Columbia Banking System (COLB) 2026 RBC Capital Markets Global Financial Institutions Conference summary

Strategic overview and recent developments

• Completed acquisition of Pacific Premier Bank, finalizing the envisioned franchise and expanding presence to over 350 locations in eight western states, with a strong focus on California, Oregon, and Washington.

• Recent years have seen the integration of three large banks, with current focus shifting from expansion to optimizing and fine-tuning operations and processes.

• Emphasis on leveraging technology and streamlining processes to enhance efficiency and customer experience.

• No current plans for further M&A; focus is on internal improvements and organic growth in new markets like Utah, Colorado, and Arizona.

• Significant collaboration and momentum within the organization, with a strong sense of optimism for the year ahead.

Economic and regional outlook

• Western footprint remains healthy, with business owners resuming expansion plans after a period of uncertainty, leading to strong C&I growth in late 2023 and early 2024.

• Monitoring business climate in Portland and Seattle due to less business-friendly policies and recent tax increases, which may impact long-term business retention.

• Flexibility to relocate non-customer-facing roles across the footprint to mitigate regional challenges.

• Continued vibrancy in major states despite some companies relocating; overall outlook remains positive.

Financial strategy and balance sheet management

• Strategic shift in finance team to focus on scenario planning and deeper business analysis, including quarterly business reviews.

• Asset side optimization involves reducing transactional-only loans (currently $7.85B), with $1B–$1.5B expected to run off and be replaced by higher-yielding core relationship lending.

• Loan portfolio repricing is driving positive operating leverage, with new loans coming in at 6–7% versus 4–4.5% for runoff loans.

• Balance sheet size is no longer a primary focus; profitability and market cap targets drive strategy, with current assets at $68B.