Blog · August 4, 2026
Who Won FHLB Advances? The Mean, Obviously.
Mean EveryBank borrowed 16% more from the Home Loan Banks. Median EveryBank owes about half a million dollars and is still thinking about it.
Every quarter, EveryBank's two management teams (the mean and the median) disagree about something. This quarter it was Federal Home Loan Bank advances, and as usual, the mean won by showing up with more money.
FHLB advances, every U.S. bank counted once
"Banks with any" is the share of banks that borrowed at all.
| Quarter | EveryBank (mean) | EveryBank (median) | Banks with any |
|---|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | $125.6M | $733,000 | 52.5% |
| Q1 2026 | $108.3M | $154,500 | 50.7% |
| Q4 2025 | $96.7M | $1,000,000 | 53.1% |
| Q3 2025 | $98.4M | $1.0M | 53.5% |
| Q2 2025 | $108.1M | $1.80M | 54.5% |
Year over year: mean +16%, median −59%. The median fell three quarters in a row before bouncing off $154,500.
The mean's case. Advances per bank rose 16% from a year ago and 16% from last quarter, to $125.6 million. That is a real move in wholesale funding. It was made by a small number of banks large enough to move an average of 4,239.
The median's case. The median bank's advances were $733,000. In the first quarter they were $154,500. That isn't a funding strategy. It's a rounding decision.
The reason is how many banks borrow at all. Almost exactly half of American banks carry any FHLB advances at all: 52.5% this quarter, 50.7% last. When coverage sits at 50%, the median bank is the one standing in the doorway. Some quarters it borrows a little; some quarters it doesn't. Median EveryBank isn't borrowing from the Home Loan Bank. It's deciding whether to.
"The mean borrowed. The median considered borrowing. Both are accurate descriptions of the American banking system, and only one of them will be in the headlines."
— Stan Deveaux, Chief Financial Officer
Which banks drove the mean? The 32 banks over $100 billion. From June 2025 to June 2026 they added $72.5 billion of FHLB advances, up 35%, which is 97.7% of the industry's entire net increase. Banks from $1 billion to $100 billion were roughly flat (+1.3% and +1.5%). Banks under $1 billion paid down 5.2%. All ten of the biggest new borrowers are in the $100 billion club, led by one bank that added $22.4 billion by itself, more than every bank under $10 billion holds combined.
Measured against their size, the megabanks still lean on the Home Loan Banks the least of any tier: advances are about 1.5% of their assets, against 3.6–3.7% for the regionals. They are light drinkers. They just drink from a much bigger glass, and this year they refilled it.
"I only speak in ranges. The range of FHLB advances at American banks runs from zero to tens of billions of dollars, and the median is right next to zero. That is the risk report."
— Perry Sentyle, Chief Risk Officer
Scoreboard, Q2 2026: FHLB advances, Mean. The median won the percentage change, from $154,500, and was told that doesn't count. See the Q2 2026 earnings release for the rest of the quarter's contests.
Update, Sept. 16, 2026: American Banker has the industry number: borrowing from the Federal Home Loan banks jumped 20% in the second quarter. Mean has asked us to note that it was close.