Bankwell Financial Reports Record $12.7 Million Net Income and Raises Full-Year Guidance

Bankwell Financial reported record net income of $12.7 million on its third-quarter 2026 earnings call, held October 29, 2026, and raised its full-year noninterest income guidance to $14 million to $15 million. The Motley Fool covered the call. Bankwell is a Connecticut-based community bank holding company with about $3.2 billion in assets, operating 11 branches in Connecticut and New York and serving closely held businesses and consumers.

Bankwell's Core Conversion and SBA Gain

Bankwell is switching its core banking technology platform, which processes customer accounts and transactions. The move cost $3 million in pre-tax termination charges in the quarter, and management expects the new infrastructure to improve efficiency, automate data processing and speed product launches.

"Looking ahead, the core conversion will expand our capabilities and improve efficiency and scalability across the organization," Chief Executive Officer Chris Gruseke said on the call.

The Small Business Administration loan program generated $2.8 million in gain-on-sale income, a government-backed lending initiative. That lifted noninterest income to $4 million and prompted the guidance increase from a prior range of $12 million to $13 million.

"Given the strength of our SBA division, we're raising our non-interest income guidance to $14 million-$15 million from a prior range of $12 million-$13 million," Gruseke said.

How Bankwell Cleared Its Largest Bad Loan

Bankwell resolved its largest nonperforming asset, a distressed retail commercial real estate loan in Westchester County, New York. The sale generated a $2.5 million recovery of charged-off funds, and net recoveries reached $1.4 million. Nonperforming assets fell to 20 basis points of total assets.

"We sold the COVID-era retail commercial real estate loan in Westchester County, New York, which had been our largest non-performing asset," Gruseke said.

Bankwell's AI Partnerships and Balance Sheet

According to akta.pro company records, Bankwell adopted Microsoft Copilot for enterprise-wide AI employee training in March 2026 and partnered with Kobalt Labs that month to deploy an AI-driven compliance management platform for vendor and fintech partner risk oversight. The same records show total revenue of $108.3 million for fiscal year 2025, up from $87.0 million the prior year, and assets reported at $3.2 billion, with an alternative figure of approximately $3.5 billion from a different source.

Bankwell's Path to the Record Quarter

Bankwell reported second-quarter 2026 GAAP net income of $12.4 million, or $1.52 per diluted share, up from $11.3 million, or $1.41 per share, in the first quarter of 2026, while its board declared a $0.20 per share cash dividend payable August 21, 2026, Stock Titan reported. In August 2026, The Motley Fool reported that Bankwell was opening a full-service branch in Brooklyn to diversify beyond its Connecticut base.

Bankwell's Outlook for the Year Ahead

Gruseke said Bankwell looks "forward to a strong finish to this year and to delivering even better results in the year ahead."