Amerant Bancorp Inc.AMTB
Amerant Bancorp Inc. Leases Disclosure
Leases
The Company leases certain premises and equipment under operating leases. The operating leases have remaining lease terms ranging from less than one year to 40 years, some of which have renewal options reasonably certain to be exercised and, therefore, have been reflected in the total lease term and used for the calculation of minimum payments required.
Certain operating leases contain variable lease payments which include mostly common area maintenance and taxes, included in occupancy and equipment on the consolidated statements of income. The Company had $1.7 million, $2.1 million and $2.2 million in variable lease payments during the years ended December 31, 2025, 2024 and 2023, respectively.
The following table presents lease costs for the years ended December 31, 2025, 2024 and 2023:
| (in thousands) | December 31, 2025 | December 31, 2024 | December 31, 2023 | |||||||||||||||||
| Lease cost | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Operating lease cost | $ | 18,616 | $ | 19,143 | $ | 18,390 | ||||||||||||||
| Short-term lease cost | — | 123 | 49 | |||||||||||||||||
| Variable lease cost | 1,727 | 2,108 | 2,238 | |||||||||||||||||
| Sublease income | (5,394) | (5,027) | (3,171) | |||||||||||||||||
| Total lease cost | $ | 14,949 | $ | 16,347 | $ | 17,506 | ||||||||||||||
As of December 31, 2025 and 2024, the Company had a right-of-use (“ROU”) asset of $110.6 million and $100.0 million, respectively, and total operating lease liability of $122.4 million and $109.9 million, respectively. As of December 31, 2025 and 2024, the Company had a short-term lease liability of $4.9 million and $3.8 million, respectively, which was included as part of in the consolidated balance sheet.
The following table provides supplemental information to leases as of and for the years ended December 31, 2025, 2024 and 2023:
| December 31, 2025 | December 31, 2024 | December 31, 2023 | ||||||||||||||||||
| (in thousands, except weighted average data) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Cash paid for amounts included in the measurement of operating lease liabilities | $ | 14,783 | $ | 15,276 | $ | 15,544 | ||||||||||||||
| Weighted average remaining lease term for operating leases | 14.6 years | 15.3 years | 16.6 years | |||||||||||||||||
| Weighted average discount rate for operating leases | 9.91 | % | 10.33 | % | 9.85 | % | ||||||||||||||
The following table presents a maturity analysis and reconciliation of the undiscounted cash flows to the total operating lease liabilities as of December 31, 2025:
| (in thousands) | ||||||||
| Twelve Months Ended December 31, | ||||||||
| 2026 | $ | 16,090 | ||||||
| 2027 | 16,427 | |||||||
| 2028 | 16,286 | |||||||
| 2029 | 15,849 | |||||||
| Thereafter | 170,806 | |||||||
| Total minimum payments required | 235,458 | |||||||
| Less: implied interest | (113,059) | |||||||
| Total lease obligations | $ | 122,399 | ||||||
In 2025, the Company completed the plan for the sale and leaseback of two of its banking centers in South Florida. The Company recorded a right-of-use asset and lease liability of $8.9 million, in connection with these leases, as of December 31, 2025. For more information, see “Note 6. Premises and Equipment, Net” for further details.
In 2024, as part of the Houston Sale Transaction, the Company transferred operating lease liability of $15.5 million to other liabilities and ROU asset of $15.3 million to other assets. In addition, in 2024, in connection with the Houston Sale Transaction, the Company’s reassessment of Houston leases resulted in a remeasurement of the lease liability for $8.8 million, with a corresponding adjustment to the ROU asset. See “Note 1. Business, Basis of Presentation and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies” for additional information on the Houston Sale Transaction.
Actual rental expenses may include deferred rents that are recognized as rent expense on a straight line basis. Rent expense under these leases, net of sublease income, was approximately $14.9 million, $16.3 million and $17.5 million for the years ended December 31, 2025, 2024 and 2023, respectively.
Rental income from subleases is presented as a reduction to rent expense under lease agreements under occupancy and equipment cost. Rental income from subleases was $5.4 million, $5.0 million and $3.2 million in the years ended December 31, 2025, 2024 and 2023, respectively. In 2025, 2024 and 2023, rental income includes $4.6 million, $4.5 million and $2.6 million, respectively, related to the subleasing of portions of the Company’s headquarters building, and $0.8 million, $0.6 million and $0.6 million, respectively, mainly associated with the sublease of NY office space and two branches in Florida in 2025 (NY office space in 2024 and 2023). In 2023, rent expense includes an additional expense of $0.3 million related to the closing of one branch in the third quarter of 2023.
There were no ROU asset impairment charges in the year ended December 31, 2025 and 2024. In the year ended December 31, 2023, the Company recorded ROU asset impairment charges of $1.1 million. ROU asset impairment charges in 2023 were in connection with the closure of a branch in Houston, Texas in 2023, and with the closure of another branch in Miami, FL in 2023. These impairments were recorded as occupancy and equipment expense on the consolidated statements of operations and comprehensive income (loss).
Through the fourth quarter of 2025, the Company provided specialized equipment financing through a variety of loan and lease structures, including direct or sale type finance leases and operating leases, through a relationship with the third party originator. In 2025, the Company ceased providing equipment financing through its previous lease structures since its relationship with the third party originator was terminated, and the Company sold all related loans and leased equipment. Accordingly, there were no assets and lease balances outstanding as of December 31, 2025 related to this relationship. As of December 31, 2024 were $2.8 million in direct or sale type finance leases included as part of loans held for investment, gross in the Company’s consolidated balance sheet, and included as part of commercial loans in our loan portfolio held for investment. As of December 31, 2024, there were $2.3 million in operating leases included as part of premises and equipment, net of accumulated depreciation, in the Company’s consolidated balance sheet.
About Leases Disclosures
Lease disclosures under ASC 842 provide a comprehensive view of a company's leased asset portfolio, including the split between operating and finance leases, discount rates used to present-value future payments, and the maturity schedule of lease obligations. This section reveals a significant source of off-balance-sheet commitments that were largely hidden before the current standard.
Key signals: the weighted-average discount rate affects the size of recorded lease liabilities — a higher rate reduces the reported obligation, so compare the chosen rate against the company's incremental borrowing rate. The operating versus finance lease mix affects both EBITDA and operating income presentation. Watch the maturity table for concentration risk: large payment cliffs in specific years may create cash flow pressure. Variable lease payments excluded from the liability measurement represent real obligations that do not appear on the balance sheet. Compare total lease costs against prior-year operating lease expense to assess the true economic burden.