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Asset/Liability Asset Liability Modeling Deposit Modeling Deposit Pricing Optimization Deposit Pricing Strategy

The most-read ALM resources for financial institutions in 2025

Kate Randazzo
December 15, 2025
0 min read

Popular blog posts and resources for balance sheet leaders, planners, and bank executives

These blogs and downloadable resources were the most popular in 2025 among finance executives and portfolio risk staff. The top 10 blogs and top 5 resources were created by Abrigo's team, which includes former bankers, regulators, and industry experts.

Advice from ALM experts covered in popular blogs

As financial institutions move through a year defined by rate volatility, technology disruption, liquidity considerations, and a shifting economic environment, leaders overseeing asset/liability management (ALM), balance sheet strategy, and performance optimization face an increasingly complex landscape. Abrigo’s most-read ALM blogs of the year highlight the tools, insights, and planning frameworks institutions relied on to strengthen decision-making and support long-term resilience.

From AI-driven analytics to deposit strategy, community bank positioning, and improved loan decisioning, the following articles reflect the industry’s most pressing priorities and biggest opportunities. 

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The top 10 ALM and portfolio risk blogs

Click on the link next to the number to access each blog.

AI use cases in banking: A roadmap to smarter decisions & stronger outcomes

For ALM leaders, AI presents an opportunity to significantly enhance scenario analysis, stress testing, and long-term strategic insights. This piece outlines high-impact use cases across risk modeling, loan decisioning, and operational efficiency, while emphasizing the importance of model governance and explainability. 

Tariff impacts on community banks and credit unions

With tariffs reshaping supply chains and business costs, this blog examines the downstream effects on credit risk, liquidity, and balance sheet planning. It explains how tariffs influence industries differently, what institutions should monitor in their portfolios, and how proactive scenario modeling helps quantify potential impacts. The article encourages ALCOs to stay agile in the face of geopolitical and macroeconomic uncertainty.

 

The risks and opportunities ahead for banking: Insights from ThinkBIG

This post recaps hot topics at Abrigo's ThinkBIG conference—economic conditions, regulatory momentum, technology adoption, and growth strategy. It emphasizes the need for dynamic planning, talent development, and enhanced risk analytics. ALM and strategy teams can use these takeaways to ensure decision-making remains both informed and forward-looking.

The role of core deposit intangibles in banking

As deposits remain a critical component of funding strategy, this blog explains how core deposit intangibles (CDIs) factor into bank valuations, acquisitions, and asset/liability strategies. It outlines how CDIs are measured, why they matter in today’s liquidity-sensitive environment, and how understanding deposit stability supports better strategic planning.

Improve loan decisioning: 5 ways to serve small businesses better

This resource explores how financial institutions can modernize small business lending—an essential growth engine for many community banks and credit unions. The blog discusses improvements in workflow automation, data-driven credit assessment, customer experience, and portfolio monitoring, all of which strengthen loan performance and deepen relationships.

 

7 Strategies for successful software deployment (and 1 mistake to avoid)

For institutions implementing new ALM, CECL, risk, or lending platforms, this article serves as a roadmap for effective deployment. It highlights the importance of stakeholder alignment, realistic timelines, clean data, training, and post-go-live optimization. Successful software enablement is critical for institutions looking to leverage technology for strategic advantage.

 

Go on offense: A turning point for community banks

This article outlines the competitive pressures and opportunities facing community banks in 2025. It explores differentiation strategies, the importance of investing in people and technology, and the evolving expectations of business customers. For leaders crafting long-term plans, the blog offers a high-level framework for positioning, growth, and operational resilience.

How vendor relationships affect banking technology success

Vendor partnerships play a major role in whether technology investments deliver value. This piece explains how communication, transparency, shared accountability, and long-term alignment influence outcomes. It also offers guidance on how institutions can evaluate, maintain, and optimize vendor relationships to ensure smooth implementations and sustained performance.

AI as a game changer: Leapfrog to banking excellence

This blog outlines steps for aligning AI initiatives with business goals, building internal readiness, ensuring governance, and measuring impact. ALM and finance leaders gain insight into how AI can strengthen planning, modeling, and decision-support frameworks.

Unlocking the power of banking software: Practical tips for busy admins

A practical resource for teams optimizing new or existing banking platforms, this article outlines actionable tips for achieving organizational readiness. It covers user adoption strategies, communication planning, change management, and ongoing optimization—helping institutions maximize the ROI of technology investments tied to ALM, lending, or compliance functions.

Most downloaded ALM and portfolio risk resources

In addition to the most-read blog content, these resources were widely downloaded by finance teams, allowance managers, and credit administrators this year. Each offers practical tools to support allowance governance, model validation, and strategic risk oversight.

Rethink asset/liability management: From static snapshots to strategic forecasting

This resource from Dave Koch challenges the status quo and redefines ALM as a strategic tool, not just a compliance necessity. Learn how to modernize your ALM framework using AI, real-time modeling, and customer behavior analytics to guide growth, pricing, and risk decisions across your institution.

Modern treasury management

Finance executives looking to optimize liquidity, pricing, and capital planning downloaded this special report with Bloomberg to review advice on dynamic ALM practices and integrating interest rate and credit risk to support long-term treasury strategies. It explores how financial institutions are addressing rising deposit betas, liquidity stress, and outdated risk models in the current environment.

Liquidity stress testing: Designing appropriate liquidity stress scenarios

Effective liquidity stress testing helps banks and credit unions prepare for the unknown, ensuring they can withstand financial shocks and meet regulatory expectations. This guide breaks down essential strategies to identify vulnerabilities and strengthen liquidity risk management.

Core deposit duration analysis: Depositor age or historical behavior

Many financial institutions rely on historical account behavior and account age to assess core deposit duration. But recent data suggests a different factor may be more predictive: depositor age. As banks navigate evolving interest rate environments and liquidity pressures, understanding the impact of depositor demographics is critical to refining ALM strategies and mitigating risk.

Loan fair value and exit price trends: Quarterly disclosure insights – Q2 2025

Abrigo’s fair value disclosure review is a quarterly summary of the fair value analytics across clients for which our valuation services advisors provide exit price disclosure work. While individual results vary by institution, the report reflects how common methodologies and market-based assumptions collectively impact loan fair value estimates. 

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This blog was developed with the assistance of ChatGPT, an AI large language model. It was reviewed and extensively revised by Abrigo's subject-matter expert for accuracy and additional insight

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About the Author

Kate Randazzo

Content Marketing Manager
Kate Randazzo is a Content Marketing Manager at Abrigo, where she works with industry thought leaders to create digital content that helps financial institutions better serve their customers. Before joining Abrigo, Kate managed social media and produced articles for Campbell University’s quarterly magazine and other university content initiatives. She earned

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About Abrigo

Abrigo enables U.S. financial institutions to support their communities through technology that fights financial crime, grows loans and deposits, and optimizes risk. Abrigo's platform centralizes the institution's data, creates a digital user experience, ensures compliance, and delivers efficiency for scale and profitable growth.

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