels and we're comfortable with how the rating agencies look at it right now.

因此我們對目前的位置非常放心。我們的評級維持穩定，資本也一直在成長。所以即便我們做庫藏股回購、讓它稍微下降一些，我認為我們也有空間。因此我們對資本水準感到安心，也對評級機構目前的看法感到安心。

And then as a follow-up, within the NII expectations, what's your mix assumption? I mean, DDA has grown on an end-of-period basis pretty solidly the last six months. Interested in kind of the seasonal patterns there and also just what's in your expectations going forward.

接著追問一下，在淨利息收入（NII）的預期之中，你們對組合（mix）的假設是什麼？我的意思是，DDA在過去六個月以期末（end-of-period）口徑來看成長相當穩健。我想了解那裡的季節性型態，以及你們對未來的預期。

Yeah. Well, as Tim said, I think the better way to look at DDA, because sometimes at quarter-ends and year-ends, there's fluctuations in the DDAs, I'd look at the average demand deposits. But I would suspect that the mix of the balance sheet would stay relatively the same.

是的。嗯，正如Tim所說，我認為看DDA更好的方式是——因為有時在季末與年末，DDA會有波動——我會看平均活期存款（average demand deposits）。但我預期資產負債表的組合會大致維持不變。

As we have good growth quarters, we tend to add more interest-bearing deposits than non-interest-bearing deposits. But the absolute dollar amount of DDA should stay relatively consistent on an average basis and then grow as we bring more customers in. But other than that growth in interest-bearing being a little bit faster than non-interest-bearing just because we need to do so to support the loan growth, I wouldn't expect big changes in the deposit mix.

當我們有不錯的成長季度時，我們往往增加的計息存款會多於不計息存款。但以平均口徑來看，DDA的絕對金額應會相對一致，並且隨著我們帶進更多客戶而成長。除此之外，計息存款的成長略快於不計息存款，主要只是因為我們需要這麼做來支撐放款成長；我不預期存款組合會有很大的變化。

All right. Perfect. Thank you.

好的。非常好。謝謝。

Thank you. I would now like to turn the conference back to Tim Crane for closing remarks. Sir?

謝謝。我現在想把會議交回給Tim Crane做結語。先生？

Lateef, thank you. Again, a good start to the year. We feel good about the outlook for 2026, and that's really a tribute to the great team we have at Wintrust. They are very focused on our strategic priorities. I want to thank them for all they do for the customers and the communities in which we operate, and most importantly, for our shareholders.

Lateef，謝謝你。再次強調，今年開局良好。我們對2026年的展望感到樂觀，而這確實要歸功於我們在Wintrust擁有的優秀團隊。他們非常專注於我們的策略重點。我要感謝他們為我們服務的客戶與所營運的社區所做的一切，更重要的是，為我們的股東所做的一切。

So with that, Lateef, thank you and hope everybody has a nice day.

那麼，Lateef，謝謝你，也希望大家今天愉快。

Thank you. This concludes today's conference call. Thank you for participating. You may now disconnect.

謝謝。今天的電話會議到此結束。感謝各位參與。您現在可以掛線。