GlobeNewswire Inc | Jan 18, 2022 05:30PM EST

January 18, 2022

GREENVILLE, S.C., Jan. 18, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- United Community Banks, Inc. (NASDAQ: UCBI) (United) today announced that net income for the fourth quarter was $52.0 million and pre-tax, pre-provision income was $65.6 million. Diluted earnings per share of $0.55 for the quarter represented a decrease of $0.11 or 17%, from the fourth quarter a year ago, and represented a decrease of $0.27 or 33% from the third quarter of 2021. On an operating basis, Uniteds diluted earnings per share of $0.64 was down 6% from the year ago quarter. The primary driver of the reduced earnings in both periods is lower levels of accretion from PPP loans, as those loans have continued to decline due to success in executing the forgiveness process. Additionally, in the third quarter, charges associated with the Aquesta acquisition, such as merger charges and a $3.27 million provision to establish an initial allowance for credit losses for acquired Aquesta loans, reduced GAAP earnings by approximately $9 million or ten cents per share. On an operating basis, Uniteds ROA was 1.10% and its return on tangible common equity was 13.9%. On a pre-tax, pre-provision basis, operating return on assets was 1.40% for the quarter. Highlights for the quarter include strong annualized organic loan growth (excluding PPP and loans received through the Aquesta acquisition) of 7% and 17% annualized organic deposit growth.

Chairman and CEO Lynn Harton stated, We are very pleased by Uniteds performance this quarter and in 2021. In the quarter, both loan and deposit growth were strong and noninterest income benefited from strong, but seasonally lower, mortgage production and a great SBA quarter. Harton continued, On the strategic front, we completed the acquisition of Aquesta Financial Holdings, Inc. and Aquesta Bank on October 1, boosting our Charlotte presence and adding the Wilmington, North Carolina market, both of which are growth markets that fit well with our footprint and culture. We also completed the operational conversion of Aquesta in mid-November, bringing the United brand to these great markets. We are proud that this outstanding team of bankers has joined us and we believe that they are a great fit for United. Finally, while not included in the quarterly results, on January 1 we completed the acquisition of Reliant Bancorp, Inc., expanding our Tennessee presence into the fast-growing Nashville MSA with a very high performance organization.

Total loans increased by $569 million during the quarterimpacted by $501 million of loans from the Aquesta acquisition. Excluding the effect of PPP loans and loans received from the Aquesta acquisition, core organic loan growth was 7% annualized. Core transaction deposits grew by $948 million during the quarter, or 28% annualized. Excluding deposits received from the Aquesta acquisition, core transaction deposits grew by 10% annualized. Uniteds cost of deposits decreased by 1 basis point to 0.06%. The net interest margin decreased by 31 basis points from the third quarter due mainly to lower PPP loan fee accretion and an increase in liquid assets due to the continued deposit growth.

Mr. Harton concluded, I believe 2022 will be another great year for United. We enter the year with strong business momentum, led by an outstanding team of engaged bankers throughout the company. I am very proud that in October, and for the fifth consecutive year, United was named one of the Best Banks to Work for in 2021 across the nation by American Banker. One of our most important measures of success for us is to Be a Great Place to Work for Great People. Banking is a service and experience business and success begins with creating an organization where the best people can be fulfilled and build a career.

2021 Financial Highlights:

-- Full year EPS of $2.97, an increase of 55% compared to 2020; full year operating EPS of $3.09, an increase of 56% from 2020 -- Return on assets of 1.37%, or 1.42% on an operating basis -- Pre-tax, pre-provision return on assets of 1.65% on an operating basis -- Return on common equity of 13.1% -- Return on tangible common equity of 17.3% on an operating basis -- Completed the mergers with FinTrust on July 1 and Aquesta Financial Corporation and its bank subsidiary Aquesta Bank on October 1 -- A release of provision for credit losses of $37.6 million compared to a provision of $80.4 million in 2020, mostly due to the improved economic forecasts -- Loan growth of $389 million or $346 million excluding loans acquired from Aquesta and PPP payoffs -- Core transaction deposits were up $2.8 billion compared to 2020; excluding Aquesta, 2021 core transaction deposits were up $2.2 billion, or 19.2% -- Net interest margin of 3.07%, which was down 48 basis points from last year due to a number of factors, including lower PPP fee accretion, the low rate environment, and increasing balance sheet liquidity -- Continued strong mortgage rate locks of $3.1 billion compared to a record of $3.3 billion a year ago -- Noninterest income was up $1.7 million or 1% as an increase in wealth management fees and gains from loan sales offset the $17.6 million decline in mortgage fees -- Efficiency ratio of 55.8%, or 53.8% on an operating basis -- Net charge-offs of $38,000

Fourth Quarter 2021 Financial Highlights:

-- Net income of $52.0 million and pre-tax, pre-provision income of $65.6 million -- EPS decreased by 17% compared to fourth quarter 2020 on a GAAP basis and 6% on an operating basis; compared to third quarter 2021, EPS decreased by 33% on a GAAP basis and 23% on an operating basis due to lower PPP accretion and a smaller provision release in the fourth quarter -- Return on assets of 0.96%, or 1.10% on an operating basis -- Pre-tax, pre-provision return on assets of 1.40% on an operating basis -- Return on common equity of 9.3% -- Return on tangible common equity of 13.9% on an operating basis -- A release of provision for credit losses of $647,000 which reduced the allowance for loan losses to 0.87% of loans from 0.89% in the third quarter -- Loan production of $1.3 billion, resulting in core loan growth of 7%, annualized for the quarter, excluding the impact of $122 million in PPP loans being forgiven and the addition of $501 million in loans from Aquesta -- Core transaction deposits were up $948 million; excluding Aquesta, fourth quarter core transaction deposits grew $333 million or 10% annualized -- Net interest margin of 2.81% was down 31 basis points from the third quarter, due to lower PPP fee accretion, continued strong deposit growth and an earning asset mix change toward cash and securities -- Mortgage closings of $522 million compared to $609 million a year ago; mortgage rate locks of $695 million compared to $792 million a year ago -- Noninterest income was down $2.9 million on a linked quarter basis, primarily driven by lower mortgage fees -- Noninterest expenses increased by $12.4 million compared to the third quarter on a GAAP basis and by $3.9 million on an operating basis, mostly due to adding the operating expenses of Aquesta which was acquired on October 1 -- Efficiency ratio of 62.1%, or 56.5% on an operating basis -- Net charge-offs of $248,000 or 1 basis point as a percent of average loans, down 1 basis point from the net charge-offs experienced in the third quarter -- Nonperforming assets of 0.16% of total assets, down 7 basis points compared to September 30, 2021 -- Quarterly common shareholder dividend of $0.20 per share declared during the quarter, an increase of 11% year-over-year -- Completed the acquisition of Aquesta Financial Holdings, Inc. (Aquesta) with $756 million in assets on October 1, 2021; this acquisition is expected to add $0.08 in EPS accretion in 2022 with cost savings fully phased in -- Completed the acquisition of Reliant Bancorp, Inc. (Reliant) with $3.0 billion in assets on January 1, 2022; this acquisition is expected to add $0.15 in EPS accretion in 2022 and $0.22 in 2023 with cost savings fully phased in

Conference Call

United will hold a conference call on Wednesday, January 19, 2022, at 11 a.m. ET to discuss the contents of this press release and to share business highlights for the quarter. Participants can pre-register for the conference call by navigating to https://dpregister.com/sreg/10162699/f0590f1c98. Those without internet access or unable to pre-register may dial in by calling 1-866-777-2509. Participants are encouraged to dial in 15 minutes prior to the call start time. The conference call also will be webcast and available for replay for 30 days by selecting Events & Presentations within the Investor Relations section of Uniteds website at www.ucbi.com.

UNITED COMMUNITY BANKS, INC.Selected Financial Information(in thousands, except per share data) Fourth For the Twelve Months 2021 2020 Quarter Ended December 31, YTD 2021- 2021- Fourth Third Second First Fourth 2020 2020 Quarter Quarter Quarter Quarter Quarter Change 2021 2020 Change

INCOME SUMMARY Interest $ 143,768 $ 147,675 $ 145,809 $ 141,542 $ 156,071 $ 578,794 $ 557,996 revenueInterest 6,213 6,636 7,433 9,478 10,676 29,760 56,237 expenseNet interest 137,555 141,039 138,376 132,064 145,395 (5 )% 549,034 501,759 9 %revenue(Release of)provision for (647 ) (11,034 ) (13,588 ) (12,281 ) 2,907 (37,550 ) 80,434 credit lossesNoninterest 37,177 40,095 35,841 44,705 41,375 (10 ) 157,818 156,109 1 incomeTotal revenue 175,379 192,168 187,805 189,050 183,863 (5 ) 744,402 577,434 29 Expenses 109,156 96,749 95,540 95,194 106,490 3 396,639 367,989 8 Income beforeincome tax 66,223 95,419 92,265 93,856 77,373 347,763 209,445 expenseIncome tax 14,204 21,603 22,005 20,150 17,871 77,962 45,356 expenseNet income 52,019 73,816 70,260 73,706 59,502 269,801 164,089 Merger-relatedand other 9,912 1,437 1,078 1,543 2,452 13,970 7,018 chargesIncome taxbenefit ofmerger-related (2,265 ) (328 ) (246 ) (335 ) (552 ) (3,174 ) (1,340 ) and otherchargesNet income - $ 59,666 $ 74,925 $ 71,092 $ 74,914 $ 61,402 (3 ) $ 280,597 $ 169,767 65 operating^ (1) Pre-taxpre-provision $ 65,576 $ 84,385 $ 78,677 $ 81,575 $ 80,280 (18 ) $ 310,213 $ 289,879 7 income ^(5) PERFORMANCE MEASURESPer common share:Diluted net $ 0.55 $ 0.82 $ 0.78 $ 0.82 $ 0.66 (17 ) $ 2.97 $ 1.91 55 income - GAAPDiluted netincome - 0.64 0.83 0.79 0.83 0.68 (6 ) 3.09 1.98 56 operating ^(1)Common stockcash dividends 0.20 0.20 0.19 0.19 0.18 11 0.78 0.72 8 declaredBook value 23.63 23.25 22.81 22.15 21.90 8 23.63 21.90 8 Tangible book 18.42 18.68 18.49 17.83 17.56 5 18.42 17.56 5 value ^(3)Keyperformance ratios:Return oncommon equity 9.32 % 14.26 % 14.08 % 15.37 % 12.36 % 13.14 % 9.25 % - GAAP ^(2)(4)Return oncommon equity 10.74 14.48 14.25 15.63 12.77 13.68 9.58 - operating ^(1)(2)(4)Return ontangiblecommon equity 13.93 18.23 17.81 19.68 16.23 17.33 12.24 - operating ^(1)(2)(3)(4)Return onassets - GAAP 0.96 1.48 1.46 1.62 1.30 1.37 1.04 ^(4)Return onassets - 1.10 1.50 1.48 1.65 1.34 1.42 1.07 operating ^(1)(4)Return onassets-pre-tax 1.21 1.70 1.64 1.80 1.77 1.58 1.85 pre-provision^(4)(5)Return onassets-pre-taxpre-provision,excluding 1.40 1.73 1.67 1.83 1.82 1.65 1.90 merger relatedand othercharges^ (1)(4)(5)Net interestmargin (fullytaxable 2.81 3.12 3.19 3.22 3.55 3.07 3.55 equivalent) ^(4)Efficiency 62.12 53.11 54.53 53.55 56.73 55.80 55.71 ratio - GAAPEfficiencyratio - 56.48 52.33 53.92 52.68 55.42 53.83 54.64 operating ^(1)Equity to 10.61 10.89 11.04 10.95 11.29 10.61 11.29 total assetsTangiblecommon equity 8.09 8.53 8.71 8.57 8.81 8.09 8.81 to tangibleassets ^(3)ASSET QUALITY Nonperforming $ 32,812 $ 44,923 $ 46,123 $ 55,900 $ 61,599 (47 ) $ 32,812 $ 61,599 (47 )loansForeclosed 43 412 224 596 647 (93 ) 43 647 (93 )propertiesTotalnonperforming 32,855 45,335 46,347 56,496 62,246 (47 ) 32,855 62,246 (47 )assets(?NPAs?)Allowance forcredit losses 102,532 99,620 111,616 126,866 137,010 (25 ) 102,532 137,010 (25 )- loans andleasesAllowance forcredit losses 113,524 110,875 122,460 135,592 147,568 (23 ) 113,524 147,568 (23 )- totalNet 248 551 (456 ) (305 ) 1,515 (84 ) 38 18,316 (100 )charge-offsAllowance forcredit losses- loans and 0.87 % 0.89 % 0.98 % 1.09 % 1.20 % 0.87 % 1.20 % leases toloansAllowance forcredit losses 0.97 0.99 1.08 1.16 1.30 0.97 1.30 - total toloansNetcharge-offs to 0.01 0.02 (0.02 ) (0.01 ) 0.05 ? 0.17 average loans^(4)NPAs to loansand foreclosed 0.28 0.41 0.41 0.48 0.55 0.28 0.55 propertiesNPAs to total 0.16 0.23 0.25 0.30 0.35 0.16 0.35 assetsAVERAGEBALANCES ($ in millions)Loans $ 11,689 $ 11,205 $ 11,617 $ 11,433 $ 11,595 1 $ 11,486 $ 10,467 10 Investment 5,544 5,122 4,631 3,991 3,326 67 4,830 2,752 76 securitiesEarning assets 19,542 18,078 17,540 16,782 16,394 19 17,996 14,226 27 Total assets 20,863 19,322 18,792 18,023 17,698 18 19,258 15,467 25 Deposits 18,037 16,637 16,132 15,366 15,057 20 16,550 13,135 26 Shareholders? 2,223 2,119 2,060 2,025 1,994 11 2,107 1,821 16 equityCommon shares- basic 89,916 87,211 87,289 87,322 87,258 3 87,940 83,184 6 (thousands)Common shares- diluted 90,089 87,355 87,421 87,466 87,333 3 88,097 83,248 6 (thousands)AT PERIOD END($ in millions)Loans $ 11,760 $ 11,191 $ 11,391 $ 11,679 $ 11,371 3 $ 11,760 $ 11,371 3 Investment 5,653 5,335 4,928 4,332 3,645 55 5,653 3,645 55 securitiesTotal assets 20,947 19,481 18,896 18,557 17,794 18 20,947 17,794 18 Deposits 18,241 16,865 16,328 15,993 15,232 20 18,241 15,232 20 Shareholders? 2,222 2,122 2,086 2,031 2,008 11 2,222 2,008 11 equityCommon sharesoutstanding 89,350 86,559 86,665 86,777 86,675 3 89,350 86,675 3 (thousands)

(1) Excludes merger-related and other charges. (2) Net income less preferred stock dividends, divided by average realized common equity, which excludes accumulated other comprehensive income (loss). (3) Excludes effect of acquisition related intangibles and associated amortization. (4) Annualized. (5) Excludes income tax expense and provision for credit losses.

UNITED COMMUNITY BANKS, INC.Non-GAAP Performance Measures ReconciliationSelected Financial Information(in thousands, except per share data) 2021 2020 Twelve Months Ended December 31, Fourth Third Second First Fourth 2021 2020 Quarter Quarter Quarter Quarter QuarterExpense reconciliationExpenses (GAAP) $ 109,156 $ 96,749 $ 95,540 $ 95,194 $ 106,490 $ 396,639 $ 367,989 Merger-relatedand other (9,912 ) (1,437 ) (1,078 ) (1,543 ) (2,452 ) (13,970 ) (7,018 )chargesExpenses - $ 99,244 $ 95,312 $ 94,462 $ 93,651 $ 104,038 $ 382,669 $ 360,971 operating Net income tooperating income reconciliationNet income $ 52,019 $ 73,816 $ 70,260 $ 73,706 $ 59,502 $ 269,801 $ 164,089 (GAAP)Merger-relatedand other 9,912 1,437 1,078 1,543 2,452 13,970 7,018 chargesIncome taxbenefit ofmerger-related (2,265 ) (328 ) (246 ) (335 ) (552 ) (3,174 ) (1,340 )and otherchargesNet income - $ 59,666 $ 74,925 $ 71,092 $ 74,914 $ 61,402 $ 280,597 $ 169,767 operating Net income topre-taxpre-provision incomereconciliationNet income $ 52,019 $ 73,816 $ 70,260 $ 73,706 $ 59,502 $ 269,801 $ 164,089 (GAAP)Income tax 14,204 21,603 22,005 20,150 17,871 77,962 45,356 expense(Release of)provision for (647 ) (11,034 ) (13,588 ) (12,281 ) 2,907 (37,550 ) 80,434 credit lossesPre-taxpre-provision $ 65,576 $ 84,385 $ 78,677 $ 81,575 $ 80,280 $ 310,213 $ 289,879 income Diluted incomeper common share reconciliationDiluted incomeper common share $ 0.55 $ 0.82 $ 0.78 $ 0.82 $ 0.66 $ 2.97 $ 1.91 (GAAP)Merger-relatedand other 0.09 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.02 0.12 0.07 chargesDiluted incomeper common share $ 0.64 $ 0.83 $ 0.79 $ 0.83 $ 0.68 $ 3.09 $ 1.98 - operating Book value percommon share reconciliationBook value percommon share $ 23.63 $ 23.25 $ 22.81 $ 22.15 $ 21.90 $ 23.63 $ 21.90 (GAAP)Effect ofgoodwill and (5.21 ) (4.57 ) (4.32 ) (4.32 ) (4.34 ) (5.21 ) (4.34 )otherintangiblesTangible bookvalue per common $ 18.42 $ 18.68 $ 18.49 $ 17.83 $ 17.56 $ 18.42 $ 17.56 share Return ontangible common equityreconciliationReturn on common 9.32 % 14.26 % 14.08 % 15.37 % 12.36 % 13.14 % 9.25 %equity (GAAP)Merger-relatedand other 1.42 0.22 0.17 0.26 0.41 0.54 0.33 chargesReturn on commonequity - 10.74 14.48 14.25 15.63 12.77 13.68 9.58 operatingEffect ofgoodwill and 3.19 3.75 3.56 4.05 3.46 3.65 2.66 otherintangiblesReturn ontangible common 13.93 % 18.23 % 17.81 % 19.68 % 16.23 % 17.33 % 12.24 %equity -operating Return on assets reconciliationReturn on assets 0.96 % 1.48 % 1.46 % 1.62 % 1.30 % 1.37 % 1.04 %(GAAP)Merger-relatedand other 0.14 0.02 0.02 0.03 0.04 0.05 0.03 chargesReturn on assets 1.10 % 1.50 % 1.48 % 1.65 % 1.34 % 1.42 % 1.07 %- operating Return on assetsto return onassets- pre-tax pre-provisionreconciliationReturn on assets 0.96 % 1.48 % 1.46 % 1.62 % 1.30 % 1.37 % 1.04 %(GAAP)Income tax 0.26 0.45 0.47 0.46 0.40 0.40 0.29 expense(Release of)provision for (0.01 ) (0.23 ) (0.29 ) (0.28 ) 0.07 (0.19 ) 0.52 credit lossesReturn on assets- pre-tax 1.21 1.70 1.64 1.80 1.77 1.58 1.85 pre-provisionMerger-relatedand other 0.19 0.03 0.03 0.03 0.05 0.07 0.05 chargesReturn on assets- pre-taxpre-provision,excluding 1.40 % 1.73 % 1.67 % 1.83 % 1.82 % 1.65 % 1.90 %merger-relatedand othercharges Efficiency ratio reconciliationEfficiency ratio 62.12 % 53.11 % 54.53 % 53.55 % 56.73 % 55.80 % 55.71 %(GAAP)Merger-relatedand other (5.64 ) (0.78 ) (0.61 ) (0.87 ) (1.31 ) (1.97 ) (1.07 )chargesEfficiency ratio 56.48 % 52.33 % 53.92 % 52.68 % 55.42 % 53.83 % 54.64 %- operating Tangible commonequity to tangible assetsreconciliationEquity to total 10.61 % 10.89 % 11.04 % 10.95 % 11.29 % 10.61 % 11.29 %assets (GAAP)Effect ofgoodwill and (2.06 ) (1.87 ) (1.82 ) (1.86 ) (1.94 ) (2.06 ) (1.94 )otherintangiblesEffect of (0.46 ) (0.49 ) (0.51 ) (0.52 ) (0.54 ) (0.46 ) (0.54 )preferred equityTangible commonequity to 8.09 % 8.53 % 8.71 % 8.57 % 8.81 % 8.09 % 8.81 %tangible assets Allowance forcredit losses - loans to loansreconciliationAllowance forcredit losses - 0.87 % 0.89 % 0.98 % 1.09 % 1.20 % 0.87 % 1.20 %loans to loans(GAAP)Effect of PPP 0.01 0.01 0.04 0.09 0.08 0.01 0.08 loansAllowance forcredit losses -loans to loans, 0.88 % 0.90 % 1.02 % 1.18 % 1.28 % 0.88 % 1.28 %excluding PPPloans

UNITED COMMUNITY BANKS, INC.Financial HighlightsLoan Portfolio Composition at Period-End(in millions) 2021 2020 Linked Year over Fourth Third Second First Fourth Quarter Year Quarter Quarter Quarter Quarter Quarter Change ChangeLOANS BY CATEGORY Owner occupied $ 2,322 $ 2,149 $ 2,149 $ 2,107 $ 2,090 $ 173 $ 232 commercial REIncome producing 2,601 2,542 2,550 2,599 2,541 59 60 commercial RECommercial & 1,822 1,729 1,762 1,760 1,853 93 (31 )industrialPaycheck 88 150 472 883 646 (62 ) (558 )protection programCommercial 1,015 947 927 960 967 68 48 constructionEquipment 1,083 1,017 969 913 864 66 219 financingTotal commercial 8,931 8,534 8,829 9,222 8,961 397 (30 )Residential 1,638 1,533 1,473 1,362 1,285 105 353 mortgageHome equity lines 694 661 661 679 697 33 (3 )of creditResidential 359 321 289 272 281 38 78 constructionConsumer 138 142 139 144 147 (4 ) (9 )Total loans $ 11,760 $ 11,191 $ 11,391 $ 11,679 $ 11,371 $ 569 $ 389 LOANS BY MARKET ^ (1)North Georgia $ 944 $ 961 $ 962 $ 982 $ 955 $ (17 ) $ (11 )Atlanta 2,030 1,930 1,938 1,953 1,889 100 141 North Carolina 1,895 1,427 1,374 1,326 1,281 468 614 Coastal Georgia 588 621 605 597 617 (33 ) (29 )Gainesville 216 220 224 222 224 (4 ) (8 )East Tennessee 373 383 394 398 415 (10 ) (42 )South Carolina 2,235 2,145 2,107 1,997 1,947 90 288 Florida 1,148 1,113 1,141 1,160 1,435 35 (287 )Commercial Banking 2,331 2,391 2,646 3,044 2,608 (60 ) (277 )SolutionsTotal loans $ 11,760 $ 11,191 $ 11,391 $ 11,679 $ 11,371 $ 569 $ 389

UNITED COMMUNITY BANKS, INC.Financial HighlightsLoan Portfolio Composition at Year-End(in millions) 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017LOANS BY CATEGORY Owner occupied $ 2,322 $ 2,090 $ 1,720 $ 1,648 $ 1,924 commercial REIncome producing 2,601 2,541 2,008 1,812 1,595 commercial RECommercial & industrial 1,822 1,853 1,221 1,278 1,131 Paycheck protection 88 646 ? ? ? programCommercial construction 1,015 967 976 796 712 Equipment financing 1,083 864 745 565 ? Total commercial 8,931 8,961 6,670 6,099 5,362 Residential mortgage 1,638 1,285 1,118 1,049 974 Home equity lines of 694 697 661 694 731 creditResidential construction 359 281 236 211 183 Consumer 138 147 128 330 486 Total loans $ 11,760 $ 11,371 $ 8,813 $ 8,383 $ 7,736 LOANS BY MARKET North Georgia $ 944 $ 955 $ 967 $ 981 $ 1,019 Atlanta 2,030 1,889 1,762 1,507 1,510 North Carolina 1,895 1,281 1,156 1,072 1,049 Coastal Georgia 588 617 631 588 630 Gainesville 216 224 246 247 248 East Tennessee 373 415 421 477 475 South Carolina 2,235 1,947 1,708 1,645 1,486 Florida 1,148 1,435 ? ? ? Commercial Banking 2,331 2,608 1,922 1,658 961 SolutionsIndirect auto ? ? ? 208 358 Total loans $ 11,760 $ 11,371 $ 8,813 $ 8,383 $ 7,736

UNITED COMMUNITY BANKS, INC.Financial HighlightsCredit Quality(in thousands) 2021 Fourth Third Second Quarter Quarter QuarterNONACCRUAL LOANS Owner occupied RE $ 2,714 $ 4,945 $ 6,128 Income producing RE 7,588 13,462 13,100 Commercial & industrial 5,429 8,507 8,563 Commercial construction 343 1,202 1,229 Equipment financing 1,741 1,845 1,771 Total commercial 17,815 29,961 30,791 Residential mortgage 13,313 13,222 13,485 Home equity lines of credit 1,212 1,364 1,433 Residential construction 420 260 307 Consumer 52 116 107 Total $ 32,812 $ 44,923 $ 46,123

2021 Fourth Quarter Third Quarter Second Quarter Net Net Net(in Net Charge-Offs Net Charge-Offs Net Charge-Offsthousands) Charge-Offs to Average Charge-Offs to Average Charge-Offs to Average Loans^ (1) Loans^ (1) Loans^ (1)NETCHARGE-OFFS BY CATEGORYOwner $ (255 ) (0.04 )% $ (93 ) (0.02 )% $ (103 ) (0.02 )%occupied REIncome (98 ) (0.01 ) 45 0.01 (213 ) (0.03 )producing RECommercial & 339 0.07 (91 ) (0.02 ) 60 0.01 industrialCommercial (354 ) (0.14 ) (123 ) (0.05 ) (293 ) (0.12 )constructionEquipment 781 0.29 512 0.21 301 0.13 financingTotal 413 0.02 250 0.01 (248 ) (0.01 )commercialResidential (169 ) (0.04 ) 51 0.01 (194 ) (0.05 )mortgageHome equitylines of (118 ) (0.07 ) (102 ) (0.06 ) (112 ) (0.07 )creditResidential (17 ) (0.02 ) (37 ) (0.05 ) (33 ) (0.05 )constructionConsumer 139 0.39 389 1.11 131 0.37 Total $ 248 0.01 $ 551 0.02 $ (456 ) (0.02 ) ^(1) Annualized.

UNITED COMMUNITY BANKS, INC.Consolidated Balance Sheets (Unaudited)(in thousands, except share and per share data)

December 31, December 31, 2021 2020ASSETS Cash and due from banks $ 144,244 $ 148,896 Interest-bearing deposits in banks 2,147,266 1,459,723 Federal funds and other short-term 27,000 ? investmentsCash and cash equivalents 2,318,510 1,608,619 Debt securities available-for-sale 4,496,824 3,224,721 Debt securities held-to-maturity (fair value 1,156,098 420,361 $1,148,804 and $437,193, respectively)Loans held for sale at fair value 44,109 105,433 Loans and leases held for investment 11,760,346 11,370,815 Less allowance for credit losses - loans and (102,532 ) (137,010 )leasesLoans and leases, net 11,657,814 11,233,805 Premises and equipment, net 245,296 218,489 Bank owned life insurance 217,713 201,969 Accrued interest receivable 42,999 47,672 Net deferred tax asset 41,322 38,411 Derivative financial instruments 42,480 86,666 Goodwill and other intangible assets, net 472,407 381,823 Other assets 211,199 226,405 Total assets $ 20,946,771 $ 17,794,374 LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS? EQUITY Liabilities: Deposits: Noninterest-bearing demand $ 6,956,981 $ 5,390,291 NOW and interest-bearing demand 4,252,209 3,346,490 Money market 4,183,354 3,550,335 Savings 1,215,779 950,854 Time 1,442,498 1,704,290 Brokered 190,358 290,098 Total deposits 18,241,179 15,232,358 Long-term debt 247,360 326,956 Derivative financial instruments 25,145 29,003 Accrued expenses and other liabilities 210,842 198,527 Total liabilities 18,724,526 15,786,844 Shareholders' equity: Preferred stock, $1 par value: 10,000,000shares authorized; Series I, $25,000 pershare liquidation 96,422 96,422 preference; 4,000 shares issued andoutstandingCommon stock, $1 par value; 200,000,000 and150,000,000 shares authorized, respectively; 89,350 86,675 89,349,826 and 86,675,279 shares issued andoutstanding, respectivelyCommon stock issuable; 595,705 and 600,834 11,288 10,855 shares, respectivelyCapital surplus 1,721,007 1,638,999 Retained earnings 330,654 136,869 Accumulated other comprehensive (loss) income (26,476 ) 37,710 Total shareholders? equity 2,222,245 2,007,530 Total liabilities and shareholders? equity $ 20,946,771 $ 17,794,374

UNITED COMMUNITY BANKS, INC.Consolidated Statements of Income (Unaudited)(in thousands, except per share data)

Three Months Ended Twelve Months Ended December 31, December 31, 2021 2020 2021 2020Interest revenue: Loans, including fees $ 123,473 $ 141,351 $ 505,734 $ 494,212 Investment securities,including tax exempt of 19,442 14,507 70,972 62,074 $2,293, $2,055, $8,978and $7,043Deposits in banks and 853 213 2,088 1,710 short-term investmentsTotal interest revenue 143,768 156,071 578,794 557,996 Interest expense: Deposits: NOW and 1,310 1,495 5,468 7,735 interest-bearing demandMoney market 1,102 2,196 5,380 13,165 Savings 60 48 217 169 Time 392 2,689 3,780 20,703 Deposits 2,864 6,428 14,845 41,772 Short-term borrowings ? ? ? 3 Federal Home Loan Bank 1 ? 3 28 advancesLong-term debt 3,348 4,248 14,912 14,434 Total interest expense 6,213 10,676 29,760 56,237 Net interest revenue 137,555 145,395 549,034 501,759 Provision for credit (647 ) 2,907 (37,550 ) 80,434 lossesNet interest revenueafter provision for 138,202 142,488 586,584 421,325 credit lossesNoninterest income: Service charges and 8,613 8,508 33,868 32,401 feesMortgage loan gains and 10,910 18,974 58,446 76,087 related feesWealth management fees 6,117 3,221 18,998 9,240 Gains from other loan 3,761 1,531 11,267 5,420 sales, netSecurities gains, net 42 2 83 748 Other 7,734 9,139 35,156 32,213 Total noninterest 37,177 41,375 157,818 156,109 incomeTotal revenue 175,379 183,863 744,402 577,434 Noninterest expenses: Salaries and employee 60,986 61,824 241,443 224,060 benefitsOccupancy 7,489 7,082 28,619 25,791 Communications and 7,850 7,687 29,829 27,149 equipmentFDIC assessments andother regulatory 1,878 1,594 7,398 5,982 chargesProfessional fees 6,080 4,029 20,589 18,032 Lending and loan 2,351 2,468 10,859 10,993 servicing expenseOutside services - 2,670 1,997 9,481 7,513 electronic bankingPostage, printing and 1,939 1,793 7,110 6,779 suppliesAdvertising and public 1,760 9,891 5,910 15,203 relationsAmortization of 1,103 1,042 4,045 4,168 intangiblesMerger-related and 9,912 2,452 13,970 7,018 other chargesOther 5,138 4,631 17,386 15,301 Total noninterest 109,156 106,490 396,639 367,989 expensesNet income before 66,223 77,373 347,763 209,445 income taxesIncome tax expense 14,204 17,871 77,962 45,356 Net income $ 52,019 $ 59,502 $ 269,801 $ 164,089 Preferred stock 1,718 1,719 6,875 3,533 dividendsEarnings allocated toparticipating 317 532 1,657 1,287 securitiesNet income available to $ 49,984 $ 57,251 $ 261,269 $ 159,269 common shareholders Net income per common share:Basic $ 0.56 $ 0.66 $ 2.97 $ 1.91 Diluted 0.55 0.66 2.97 1.91 Weighted average common shares outstanding:Basic 89,916 87,258 87,940 83,184 Diluted 90,089 87,333 88,097 83,248

UNITED COMMUNITY BANKS, INC.Average Consolidated Balance Sheets and Net Interest AnalysisFor the Three Months Ended December 31,(dollars in thousands, fully taxable equivalent (FTE))

2021 2020 Average Interest Average Average Interest Average Balance Rate Balance RateAssets: Interest-earning assets:Loans, net ofunearned income $ 11,689,412 $ 123,250 4.18 % $ 11,595,484 $ 140,687 4.83 %(FTE) ^(1)(2)Taxable securities^ 5,156,563 17,149 1.33 3,039,275 12,452 1.64 (3)Tax-exemptsecurities (FTE) ^ 387,638 3,080 3.18 286,490 2,759 3.85 (1)(3)Federal funds soldand other 2,308,241 1,322 0.23 1,472,668 1,132 0.31 interest-earningassetsTotalinterest-earning 19,541,854 144,801 2.94 16,393,917 157,030 3.81 assets (FTE) Noninterest-earning assets:Allowance for loan (103,167 ) (138,313 ) lossesCash and due from 141,967 143,694 banksPremises and 245,869 218,349 equipmentOther assets ^(3) 1,036,760 1,080,180 Total assets $ 20,863,283 $ 17,697,827 Liabilities andShareholders? Equity:Interest-bearing liabilities:Interest-bearing deposits:NOW andinterest-bearing $ 4,080,621 1,310 0.13 $ 3,281,984 1,495 0.18 demandMoney market 4,323,851 1,102 0.10 3,698,734 2,196 0.24 Savings 1,187,134 60 0.02 918,623 48 0.02 Time 1,461,231 567 0.15 1,748,099 2,711 0.62 Brokered time 65,556 (175 ) (1.06 ) 83,750 (22 ) (0.10 )depositsTotalinterest-bearing 11,118,393 2,864 0.10 9,731,190 6,428 0.26 depositsFederal fundspurchased and other 51 ? ? 54 ? ? borrowingsFederal Home Loan 1,426 1 0.28 ? ? ? Bank advancesLong-term debt 247,251 3,348 5.37 327,236 4,248 5.16 Total borrowed 248,728 3,349 5.34 327,290 4,248 5.16 fundsTotalinterest-bearing 11,367,121 6,213 0.22 10,058,480 10,676 0.42 liabilities Noninterest-bearing liabilities:Noninterest-bearing 6,918,279 5,325,858 depositsOther liabilities 354,665 319,158 Total liabilities 18,640,065 15,703,496 Shareholders? 2,223,218 1,994,331 equityTotal liabilitiesand shareholders? $ 20,863,283 $ 17,697,827 equity Net interest $ 138,588 $ 146,354 revenue (FTE)Net interest-rate 2.72 % 3.39 %spread (FTE)Net interest margin 2.81 % 3.55 %(FTE) ^(4)

(1) Interest revenue on tax-exempt securities and loans has been increased to reflect comparable interest on taxable securities and loans. The rate used was 26%, reflecting the statutory federal income tax rate and the federal tax adjusted state income tax rate.(2) Included in the average balance of loans outstanding are loans on which the accrual of interest has been discontinued and loans that are held for sale.(3) Securities available for sale are shown at amortized cost. Pretax unrealized losses of $1.64 million in 2021 and pretax unrealized gains of $72.6 million in 2020 are included in other assets for purposes of this presentation.(4) Net interest margin is taxable equivalent net interest revenue divided by average interest-earning assets.

UNITED COMMUNITY BANKS, INC.Average Consolidated Balance Sheets and Net Interest AnalysisFor the Twelve Months Ended December 31,(dollars in thousands, fully taxable equivalent (FTE))

2021 2020 Average Interest Average Average Interest Average Balance Rate Balance RateAssets: Interest-earning assets:Loans, net ofunearned income $ 11,485,876 $ 504,015 4.39 % $ 10,466,653 $ 492,223 4.70 %(FTE) ^(1)(2)Taxable securities ^ 4,446,712 61,994 1.39 2,532,750 55,031 2.17 (3)Tax-exemptsecurities (FTE)^ 382,915 12,059 3.15 219,668 9,458 4.31 (1)(3)Federal funds soldand other 1,680,151 4,784 0.28 1,007,059 4,753 0.47 interest-earningassetsTotalinterest-earning 17,995,654 582,852 3.24 14,226,130 561,465 3.95 assets (FTE) Non-interest-earning assets:Allowance for loan (121,586 ) (106,812 ) lossesCash and due from 139,728 136,702 banksPremises and 230,276 217,751 equipmentOther assets ^(3) 1,013,956 993,584 Total assets $ 19,258,028 $ 15,467,355 Liabilities andShareholders? Equity:Interest-bearing liabilities:Interest-bearing deposits:NOW andinterest-bearing $ 3,610,601 5,468 0.15 $ 2,759,383 7,735 0.28 demandMoney market 3,972,358 5,380 0.14 3,023,928 13,165 0.44 Savings 1,095,071 217 0.02 821,344 169 0.02 Time 1,529,072 3,663 0.24 1,832,319 20,146 1.10 Brokered time 67,230 117 0.17 97,788 557 0.57 depositsTotalinterest-bearing 10,274,332 14,845 0.14 8,534,762 41,772 0.49 depositsFederal fundspurchased and other 44 ? ? 1,220 3 0.25 borrowingsFederal Home Loan 1,195 3 0.25 749 28 3.74 Bank advancesLong-term debt 276,492 14,912 5.39 274,069 14,434 5.27 Total borrowed funds 277,731 14,915 5.37 276,038 14,465 5.24 Totalinterest-bearing 10,552,063 29,760 0.28 8,810,800 56,237 0.64 liabilities Noninterest-bearing liabilities:Noninterest-bearing 6,276,094 4,600,152 depositsOther liabilities 322,566 235,120 Total liabilities 17,150,723 13,646,072 Shareholders? equity 2,107,305 1,821,283 Total liabilitiesand shareholders? $ 19,258,028 $ 15,467,355 equity Net interest revenue $ 553,092 $ 505,228 (FTE)Net interest-rate 2.96 % 3.31 %spread (FTE)Net interest margin 3.07 % 3.55 %(FTE) ^(4)

(1) Interest revenue on tax-exempt securities and loans has been increased to reflect comparable interest on taxable securities and loans. The rate used was 26%, reflecting the statutory federal income tax rate and the federal tax adjusted state income tax rate.(2) Included in the average balance of loans outstanding are loans on which the accrual of interest has been discontinued and loans that are held for sale.(3) Securities available for sale are shown at amortized cost. Pretax unrealized gains of $28.7 million in 2021 and $67.3 million in 2020 are included in other assets for purposes of this presentation.(4) Net interest margin is taxable equivalent net-interest revenue divided by average interest-earning assets.

About United Community Banks, Inc.

United Community Banks, Inc. (NASDAQGS: UCBI) provides a full range of banking, wealth management and mortgage services for relationship-oriented consumers and business owners. The company, known as The Bank That SERVICE Built, has been recognized nationally for delivering award-winning service. At December 31, 2021, United had $20.9 billion in assets and 171 offices in Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee along with a national SBA lending franchise and a national equipment lending subsidiary. Through its January 1, 2022 acquisition of Reliant Bancorp and its wholly-owned banking subsidiary, Reliant Bank, United added $3 billion in assets and 25 banking offices in high growth markets in Tennessee. In 2021, J.D. Power ranked United highest in customer satisfaction with retail banking in the Southeast, marking seven out of the last eight years United earned the coveted award. United was also named one of the "Best Banks to Work For" by American Banker in 2021 for the fifth consecutive year based on employee satisfaction. Forbes included United in its inaugural list of the Worlds Best Banks in 2019 and again in 2020. Forbes also recognized United on its 2021 list of the 100 Best Banks in America for the eighth consecutive year. United also received five Greenwich Excellence Awards in 2020 for excellence in Small Business Banking, including a national award for Overall Satisfaction. Additional information about United can be found at www.ucbi.com.

Non-GAAP Financial Measures

This press release, including the accompanying financial statement tables, contains financial information determined by methods other than in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, or GAAP. This financial information includes certain operating performance measures, which exclude merger-related and other charges that are not considered part of recurring operations, such as operating net income, pre-tax, pre-provision income, operating net income per diluted common share, operating earnings per share, tangible book value per common share, operating return on common equity, operating return on tangible common equity, operating return on assets, return on assets - pre-tax, pre-provision, excluding merger-related and other charges, return on assets - pre-tax, pre-provision, operating efficiency ratio, and tangible common equity to tangible assets. These non-GAAP measures are included because United believes they may provide useful supplemental information for evaluating Uniteds underlying performance trends. These measures should be viewed in addition to, and not as an alternative to or substitute for, measures determined in accordance with GAAP, and are not necessarily comparable to non-GAAP measures that may be presented by other companies. To the extent applicable, reconciliations of these non-GAAP measures to the most directly comparable measures as reported in accordance with GAAP are included with the accompanying financial statement tables.

Caution About Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. In general, forward-looking statements usually may be identified through use of words such as may, believe, expect, anticipate, intend, will, should, plan, estimate, predict, continue and potential or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology, and include statements related to the accretive value of each of the Aquesta and Reliant acquisitions to Uniteds earnings. Forward-looking statements are not historical facts and represent managements beliefs, based upon information available at the time the statements are made, with regard to the matters addressed they are not guarantees of future performance.Actual results may prove to bematerially different from the results expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements.Forward-looking statements are subject to numerous assumptions, risks and uncertainties that change over time and could cause actual results or financial condition to differ materially from those expressed in or implied by such statements.

Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to (1) the risk that the cost savings and any revenue synergies from the Aquesta and Reliant acquisitions may not be realized or take longer than anticipated to be realized, (2) disruption of customer, supplier, employee or other business partner relationships as a result of the Aquesta and Reliant acquisitions, (3) the possibility that the costs, fees, expenses and charges related to the acquisition of Reliant may be greater than anticipated, (4) reputational risk and the reaction of the companies customers, suppliers, employees or other business partners to the acquisitions of Aquesta and Reliant, (5) the risks relating to the integration of Reliants operations into the operations of United, including the risk that such integration will be materially delayed or will be more costly or difficult than expected, (6) the risk of potential litigation or regulatory action related to the acquisitions of Aquesta and Reliant,(7) the risks associated with Uniteds pursuit of future acquisitions, (8) the risk of expansion into new geographic or product markets,(9) the dilution caused by Uniteds issuance of additional shares of its common stock in the acquisitions of Aquesta and Reliant, and (10) general competitive, economic, political and market conditions. Further information regarding additional factors which could affect the forward-looking statements contained in this press release can be found in the cautionary language included under the headings Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements and Risk Factors in Uniteds Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020, and other documents subsequently filed by United with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Many of these factors are beyond Uniteds ability to control or predict. If one or more events related to these or other risks or uncertainties materialize, or if the underlying assumptions prove to be incorrect, actual results may differ materially from the forward-looking statements. Accordingly, shareholders and investors should not place undue reliance on any such forward-looking statements. Any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date of this communication, and United undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law. New risks and uncertainties may emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for United to predict their occurrence or how they will affect United or Reliant.

United qualifies all forward-looking statements by these cautionary statements.

For more information:

Jefferson HarralsonChief Financial Officer(864) 240-6208Jefferson_Harralson@ucbi.com