While the net effect was a decline in profits at many larger banking organizations, the underlying strength in the profitability of regional and community banks, coupled with nonrecurring securities gains, helped the industry as a whole achieve record first quarter earnings of nearly $ billion.
Asset quality The rise in nonperforming assets at banking organizations has been pronounced over the past year, especially at larger banking organizations. Despite that rise, these problems generally remain moderate in historical terms relative to earnings, assets and capital. Assets classified as substandard, doubtful or loss have also risen rapidly in recent periods, though again from a modest base.