Mission Statement, Vision, & Core Values of BayFirst Financial Corp. (BAFN)

You're looking at BayFirst Financial Corp. (BAFN) and trying to reconcile their foundational values with a period of intense strategic change, which is defintely the right move for any serious investor.

In the third quarter of 2025 alone, the company reported a net loss of $18.9 million amid a major restructuring, even as total assets stood strong at $1.35 billion as of September 30, 2025. Can a mission focused on community and growth truly guide a bank making a hard exit from a core business like SBA 7(a) lending, which drove a $7.3 million restructuring charge? This is where the Mission Statement, Vision, and Core Values-their commitment to Curiosity, Adaptability, Resilience, and Excellence (CARE)-become the most critical documents for understanding their future roadmap.

The bank is pivoting, but does their core philosophy support the new direction? Let's map their stated principles to the hard financial realities and see if the foundation is solid.

BayFirst Financial Corp. (BAFN) Overview

You're looking at BayFirst Financial Corp. (BAFN) at a critical juncture, as the company is making a decisive strategic pivot to focus purely on its core community banking strength. The direct takeaway is that while the financial results for the third quarter of 2025 show a significant net loss, this is largely due to one-time charges tied to a necessary de-risking move that sets the stage for a more stable future.

BayFirst Financial Corp., the holding company for BayFirst National Bank, was founded in 1999 and is headquartered in St. Petersburg, Florida. It operates a network of twelve full-service banking offices throughout the vibrant Tampa Bay-Sarasota region, serving small and medium-sized businesses and individual consumers. The bank offers a comprehensive suite of traditional products, including checking, savings, money market accounts, commercial real estate mortgages, and various consumer loans.

Until recently, a major part of the business was its national government-guaranteed lending platform, CreditBench, which specialized in Small Business Administration (SBA) and United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) loans. However, the company announced a full exit from the high-risk SBA 7(a) lending business in late 2025 to strengthen its balance sheet and concentrate on its community bank mission. As of September 30, 2025, BayFirst Financial Corp. reported total assets of $1.35 billion.

Latest Financial Performance and the Strategic Pivot

Honestly, the third quarter of 2025 was tough, but the numbers reflect a necessary clean-up, not a business failure. BayFirst Financial Corp. reported a net loss of $18.9 million for the three months ending September 30, 2025, which is a stark contrast to the net income of $1.1 million reported in the same quarter last year. For the first nine months of 2025, the company had a total net loss of $20.5 million.

The loss was driven by significant one-time charges related to the strategic exit from the SBA 7(a) business, totaling $12.4 million. Here's the quick math on the key drivers:

• Restructuring Charge: $7.3 million related to the SBA 7(a) exit.
• Loan Portfolio Discount: A net loss of $5.1 million on the sale of a portion of the SBA 7(a) loan portfolio to Banesco USA.
• Credit Losses: Provision for credit losses surged to $10.9 million in Q3 2025, up from $3.1 million a year earlier.

What this estimate hides is the underlying strength in the core bank. Net Interest Income (NII)-the difference between interest earned on loans and interest paid on deposits-actually rose to $11.3 million in Q3 2025, an increase from $9.4 million in Q3 2024. But, noninterest income, which was heavily dependent on gains from selling government-guaranteed loans, dropped sharply to a negative -$1.0 million in Q3 2025, down from $12.3 million a year ago. This is the cost of moving away from a volatile revenue source. During the quarter, the company still originated $75.0 million of loans, with the community banking side producing $27.9 million in new loans.

A Leader in Community Banking

The strategic shift means BayFirst Financial Corp. is doubling down on its local market leadership, and you should view its future through that lens. In its core market, BayFirst National Bank ranks second in deposit market share among all banks with less than $10 billion in assets in the Tampa Bay-Sarasota region. They were defintely recognized for this focus, with Forbes naming BayFirst National Bank as Florida's best bank in 2024.

The new focus is on growing its deposit base and conventional commercial and consumer loan portfolios, which should lead to more predictable, recurring revenue, reducing reliance on the volatile gain-on-sale income from government-guaranteed loans. Deposits are stable, increasing by 5.3% over the past year to total $1.17 billion as of September 30, 2025. To understand the roots of this strength and how their mission guides this major restructuring, you need to dig deeper. Find out more about the company's foundational principles and business model here: BayFirst Financial Corp. (BAFN): History, Ownership, Mission, How It Works & Makes Money.

BayFirst Financial Corp. (BAFN) Mission Statement

The mission statement for BayFirst Financial Corp. is not just a marketing slogan; it is the strategic compass guiding their significant restructuring in 2025. It's a clear commitment to becoming the premier community bank in the Tampa Bay region, especially as they exit the riskier national Small Business Administration (SBA) 7(a) lending business. This shift is reflected in their Q3 2025 results, where a net loss of $18.9 million was reported, driven by a $7.3 million restructuring charge to derisk the balance sheet and focus on core community banking. The mission is the blueprint for returning to profitability, with a goal of positive return on assets of 40 to 70 basis points in 2026.

Component 1: Becoming the First Choice for Individuals and Small Businesses

The first core component of BayFirst Financial Corp.'s mission is to be the first choice for individuals, families, and small businesses. This is a direct play on their strength as a community bank with a physical presence, operating twelve full-service banking offices across the Tampa Bay-Sarasota region. You can see this commitment in their deposit growth: deposits increased by $59.3 million over the past year, reaching a total of $1.17 billion by the end of Q3 2025. That stability is key, and it shows customers are choosing to bank with them locally. The focus is on building real relationships, which also means providing a solid, stable funding foundation, where more than 84% of their deposits are insured.

• Build real relationships with local customers.
• Grow deposits to $1.17 billion, up 5.3% year-over-year.
• Prioritize community banking over national specialty lending.

Component 2: Enhancing Financial Well-being and Fostering Growth

The second component centers on enhancing financial well-being and fostering growth, which is a broader, more empathetic goal than just lending money. This is where their core value of Excellence defines their actions. A clear example is the expansion of their treasury management services through a new platform, which directly helps small businesses manage their cash flow more effectively. While the company is navigating a tough period-with nonperforming loans to total loans held for investment increasing to 1.69% in Q3 2025-the strategic exit from SBA 7(a) lending is a long-term move to improve overall credit quality and reduce risk for a stronger future. This is a necessary, albeit painful, step to ensure the long-term well-being of the bank and its customers. The allowance for credit losses (ACL) to total loans held for investment at amortized cost was 2.61% at September 30, 2025, reflecting this higher-risk environment and the bank's proactive provisioning.

Component 3: Seamlessly Integrating Technology with an Amazing Human Touch

The final, and perhaps most challenging, component is the seamless integration of technology with an amazing human touch. This is where the values of Curiosity and Adaptability come into play, driving innovation without losing the personal community bank feel. For instance, they have been working to implement eco-friendly banking solutions, which is a modern, tech-driven approach to social responsibility. The firm's total assets were $1.35 billion in the third quarter of 2025, and maintaining that scale while delivering personalized service requires smart technology investments. They are defintely focused on the future, as demonstrated by their June 2025 announcement that all 12 retail banking centers achieved 100% carbon neutrality and received LEED certification. This shows a commitment to progressive operations that align with modern customer values. You can learn more about the investors supporting this strategic direction by Exploring BayFirst Financial Corp. (BAFN) Investor Profile: Who's Buying and Why?

BayFirst Financial Corp. (BAFN) Vision Statement

You're looking for the true north of BayFirst Financial Corp. (BAFN), and honestly, the vision is less about a fluffy slogan and more about a hard strategic pivot: becoming the premier community bank in Tampa Bay. This isn't just local pride; it's a necessary, calculated move following a tough year.

The company's mission and values now anchor this community-first strategy, especially after the decision to exit the national government-guaranteed SBA 7(a) lending business. That strategic shift, while painful, is the clearest statement of their near-term vision for a more stable, relationship-driven future. It's a return to basics, but with modern tech.

The Vision: Premier Community Bank in Tampa Bay

The core vision for BayFirst Financial Corp. is to be the definitive community bank in the Tampa Bay and Sarasota markets. This focus is a direct response to the volatility seen in their national lending operations, which led to a net loss of $18.9 million in the third quarter of 2025 alone. Here's the quick math: the company took a $12.4 million hit in one-time charges, including a $7.3 million restructuring charge, to exit that SBA 7(a) business and derisk the balance sheet. That's a huge cost, but it buys stability.

The new vision is about building a stable funding base through local relationships-reliable checking and savings accounts-which is the bedrock of a 'true community bank.' As of September 30, 2025, the company held $1.17 billion in deposits, and over 84% of those deposits are FDIC-insured, which is a solid foundation. The goal is to return to profitability, targeting a positive return on assets of 40 to 70 basis points in 2026, which is a clear, actionable metric tied to this local focus.

Mission: Enhancing Financial Well-being with a Human Touch

BayFirst Financial's mission is to be the first choice for individuals, families, and small businesses to enhance their financial well-being and foster growth. This mission is critical right now because it justifies the shift away from high-risk, high-reward national lending and back to local, personalized service. They are trying to redefine the banking experience by blending technology with an amazing human touch.

This isn't just about handing out loans; it's about making meaningful connections. For instance, their commitment to corporate social responsibility includes supporting nonprofits and creating financial literacy programs. That kind of local presence is what builds the trust needed to grow their deposit base, which is the lifeblood of any bank. You can read more about how this foundation was built in BayFirst Financial Corp. (BAFN): History, Ownership, Mission, How It Works & Makes Money.

• Be the first choice for local clients.
• Integrate technology with personalized service.
• Foster growth and financial well-being.

Core Values: The CARE Framework

The company's core values are encapsulated in the acronym CARE, which is a defintely useful framework for understanding their internal culture and how they plan to execute their vision. These values aren't just posters on the wall; they are the behavioral guardrails for navigating the current restructuring and the competitive Tampa Bay market. When you're dealing with a total asset base of around $1.35 billion, as of Q3 2025, every employee action matters.

The CARE framework is particularly relevant given the recent strategic challenges, including the net loss of $20.5 million for the first nine months of 2025. You need a resilient team to absorb a hit like that and keep moving forward. The values are:

• Curiosity: fuels the solutions they offer.
• Adaptability: shapes how they respond to market change.
• Resilience: strengthens them through financial challenges.
• Excellence: defines the quality of their service delivery.

The focus on Adaptability and Resilience is key for investors to watch. The company is in the middle of a significant business model change, moving from a hybrid community/national lender back to a pure community bank. That requires a workforce that can pivot fast and stay steady under pressure. If onboarding new commercial and consumer lending products takes too long, their ability to grow net interest income will be crimped, slowing the path to that 2026 profitability goal.

BayFirst Financial Corp. (BAFN) Core Values

You're looking for a clear map of BayFirst Financial Corp.'s (BAFN) operating principles, especially as the company navigates its 2025 strategic shift. The direct takeaway is that their core values, encapsulated in the C.A.R.E. acronym, are not just marketing fluff; they are the framework for the company's recent, costly decision to de-risk and refocus on its community bank mission. This is a classic case of values driving a tough, but necessary, financial decision.

The company's mission is to be the first choice for individuals, families, and small businesses in the Tampa Bay area, enhancing their financial well-being and fostering growth by integrating technology with a human touch. This mission is directly supported by the four pillars of C.A.R.E.: Curiosity, Adaptability, Resilience, and Excellence. You can see the Breaking Down BayFirst Financial Corp. (BAFN) Financial Health: Key Insights for Investors for a deeper dive into the numbers behind this strategic move.

Curiosity: Fueling Community-Centric Solutions

Curiosity, for BayFirst Financial Corp., means actively seeking to understand the nuanced needs of the Tampa Bay market, not just assuming them. This value drives their community engagement program, Impact, which focuses on four key areas: Community & Human Services, Education & Financial Literacy, Arts & Culture, and Animal Services & Programs. They don't just write a check; they ask what is defintely needed.

• Offer customized, in-person financial literacy courses like 'Banking on a Career' for youth in underserved neighborhoods.
• Prioritize employee feedback through quarterly CEO Council meetings, ensuring diverse employee voices inform strategy.

This internal and external curiosity helps them offer products that matter, like the specialized accounts for all ages-from the Cash Kids Club for children to the TrendSetters Club for those age 50 or better.

Adaptability: The Strategic De-Risking of 2025

The core value of Adaptability is best illustrated by the company's major strategic pivot in 2025. Recognizing that the national SBA 7(a) lending business had outgrown the community bank model and introduced material risk, management made a decisive move to exit that line of business entirely. That's a tough call for a bank that was once a top SBA lender.

Here's the quick math: The exit and restructuring resulted in a net loss of $18.9 million, or $4.66 per common share, for the third quarter of 2025, driven by $12.4 million in one-time charges. This short-term financial pain is the cost of long-term strategic clarity and a stronger focus on core community banking. Loans held for investment decreased by $127.1 million in Q3 2025 as a result of this reclassification and sale, showing a swift, adaptive response to risk.

Resilience: Strengthening the Core Foundation

Resilience is the ability to absorb a shock like the Q3 2025 net loss and emerge stronger, which is the entire point of the strategic restructuring. The company is actively building a more resilient organization by focusing on a stable funding base.

• Total deposit balances increased by $59.3 million, or 5.3%, over the year leading up to September 30, 2025, reaching $1.17 billion.
• As of September 30, 2025, more than 84% of the bank's deposits were insured by the FDIC, a clear sign of a flight to safety and stability in their core customer base.

This focus on relationship-driven, insured deposits is the bedrock of their long-term value creation strategy, proving that their resilience is tied to their local footprint.

Excellence: Setting High Operational Standards

Excellence defines BayFirst Financial Corp.'s commitment to best-in-class operations, both in customer service and corporate social responsibility (CSR). This isn't just about financial performance; it's about operational integrity and employee support.

• Sustainability: In June 2025, all 12 of the bank's retail banking centers achieved 100% carbon neutrality and received LEED certification, setting a high bar for environmental standards in the industry.
• Employee Well-being: The bank established a company-wide minimum wage of $20/hour to attract and retain top talent.
• Community Service: Every employee is provided with 16 hours of paid Volunteer Time Off (VTO) to support local nonprofits and community needs.

The goal is a positive return on assets of 40 to 70 basis points in 2026, a tangible target that demonstrates a commitment to financial excellence following the 2025 de-risking. Finance: continue to monitor the allowance for credit losses, which rose to 2.61% of total loans by September 30, 2025, to ensure the credit quality improvements are taking hold.