CSBS Community Bank Case Study Competition Begins

Washington, D.C. - Judging has begun for the Conference of State Bank Supervisors 2026 Community Bank Case Study Competition. Thirty-five teams from 28 colleges and universities across the nation have entered to compete for scholarships and academic recognition.

Each team has partnered with a local community bank to examine its approach to interest rate risk, lending decisions, and response to inflation since 2020. Teams will also analyze how banks manage and maintain adequate capital through various strategies.

This is the twelfth year of the competition, which is open to undergraduate students in all fields of study as an opportunity to gain valuable first-hand knowledge of the banking industry.

There will be three rounds of judging over the next four weeks, with the first round announced on April 22. The winning team will be announced via livestream from the CSBS's State-Federal Supervisory Forum on May 13.

Each student member and faculty advisor of the first-place winning team will receive a $1,000 scholarship and be invited to present annual Community Banking Research Conference. Their work will be published in the annual CSBS Journal of Community Bank Case Studies. Teams that place second and third will also receive scholarships, and their work will be published in the journal.

Student teams participating in the 2026 CSBS Community Bank Case Study Competition attend the following universities:

• Arkansas State University (Two Teams), Arkansas
• Auburn University (Two Teams), Alabama
• Austin Peay State University, Tennessee
• Central Washington University, Washington
• Illinois State University, Illinois
• Iowa State University, Iowa
• Louisiana State University, Louisiana
• Mercer University (Two Teams), Georgia
• Messiah University, Pennsylvania
• Metropolitan State University of Denver (Three Teams), Colorado
• Mississippi State University, Mississippi
• Purdue University, Indiana
• Rosemont College, Pennsylvania
• Samford University, Alabama
• Seton Hall University, New Jersey
• Southeast Missouri State University, Missouri
• Southeastern Louisiana University, Louisiana
• Tennessee Technological University, Tennessee
• Trine University, Indiana
• University of Maryland, College Park (Three Teams), Maryland
• University of New Mexico, New Mexico
• University of Northern Iowa, Iowa
• University of Southern Mississippi, Mississippi
• University of Tennessee at Martin, Tennessee
• University of Texas at El Paso, Texas
• Ursinus College, Pennsylvania
• Western Connecticut State University, Connecticut
• Western Michigan University, Michigan

Learn more at https://www.csbs.org/bankcasestudy.