ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS

Before deciding to invest in us or deciding to maintain or increase your investment, you should carefully consider the risks described below, in addition to the other information contained in this report and in our other filings with the SEC. The risks and uncertainties described below and in our other filings are not the only ones facing us. Additional risks and uncertainties not presently known to us or that we currently deem immaterial may also affect our business. If any of these known or unknown risks or uncertainties actually occur, our business, financial condition and results of operations could be seriously harmed. In that event, the market price for our common stock could decline and you may lose some or all of your investment.

Risks Related to our Banking Business

Our banking business is highly regulated, which could limit or restrict our activities, and changes in banking laws and regulations could have a material adverse effect on our business.

We are subject to regulation and supervision by the Federal Reserve, and the Bank is subject to regulation and supervision by the Commissioner and the FDIC. Federal and state laws and regulations govern numerous matters affecting us, including changes in the ownership or control of banks and bank holding companies; maintenance of adequate capital and the financial condition of a financial institution; permissible types, amounts and terms of extensions of credit and investments; permissible non-banking activities; the level of reserves against deposits and restrictions on dividend payments. The FDIC and the Commissioner have the power to issue cease and desist orders to prevent or remedy unsafe or unsound practices or violations of law by banks subject to their regulation, and the Federal Reserve possesses similar powers with respect to bank holding companies. These and other restrictions limit the manner in which we and the Bank may conduct business and obtain financing.

The laws, rules, regulations and supervisory guidance and policies applicable to us are subject to regular modification and change. These changes could adversely and materially impact us. Such changes could subject us to additional costs, including costs of compliance, limit the types of financial services and products we may offer, and/or increase the ability of non-banks to offer competing financial services and products, among other things. Failure to comply with laws, regulations, policies, or supervisory guidance could result in enforcement and other legal actions by federal or state authorities, including criminal and civil penalties, the loss of FDIC insurance, revocation of a banking charter, other sanctions by regulatory agencies, civil money penalties, and/or reputational damage, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, and results of operations. See Part I. Item 1. “Business - Supervision and Regulation.”

We are subject to capital and liquidity standards that require banks and bank holding companies to maintain more and higher quality capital and greater liquidity than has historically been the case.

We became subject to new capital requirements in 2015. These new standards, which now apply and will be fully phased-in over the next several years, require bank holding companies and their bank subsidiaries to maintain substantially higher levels of capital as a percentage of their assets, with a greater emphasis on common equity as opposed to other components of capital. The need to maintain more and higher quality capital, as well as greater liquidity, and generally increased regulatory scrutiny with respect to capital levels, may at some point limit our business activities, including lending, and our ability to grow our business. It could also result in our being required to take steps to increase our regulatory capital and may dilute shareholder value or limit our ability to pay dividends or otherwise return capital to our investors through stock repurchases. Pursuant to new rules under the Dodd-Frank Act, we were permitted to make a one-time, permanent election to continue to exclude accumulated other comprehensive income from capital. The Company has made this election.

We are subject to numerous laws designed to protect consumers, including the Community Reinvestment Act and fair lending laws, and any failure to comply with these laws could lead to a wide variety of sanctions.

The Community Reinvestment Act, the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, the Fair Housing Act and other fair lending laws and regulations impose community investment and nondiscriminatory lending requirements on financial institutions. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the Department of Justice and other federal agencies are responsible for enforcing these laws and regulations. A successful regulatory challenge to an institution’s performance under the Community Reinvestment Act, the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, the Fair Housing Act or other fair lending laws and regulations could result in a wide variety of sanctions, including damages and civil money penalties, injunctive relief, restrictions on mergers and acquisitions, restrictions on expansion and restrictions on entering new business lines. Private parties may also have the ability to challenge an institution’s performance under fair lending laws in private class action litigation. Such actions could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

The soundness of other financial institutions could adversely affect us.  

Our ability to engage in routine funding transactions could be adversely affected by the actions and commercial soundness of other financial institutions.  Financial services institutions are interrelated as a result of trading, clearing, counterparty and other relationships.  We have exposure to many different financial institutions, and we routinely execute transactions with counterparties in the financial industry, including brokers and dealers, other commercial banks, investment banks, mutual and hedge funds, and other financial institutions.  As a result, defaults by, or even rumors or questions about, one or more financial services institutions, or the financial services industry generally, could lead to market-wide liquidity problems and losses or defaults by us or by other institutions and organizations.  Many of these transactions expose us to credit risk in the event of default of our counterparty or client.  In addition, our credit risk may be exacerbated when the collateral held by us cannot be liquidated or is liquidated at prices not sufficient to recover the full amount of the financial instrument exposure due to us.  There is no assurance that any such losses would not materially and adversely affect our results of operations.

Deterioration in local economies or real estate markets could negatively impact our banking business.

The Private Banking segment primarily serves individuals and smaller businesses located in three geographic regions: New England, the San Francisco Bay Area, and Southern California. The ability of the Bank’s clients to repay their loans is impacted by the economic conditions in these areas.

The Bank’s commercial loans are generally concentrated in the following client groups:

The Bank’s commercial loans, with limited exceptions, are secured by real estate (usually income producing residential and commercial properties), marketable securities, or corporate assets (usually accounts receivable, equipment or inventory). Substantially all of the Bank’s residential mortgage and home equity loans are secured by residential property. Consequently, the Bank’s ability to continue to originate real estate loans may be impaired by adverse changes in local and regional economic conditions in the real estate markets, or by acts of nature, including earthquakes, hurricanes, and flooding. Due to the concentration of real estate collateral in the geographic regions in which we operate, these events could have a material adverse impact on the ability of the Bank’s borrowers to repay their loans and affect the value of the collateral securing these loans.

Competition in the banking industry may impair our ability to attract and retain banking clients at current levels.

Competition in the markets in which the Bank operates may limit the ability of the Bank to attract and retain banking clients. The Bank’s competitors include several major financial companies whose greater resources may afford them a marketplace advantage by enabling them to maintain numerous banking locations and mount extensive promotional and advertising campaigns. Additionally, banks and other financial institutions with larger capitalization and financial intermediaries not subject to bank regulatory restrictions have larger lending limits and are able to serve the credit and investment needs of larger clients. The Bank also faces competition from out-of-state financial intermediaries that have opened low-end production offices or that solicit deposits in its respective market areas from other remote locations. There is also increased competition by out-of-market competitors through the Internet. Because the Bank maintains a smaller staff and has fewer financial and other resources than larger institutions with which it competes, it may be limited in its ability to attract clients. In addition, the Bank’s current commercial banking clients may seek alternative banking sources as they develop needs for credit facilities larger than the Bank can accommodate. If the Bank is unable to attract and retain banking clients, it may be unable to continue its deposit and loan growth and its results of operations and financial condition may otherwise be negatively impacted.

Market changes may adversely affect demand for the Bank’s services and impact results of operations.

Channels for servicing the Bank’s customers are evolving rapidly, with less reliance on traditional branch facilities, more use of online and mobile banking, and increased demand for universal bankers and other relationship managers who can service multiple product lines. The Bank competes with larger providers that are rapidly evolving their service offerings and escalating the costs of the Bank’s efforts to keep pace. The Bank has a process for evaluating the profitability of its branch

system and other office and operational facilities. The identification of unprofitable operations and facilities can lead to restructuring charges and introduce the risk of disruptions to revenues and customer relationships.

Our cost of funds for banking operations may increase as a result of general economic conditions, interest rates and competitive pressures.

The Bank has traditionally obtained funds principally through deposits and borrowings. As a general matter, deposits are a cheaper source of funds than borrowings, because interest rates paid for deposits are typically less than interest rates charged for borrowings. We compete with banks and other financial institutions for deposits. If, as a result of general economic conditions, market interest rates, competitive pressures, or otherwise, the amount of deposits at the Bank decreases relative to its overall banking operations, the Bank may have to rely more heavily on higher cost borrowings as a source of funds in the future. Higher funding costs reduce our net interest margin, net interest income, and net income.

Potential downgrades of U.S. government securities by one or more of the credit ratings agencies could have a material adverse effect on our operations, earnings and financial condition.

A possible future downgrade of the sovereign credit ratings of the U.S. government and a decline in the perceived creditworthiness of U.S. government-related obligations could impact our ability to obtain funding that is collateralized by these affected instruments held by us, as well as affect the pricing of that funding when it is available. A downgrade may also adversely affect the market value of such instruments held by us. We cannot predict if, when or how any changes to the credit ratings or perceived creditworthiness of these organizations will affect economic conditions. Such ratings actions could result in a significant adverse impact on us. Among other things, a further downgrade in the U.S. government’s credit rating could adversely impact the value of our securities portfolio and may trigger requirements that the Company post additional collateral for trades relative to these securities. A downgrade of the sovereign credit ratings of the U.S. government or the credit ratings of related institutions, agencies or instruments would significantly exacerbate the other risks to which we are subject and any related adverse effects on the business, financial condition and results of operations.

Defaults in the repayment of loans may require additional loan loss reserves and negatively impact our banking business.

A borrower’s default on its obligations under one or more Bank loans may result in lost principal and interest income and increased operating expenses as a result of the allocation of management time and resources to the collection and work-out of the loan. In certain situations, where collection efforts are unsuccessful or acceptable work-out arrangements cannot be reached, the Bank may have to charge-off the loan in whole or in part. In such situations, the Bank may acquire real estate or other assets, if any, which secure the loan through foreclosure or other similar available remedies. In such cases, the amount owed under the defaulted loan may exceed the value of the assets acquired.

The Bank’s management periodically makes a determination of an allowance for loan losses based on available information, including the quality of its loan portfolio, certain economic conditions, the rate of defaulted loans, the value of the underlying collateral, and the level of its nonaccruing and criticized loans. We rely on our loan quality reviews, our experience and our evaluation of economic conditions, among other factors, in determining the level required for the allowance for loan losses. If management determines that further increases in the allowance for loan losses are necessary, we will incur additional expenses.

If it is determined that the Bank should sell certain loans or a portfolio of loans, we are required to classify those loans as “held for sale” which requires us to carry such loans at the lower of their amortized cost or market value. If we decide to sell loans at a time when the fair value of those loans is less than their carrying value, the adjustment will result in a charge to the allowance for loan losses if the decline in value is due to credit issues. We may from time to time decide to sell particular loans or groups of loans, and the required adjustment could negatively affect our financial condition or results of operations.

In addition, bank regulatory agencies periodically review the Bank’s allowance for loan losses and the values it attributes to real estate acquired through foreclosure or other similar remedies. Such regulatory agencies may require the Bank to adjust its determination of the value for these items. These adjustments could negatively impact our results of operations or financial condition.

Fluctuations in interest rates may negatively impact our banking business.

The Bank’s earnings and financial condition are largely dependent on net interest income, which represents the difference between the interest income earned on interest-bearing assets (usually loans and investment securities) and the interest expense incurred in connection with interest-bearing liabilities (usually deposits and borrowings). The relative rates of interest we earn and pay are highly sensitive to many factors beyond our control, including general economic conditions,

changes in monetary or fiscal policies of the Federal Reserve and other governmental authorities. A narrowing of this interest rate spread could adversely affect the Bank’s net interest income, which also could negatively impact its earnings and financial condition. As a result, the Bank has adopted asset and liability management policies to mitigate the potential adverse effects of changes in interest rates on net interest income, primarily by altering the mix and maturity of loans, investments funding sources, and derivatives. However, even with these policies in place, a change in interest rates can impact our results of operations or financial condition.

An increase in interest rates could also have a negative impact on the Bank’s results of operations by reducing the ability of borrowers to repay their current loan obligations, which could not only result in increased loan defaults, foreclosures, and charge-offs, but also necessitate increases to our allowances for loan losses.

Similarly, rising interest rates may increase the cost of deposits, which are a primary source of funding. While we actively manage against these risks through hedging and other risk management strategies, if our assumptions regarding borrower behavior are wrong or overall economic conditions are significantly different than anticipated, our risk mitigation techniques may be insufficient.

Prepayments of loans may negatively impact our banking business.

Generally, the Bank’s clients may prepay the principal amount of their outstanding loans at any time. The rate at which such prepayments occur, as well as the size of such prepayments, are within our clients’ discretion. Fluctuations in interest rates, in certain circumstances, may also lead to high levels of loan prepayments, which may also have an adverse impact on our net interest income. If clients prepay the principal amount of their loans, and we are unable to lend those funds to other borrowers or invest the funds at the same or higher interest rates, our interest income will be reduced. A significant reduction in interest income could have a negative impact on our results of operations and financial condition.

Our loan portfolio includes commercial loans, commercial real estate loans, and construction and land loans, which are generally riskier than other types of loans.

At December 31, 2016 , our commercial loans, commercial real estate loans, and construction and land loans portfolios comprised 49% of total loans. Commercial loans generally carry larger loan balances and involve a higher risk of nonpayment or late payment than residential mortgage loans. These loans may lack standardized terms and may include a balloon payment feature. The ability of a borrower to make or refinance a balloon payment may be affected by a number of factors, including the financial condition of the borrower, prevailing economic conditions, interest rates, and collateral values. Repayment of these loans is generally more dependent on the economy and the successful operation of the underlying business. Because of the risks associated with commercial loans, we may experience higher rates of default than if our loan portfolio were more heavily weighted toward residential mortgage loans. Higher rates of default could have an adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

Environmental liability associated with commercial lending could result in losses.

In the course of business, the Bank may acquire, through foreclosure or other similar proceedings, properties securing loans it has originated or purchased which are in default. Particularly in commercial real estate lending, there is a risk that material environmental violations could be discovered at these properties. In this event, we or the Bank might be required to remedy these violations at the affected properties at our sole cost and expense. The cost of this remedial action could substantially exceed the value of affected properties. We may not have adequate remedies against the prior owner or other responsible parties and could find it difficult or impossible to sell the affected properties as a result of their condition. These events could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.

Risks Related to our Investment Management, Wealth Advisory, and Wealth Management and Trust Businesses

Our Investment Management, Wealth Advisory, and Wealth Management and Trust businesses are highly regulated, and the regulators have the ability to limit or restrict our activities and impose fines or suspensions on the conduct of our business.

Our Investment Management, Wealth Advisory, and Wealth Management and Trust businesses are highly regulated, primarily at the federal level. The failure of any of our subsidiaries that provide investment management, wealth advisory, or wealth management and trust services to comply with applicable laws or regulations could result in fines, suspensions of individual employees or other sanctions including revocation of such affiliate’s registration as an investment adviser.

All of our Investment Management, Wealth Advisory, and Wealth Management and Trust affiliates are RIAs under the Advisers Act. The Advisers Act imposes numerous obligations on RIAs, including fiduciary, record keeping, operational and disclosure obligations. These subsidiaries, as investment advisers, are also subject to regulation under the federal and state securities laws and the fiduciary laws of certain states. In addition, the affiliates acting as sub-advisers to mutual funds are subject to certain provisions and regulations of the 1940 Act.

We are also subject to the provisions and regulations of ERISA to the extent that we act as a “fiduciary” under ERISA with respect to certain of our clients. ERISA and the applicable provisions of the federal tax laws, impose a number of duties on persons who are fiduciaries under ERISA and prohibit certain transactions involving the assets of each ERISA plan which is a client, as well as certain transactions by the fiduciaries (and certain other related parties) to such plans.

In addition, applicable law provides that all investment contracts with mutual fund clients may be terminated by the clients, without penalty, upon no more than 60 days’ notice. Investment contracts with institutional and other clients are typically terminable by the client, also without penalty, upon 30 days’ notice.

Changes in these laws or regulations could have a material adverse impact on our profitability and mode of operations.

Our Investment Management, Wealth Advisory, and Wealth Management and Trust businesses may be negatively impacted by changes in economic and market conditions.

Our Investment Management, Wealth Advisory, and Wealth Management and Trust businesses may be negatively impacted by changes in general economic and market conditions because the performance of such business is directly affected by conditions in the financial and securities markets. The financial markets and businesses operating in the securities industry are highly volatile (meaning that performance results can vary greatly within short periods of time) and are directly affected by, among other factors, domestic and foreign economic conditions and general trends in business and finance, all of which are beyond our control. We cannot assure you that broad market performance will be favorable in the future. Declines in the financial markets or a lack of sustained growth may result in a corresponding decline in our performance and may adversely affect the assets that we manage.

In addition, our management contracts generally provide for fees payable for investment management, wealth advisory, and wealth management and trust services based on the market value of assets under management, although there are a portion of our contracts that provide for the payment of fees based on investment performance in addition to a base fee. Because most contracts provide for a fee based on market values of securities, fluctuations in the underlying securities values may have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition.

We may not be able to attract and retain investment management, wealth advisory, and wealth management and trust clients due to competition.

Due to intense competition, our Investment Management, Wealth Advisory, and Wealth Management and Trust subsidiaries may not be able to attract and retain clients. Competition is especially strong in our geographic market areas because there are numerous well-established, well-resourced, well-capitalized, and successful investment management, wealth advisory, and wealth management and trust firms in these areas.

Our ability to successfully attract and retain investment management, wealth advisory, and wealth management and trust clients is dependent upon our ability to compete with competitors’ investment products, level of investment performance, client services and marketing and distribution capabilities. If we are not successful, our results of operations and financial condition may be negatively impacted.

Investment management contracts are typically terminable upon less than 30 days’ notice. Most of our investment management clients may withdraw funds from accounts under management generally in their sole discretion. Wealth advisory client contracts must typically be renewed on an annual basis and are terminable upon relatively short notice. The combined financial performance of our Investment Management, Wealth Advisory, and Wealth Management and Trust affiliates is a significant factor in our overall results of operations and financial condition.

Our Investment Management, Wealth Advisory, and Wealth Management and Trust businesses are highly dependent on investment managers to produce investment returns and to solicit and retain clients, and the loss of a key investment manager or wealth advisor could adversely affect our Investment Management, Wealth Advisory, and Wealth Management and Trust business.

We rely on our investment managers and wealth advisors to produce investment returns and to advise clients. We believe that investment performance is one of the most important factors for the growth of our assets under management. Poor investment performance could impair our revenues and growth because existing clients might withdraw funds in favor of better performing products, which would result in lower investment management fees, or our ability to attract funds from existing and new clients might diminish.

The market for investment managers is extremely competitive and is increasingly characterized by frequent movement of investment managers among different firms. In addition, our individual investment managers and wealth advisors often have regular direct contact with particular clients, which can lead to a strong client relationship based on the client’s trust in that individual manager or advisor. The loss of a key investment manager or wealth advisor could jeopardize our relationships with our clients and lead to the loss of client accounts. Losses of such accounts could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition.

Risks Related to Our Overall Business and Operations

Our business and earnings have been adversely affected, and may in the future be adversely affected, by the U.S. and international financial markets and economic conditions.

The performance of our business has been and may in the future be adversely affected by general business and economic conditions in the U.S., including the level and volatility of short- and long-term interest rates, inflation, home prices, unemployment and under-employment levels, bankruptcies, household income, consumer spending, fluctuations in both debt and equity capital markets, liquidity of the global financial markets, the availability and cost of credit, and investor confidence. While in recent years there has been gradual improvement in the U.S. economy, deterioration of any of these conditions can adversely affect our residential portfolio, consumer and commercial businesses, and securities portfolios, as well as our earnings.

We may incur significant losses as a result of ineffective risk management processes and strategies.

We seek to monitor and control our risk exposure through a risk and control framework encompassing a variety of separate but complementary financial, credit, operational, compliance, and legal reporting systems; internal controls; management review processes; and other mechanisms. While we employ a broad and diversified set of risk monitoring and risk mitigation techniques, those techniques and the judgments that accompany their application may not be effective and may not anticipate every economic and financial outcome in all market environments or the specifics and timing of such outcomes. Market conditions over the last several years have involved unprecedented dislocations and highlight the limitations inherent in using historical data to manage risk.

We may be unable to attract and retain key employees.

Our success depends, in large part, on our ability to attract and retain key employees. Competition for the best people can be intense and we may not be able to hire or retain the key employees that we depend upon for success. The unexpected loss of services of one or more of our key employees could have a material adverse impact on our business because of their skills, knowledge of the customers and the markets in which we operate, years of industry experience, and the difficulty of promptly finding qualified replacement employees.

Our ability to attract and retain clients and employees, and to maintain relationships with vendors, third-party service providers and others, could be adversely affected to the extent our reputation is harmed.

We are dependent on our reputation within our market area, as a trusted and responsible financial company, for all aspects of our relationships with clients, employees, vendors, third-party service providers, and others with whom we conduct business or potential future business. Our ability to attract and retain clients and employees at our Private Banking, Wealth Management and Trust, Investment Management, and Wealth Advisory subsidiaries could be adversely affected to the extent our reputation is damaged. Our actual or perceived failure to address various issues could give rise to reputational risk that could cause harm to us and our business prospects. These issues include, but are not limited to, legal and regulatory requirements; privacy; properly maintaining client and employee personal information; record keeping; money-laundering; sales and trading practices; ethical issues; appropriately addressing potential conflicts of interest; and the proper identification and disclosure of the legal, reputational, credit, liquidity, and market risks inherent in our products. Failure to appropriately address any of these issues could also give rise to additional regulatory restrictions, reputational harm, and legal risks, which could, among other consequences, increase the size and number of litigation claims and damages asserted or subject us to enforcement actions, fines, and penalties and cause us to incur related costs and expenses. In addition, our Investment Management, Wealth Advisory, and Wealth Management and Trust businesses are dependent on the integrity of our asset managers and our employees. If an asset manager or employee were to misappropriate any client funds, the reputation of our asset management business could be negatively affected, which may result in the loss of accounts and have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition.

We may not be able to successfully implement future information technology system enhancements, which could adversely affect our business operations and profitability.

We invest significant resources in information technology system enhancements in order to provide functionality and security at an appropriate level. We may not be able to successfully implement and integrate future system enhancements, which could adversely impact the ability to provide timely and accurate financial information in compliance with legal and regulatory requirements and result in possible sanctions from regulatory authorities. Such sanctions could include fines and suspension of trading in our stock, among others. In addition, future system enhancements could have higher than expected costs and/or result in operating inefficiencies, which could increase the costs associated with the implementation as well as ongoing operations.

Failure to properly utilize system enhancements that are implemented in the future could result in impairment charges that adversely impact our financial condition and results of operations and could result in significant costs to remediate or replace the defective components. In addition, we may incur significant training, licensing, maintenance, consulting and amortization expenses during and after systems implementations, and any such costs may continue for an extended period of time.

We rely on other companies to provide key components of our business infrastructure.

Third party vendors provide key components of our business infrastructure such as internet connections, network access and core application processing. While we have selected these third party vendors carefully, using established criteria and complying with applicable regulatory guidance to evaluate each vendor’s overall risk profile, capabilities, financial stability, and internal control environment, we do not control their daily business environment and actions. Any problems caused by these third parties, including as a result of their not providing us their services for any reason or their performing their services poorly, could adversely affect our ability to deliver products and services to our customers, impair our ability to conduct our business efficiently and effectively, and/or result in regulatory action, financial loss, litigation, and loss of reputation. Replacing these third party vendors could also entail significant delay and expense.

We face continuing and growing security risks to our information base, including the information we maintain relating to our customers.

In the ordinary course of business, we rely on electronic communications and information systems to conduct our business and to store sensitive data, including our confidential information and financial and personal information regarding customers. Our electronic communications and information systems infrastructure could be susceptible to cyberattacks, hacking, identity theft, computer viruses, malicious code, phishing attacks, terrorist activity or other information security breaches. This risk has increased significantly due to the use of online, telephonic and mobile banking channels by clients and the increased sophistication and activities of organized crime, hackers, terrorists and other external parties. We have implemented and regularly review and update extensive systems of internal controls and procedures as well as corporate governance policies and procedures intended to protect our business operations, including the security and privacy of all confidential customer information. In addition, we rely on the services of a variety of vendors to meet our data processing and communication needs. No matter how well designed or implemented our controls are, we cannot provide an absolute guarantee to protect our business operations from every type of

problem in every situation. A failure or circumvention of these controls could have a material adverse effect on our business operations and financial condition.

We regularly assess and test our security systems and disaster preparedness, including back-up systems, but the risks are substantially escalating. As a result, cybersecurity and the continued enhancement of our controls and processes to protect our systems, data and networks from attacks, unauthorized access or significant damage remain a priority. Accordingly, we may be required to expend additional resources to enhance our protective measures or to investigate and remediate any information security vulnerabilities or exposures. Any breach of our system security could result in disruption of our operations, unauthorized access to confidential customer information, violations of applicable privacy and other laws, significant regulatory costs, litigation exposure and other possible damages, loss or liability. Such costs or losses could exceed the amount of our available insurance coverage, if any, and would adversely affect our earnings. Also, any failure to prevent a security breach or to quickly and effectively deal with such a breach could negatively impact customer confidence, damaging our reputation and undermining our ability to attract and keep customers.

We are subject to extensive and expanding government regulation and supervision, which can lead to costly enforcement actions while increasing the cost of doing business and limiting our ability to generate revenue.

The financial services industry is facing more intense scrutiny from bank supervisors in the examination process and more aggressive enforcement of regulations on both the federal and state levels, particularly with respect to mortgage-related practices and other consumer compliance matters, and compliance with anti-money laundering, BSA and OFAC regulations, and economic sanctions against certain foreign countries and nationals. Enforcement actions may be initiated for violations of laws and regulations and unsafe or unsound practices. We maintain systems and procedures designed to ensure that we comply with applicable laws and regulations; however, some legal/regulatory frameworks provide for the imposition of fines or penalties for noncompliance even though the noncompliance was inadvertent or unintentional and even though there were systems and procedures designed to ensure compliance in place at the time. Failure to comply with these and other regulations, and supervisory expectations related thereto, may result in fines, penalties, lawsuits, regulatory sanctions, reputational damage, or restrictions on our business.

We face significant legal risks, both from regulatory investigations and proceedings and from private actions brought against us.

From time to time we are named as a defendant or are otherwise involved in various legal proceedings, including class actions and other litigation or disputes with third parties. There is no assurance that litigation with private parties will not increase in the future. Future actions against us may result in judgments, settlements, fines, penalties or other results adverse to us, which could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition or results of operations, or cause serious reputational harm to us. As a participant in the financial services industry, it is likely that we could experience a high level of litigation related to our businesses and operations.

To the extent that we acquire or seek to acquire other companies in the future, our business may be negatively impacted by certain risks inherent in such acquisitions.

We continue to consider the acquisition of other private banking, wealth management and trust, investment management, and wealth advisory companies as well as companies with other potential capabilities in the financial services industry. To the extent that we acquire or seek to acquire other companies in the future, our business may be negatively impacted by certain risks inherent in such acquisitions. These risks include, but are not limited to, the following:

As a result of these risks, any given acquisition, if and when consummated, may adversely affect our results of operations or financial condition. In addition, because the consideration for an acquisition may involve cash, debt or the issuance of shares of our stock and may involve the payment of a premium over book and market values, existing stockholders may experience dilution in connection with any acquisition.

Risks Related to Accounting and Accounting Changes

Our financial statements are based in part on assumptions and estimates, which, if wrong, could cause unexpected losses in the future.

Pursuant to accounting principles generally accepted in the U.S. (“GAAP”), we are required to use certain assumptions and estimates in preparing our financial statements, including in determining loan loss reserves, reserves related to litigation, if any, and the fair value of certain assets and liabilities, among other items. If assumptions or estimates underlying our financial statements are incorrect, we may experience material fluctuations in our results of operations. For additional information, see Part II. Item 7. “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations - Critical Accounting Policies.”

Changes in accounting standards can be difficult to predict and can materially impact how we record and report our financial condition and results of operations.

Our accounting policies and methods are fundamental to how we record and report our financial condition and results of operations. From time to time, the Financial Accounting Standards Board changes the financial accounting and reporting standards that govern the preparation of our financial statements. These changes can be hard to anticipate and implement and can materially impact how we record and report our financial condition and results of operations.

Goodwill and other intangible asset impairment would negatively affect our financial condition and results of operations.

Generally, the acquirer in a business combination is willing to pay more for a business than the sum of the fair values of the individual assets and liabilities because of other inherent value associated with an assembled business. The resulting excess of the consideration transferred over the net fair value of the acquisition-date amounts of the identifiable assets acquired and liabilities assumed, is recognized as goodwill. An essential part of the acquisition method is the recognition and measurement of identifiable intangible assets, separate from goodwill, at fair value. At December 31, 2016 , our goodwill and net intangible assets totaled $169.3 million .

Under current accounting standards, goodwill acquired in a business combination is recognized as an asset and not amortized. Instead, goodwill is tested for impairment on an annual basis, or more frequently if there is an indication of impairment. Long-lived intangible assets are amortized and are tested for recoverability whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of the asset or asset group may not be recoverable.

If we determine goodwill or intangible assets are impaired, we will be required to write down the value of these assets. In December 2016, we incurred a pre-tax $9.5 million goodwill impairment charge at Boston Private Wealth as part of our annual impairment testing. We cannot assure you that we will not be required to take further impairment charges in the future. Any impairment charge would have a negative effect on our shareholders’ equity and financial results.

Net outflows of assets under management at Anchor and Boston Private Wealth in recent years have negatively impacted their financial results. In addition, any decline in the U.S. equity markets would have a further negative impact on assets under management at these firms. If net outflows at these firms continue and/or the U.S. equity markets decline, the risk of impairment will increase. In addition to current financial results, other information such as forecasted earnings and market comparisons for these types of firms is used to determine the fair value of these firms and whether there is indication of impairment.

In evaluating whether it is more likely than not that the fair value of a reporting unit is less than its carrying amount, an entity assesses relevant events and circumstances, such as the following:

Material negative changes in the assumptions or inputs in to the valuation models will increase the risk of impairment. The Company will continue to monitor the events and circumstances at Anchor, Boston Private Wealth, and its other subsidiaries with goodwill and/or intangibles for indication of a triggering event that would necessitate impairment testing prior to the usual testing in the fourth quarter.

Our deferred tax assets may not ultimately be realized or our tax positions may be subject to challenge by taxing authorities.

Our deferred tax assets may provide significant future tax savings. Our use of these deferred tax benefits may depend on a number of factors including our ability to generate significant future taxable income; the character of that income (ordinary versus capital); the absence of a future ownership change that could limit or eliminate the tax benefits; the acceptance by the taxing authorities of the positions taken on our tax returns as to the amount and timing of our income and expenses; and future changes in laws or regulations relating to tax credits, tax deductions, and net operating losses. At December 31, 2016 , our net deferred tax assets were $55.5 million . If corporate federal and or state tax rates increase or decrease from the current rates, we would be required to revalue the net deferred tax assets at the new rates. A decrease in tax rates would require us to revalue the net deferred tax assets lower with a corresponding income tax expense. An increase in tax rates would require us to revalue the net deferred tax assets higher with a corresponding income tax benefit.

We assess the likelihood that deferred tax assets will be realizable based primarily on future taxable income and tax planning strategies and, if necessary, establish a valuation allowance for those deferred tax assets determined to not likely be realizable. Management judgment is required in determining the appropriate recognition of deferred tax assets and liabilities, including projections of future taxable income, as well as the character of that income.

In evaluating the need for a valuation allowance, management considers the following:

There can be no absolute assurance however, that the net deferred tax assets will ultimately be realized.

Differences in interpretation of tax laws and regulations and any potential resulting litigation may adversely impact our financial statements.

Local, state or federal tax authorities may interpret tax laws and regulations differently than we do and challenge tax positions that we have taken on tax returns. This may result in differences in the treatment of revenues, deductions, credits and/or differences in the timing of these items. The differences in treatment may result in payment of additional taxes, interest or penalties that could have a material adverse effect on our results.

Risks Related to Our Liquidity

We are a holding company and depend on our subsidiaries for dividends.

We are a legal entity that is separate and distinct from the Bank and our other subsidiaries and depend on dividends from those entities to fund dividend payments on our common and preferred stock, to fund share repurchases, and to fund all payments on our other obligations. Our revenue (on a parent-only basis) is derived primarily from dividends paid to us by the Bank and our other subsidiaries. Our right, and consequently the right of our shareholders, to participate in any distribution of the assets or earnings of the Bank and our other subsidiaries through the payment of such dividends or otherwise is necessarily subject to the prior claims of creditors of the Bank (including depositors) and our other subsidiaries, except to the extent that certain claims of ours in a creditor capacity may be recognized.

Holders of our common stock are entitled to receive dividends only when, as, and if declared by our board of directors. Although we have historically declared cash dividends on our common and preferred stock, we are not required to do so. Our board of directors may reduce or eliminate our common stock dividend in the future. Further, if we do not pay dividends on our preferred stock, we may not pay any dividends on our common stock. The Federal Reserve has authority to prohibit bank holding companies from paying dividends if such payment is deemed to be an unsafe or unsound practice. Additionally, the FDIC has the authority to use its enforcement powers to prohibit the Bank from paying us dividends if, in its opinion, the payment of dividends would constitute an unsafe or unsound practice. The current capital regulations require banks and bank holding companies to maintain a 2.5% common equity Tier 1 capital conservation buffer above the minimum risk-based capital requirements for adequately capitalized institutions to avoid restrictions on the ability to pay dividends, discretionary bonuses, and to engage in share repurchases. The Company and the Bank met these requirements as of December 31, 2016 . A reduction or elimination of dividends could adversely affect the market price of our common stock. See Part I. Item 1. “Business - Supervision and Regulation - Dividend Restrictions” and “Business - Supervision and Regulation - Regulatory Capital Requirements.”

Risks Related to Our Common Stock

Future capital offerings may adversely affect the market price of our common stock.

In the future, we may attempt to increase our capital resources or, if our or the Bank’s capital ratios fall below required minimums, we or the Bank could be required to raise additional capital by making additional offerings of debt, common or preferred stock, or senior or subordinated notes. Upon liquidation, holders of our debt securities and shares of preferred stock and lenders with respect to other borrowings will receive distributions of our available assets prior to the holders of our common stock.

Additional future equity offerings may dilute the holdings of our existing shareholders or reduce the market price of our common stock, or both. Because our decision to issue securities in any future offering will depend on market conditions and other factors beyond our control, we cannot predict or estimate the amount, timing or nature of our future offerings.

We cannot assure you that such capital will be available to us on acceptable terms or at all. Our inability to raise sufficient additional capital on acceptable terms when needed could adversely affect our businesses, financial condition, and results of operations.

The market price and trading volume of our common stock may be volatile.

The market price of our common stock may be volatile. In addition, the trading volume in our common stock may fluctuate and cause significant price variations to occur. We cannot assure you that the market price of our common stock will not fluctuate or decline significantly in the future. Some of the factors that could negatively affect our share price or result in fluctuations in the price or trading volume of our common stock include:

Anti-takeover provisions could negatively impact our shareholders.

Provisions of Massachusetts law, the BHCA, and provisions of our articles of organization and by-laws could make it more difficult for a third party to acquire control of us or have the effect of discouraging a third party from attempting to acquire control of us. Our articles of organization authorize our board of directors to issue preferred stock without shareholder approval and such preferred stock could be issued as a defensive measure in response to a takeover proposal. These and other provisions could make it more difficult for a third party to acquire us, even if an acquisition might be in the best interest of our shareholders.