First Bank FRBA

Competitive advantage analysis · financial-services

Bank Specialized
Overall moat score
55/100
Moderate

About First Bank

First Bank provides various banking products and services to small and mid-sized businesses and individuals. It accepts various deposits, including non-interest- and interest-bearing demand deposits, money market accounts, savings accounts, and certificates of deposit, as well as commercial checking and cash management accounts. The company also offers various loan products, such as commercial and industrial loans, which include line of … Full FRBA analysis →

Competitive advantage assessment

Key strengths

  • Diversified Revenue Streams Revenue diversification is evident (growth stability 0.62).

Key risks

  • Capital Adequacy Concerns Capital adequacy is concerning (score 0.33).

The dashed ring is the peer median. Defense scores are percentile ranks against peers, so 50 is roughly the typical company in this group.

Upgrade to unlock the signals and evidence behind each defense.

Premium access

Unlock full defense analysis

Get key signals, strengths, and risks for every moat dimension.

Upgrade to Premium Unlock all moat defenses and evidence.

Deposit Franchise

Moderate
55

Where FRBA ranks in Banks - Regional

First Bank ranks #163 of 393 scored companies in Banks - Regional by moat score — the top 41%. The widest moat in the group is 1st Source Corporation (SRCE) at 86/100.

Moat scores for companies ranked near FRBA in Banks - Regional
# Company Moat score Rating
159 Norwood Financial Corp. NWFL 56/100 Moderate
160 First Bancorp FBNC 56/100 Moderate
161 Arrow Financial Corporation AROW 56/100 Moderate
162 Hingham Institution for Savings HIFS 56/100 Moderate
163 First Bank FRBA 55/100 Moderate
164 Shinhan Financial Group Co Ltd SHG 54/100 Moderate
165 HDFC Bank Limited HDB 54/100 Moderate
166 WSFS Financial Corporation WSFS 54/100 Moderate
167 Hanmi Financial Corporation HAFC 54/100 Moderate

See every Banks & Lenders company ranked by moat score →

How FRBA scores on the Bank Specialized defenses

Deposit Franchise

Score 55 · 22% of the moat score

A deposit franchise is the cheapest and most valuable thing a bank can own.

Lending Advantage

Score 57 · 18% of the moat score

Lending advantage is the ability to originate loans at attractive spreads without buying that volume with looser credit standards.

Capital Strength

Score 43 · 20% of the moat score

Capital is the buffer between loan losses and insolvency, and it is what regulators judge a bank on first.

Cost Discipline

Score 58 · 16% of the moat score

Banking carries high fixed costs in branches, compliance and technology, so what it costs to run the bank relative to what the bank earns is a genuine competitive variable.

Revenue Diversification

Score 69 · 14% of the moat score

A bank earning everything from net interest income is a leveraged bet on the rate cycle.

Risk Management

Score 48 · 10% of the moat score

Risk management is the defense that only reveals itself late.

How each Bank Specialized defense is measured, in full →

Understanding FRBA's moat

What is First Bank's moat score?

First Bank (FRBA) scores 55 out of 100 on the StatsAlpha Moat Map, which rates its competitive advantage as moderate. It ranks #163 of 393 scored companies in Banks - Regional, the top 41%. The score is a weighted composite of 6 competitive defenses, each measured against industry peers of 399 companies in Banks - Regional. Its strongest defense is Revenue Diversification (69/100) and its weakest is Capital Strength (43/100).

How does First Bank compare with other Banks - Regional companies?

First Bank ranks #163 of 393 scored companies in Banks - Regional by moat score. The widest moat in Banks - Regional is 1st Source Corporation (SRCE) at 86/100. The companies ranked closest are Hingham Institution for Savings (HIFS) at 56 just above it and Shinhan Financial Group Co Ltd (SHG) at 54 just below it.

How is the moat score calculated?

Each company is scored with an industry-specific template — Bank Specialized in this case, chosen because the defenses that matter to a bank are not the ones that matter to a software company. Every defense combines several financial signals, and each signal is measured as a percentile against a peer group of 399 companies in Banks - Regional. The defenses are then weighted to produce the overall score out of 100.

Why is First Bank scored with the Bank Specialized template?

A bank does not sell a product at a margin. It funds itself, lends at a spread, and books profits that remain an estimate until the loans are actually repaid. That makes the usual margin-and-return questions misleading, so the Bank template scores what really determines a bank's durability: where its funding comes from, what it lends against, how much capital stands behind it, and whether it has been pricing risk honestly.

Which competitive defenses are measured for First Bank?

The Bank Specialized template measures 6 defenses, and FRBA scores: Deposit Franchise (55), Lending Advantage (57), Capital Strength (43), Cost Discipline (58), Revenue Diversification (69), Risk Management (48). Each is scored independently as a percentile against peers, so a company can be strong on one and weak on another — the overall score reflects how those defenses are weighted for this industry.

Send Feedback
Please select a category.
0/1000