Note 8. Commitments and Contingencies Litigation In the normal course of business the Bank is involved in various legal proceedings. After consultation with legal counsel, management believes that any liability resulting from such proceedings will not be material to the consolidated financial statements. Financial Instruments with Off-Balance Sheet Risk The Bank is party to financial instruments with off-balance sheet risk in the normal course of business to meet the financing needs of its customers. These financial instruments include commitments to extend credit and standby letters of credit. These instruments involve, to varying degrees, credit risk in excess of the amount recognized in the consolidated balance sheets. The Banks exposure to credit loss in the event of nonperformance by the other party to the financial instrument for commitments to extend credit and standby letters of credit is represented by the contractual amount of those instruments. The Bank uses the same credit policies in making commitments and conditional obligations as for on-balance sheet instruments. A summary of the Banks commitments at March 31 , 2019 and December 31 , 2018 is as follows: (dollars in thousands) March 31, 2019 December 31, 2018 Commitments to extend credit $ 74,904 $ 76,977 Standby letters of credit 1,399 1,227 $ 76,303 $ 78,204 Commitments to extend credit are agreements to lend to a customer as long as there is no violation of any condition established in the contract. Commitments generally have fixed expiration dates or other termination clauses and may require payment of a fee. Since many of the commitments are expected to expire without being drawn upon, the total commitment amounts do not necessarily represent future cash requirements. The Bank evaluates each customers creditworthiness on a case-by-case basis. The amount of collateral obtained, if deemed necessary by the Bank upon extension of credit, is based on managements credit evaluation of the party. Collateral held varies, but may include accounts receivable, inventory, property and equipment, residential real estate and income-producing commercial properties. Standby letters of credit are conditional commitments issued by the Bank to guarantee the performance of a customer to a third party. Those guarantees are primarily issued to support public and private borrowing arrangements. The credit risk involved in issuing letters of credit is essentially the same as that involved in extending loan facilities to customers. Collateral held varies as specified above and is required in instances which the Bank deems necessary. Concentrations of Credit Risk Substantially all of the Banks loans, commitments to extend credit, and standby letters of credit have been granted to customers in the Banks market area and such customers are generally depositors of the Bank. Investments in state and municipal securities involve governmental entities within and outside the Banks market area. The concentrations of credit by type of loan are set forth in Note 4. The distribution of commitments to extend credit approximates the distribution of loans outstanding. Standby letters of credit are granted primarily to commercial borrowers. The Banks primary focus is toward small business and consumer transactions, and accordingly, it does not have a significant number of credits to any single borrower or group of related borrowers in excess of $5,000,000. The Bank has cash and cash equivalents on deposit with financial institutions which exceed federally insured limits.