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Exhibit 99.1 Republic Bancorp , Inc. Reports First Quarter Net Income of $ 20.4 Million With Return on Assets of 1.30 % and Return on Equity of 9.77 % LOUISVILLE , Ky .-- ( BUSINESS WIRE ) -- April 22 , 2021 -- Republic Bancorp , Inc. ( NASDAQ : RBCAA ) , headquartered in Louisville , Kentucky , is the holding company of Republic Bank & Trust Company ( the “ Bank ” ) . Republic Bancorp , Inc. ( " Republic " or the " Company " ) reported first quarter net income of $ 20.4 million , a $ 6.3 million , or 23 % decrease from the first quarter of 2020 , resulting in Diluted Earnings per Class A Common Share ( “ Diluted EPS ” ) of $ 0.98 . Return on average assets ( " ROA ” ) and return on average equity ( “ ROE " ) were 1.30 % and 9.77 % for the first quarter of 2021 . Steve Trager , Chair & CEO of Republic commented , “ Our Company's Tax Refund Solutions ( “ TRS ” ) segment , which traditionally provides a first quarter lift to net income with its seasonal tax business , drove our year - over - year decline , contributing an $ 11.6 million negative swing in net income as a result of a highly unusual and delayed tax season . Initial applications for our TRS products were impacted , as the season began approximately two weeks later than its normal start date . Furthermore , as consumers received the benefits from two new rounds of U.S. Treasury economic stimulus payments during the quarter , demand for our early season tax products have , so far , moderated from the previous year . As a result , year - to - date applications for our Refund Transfer ( " RT ” ) product were down 10 % while applications for our Easy Advance ( " EA " ) loans decreased 30 % versus prior year . " Our Core Banking operations had a fantastic quarter , as strong revenue contributions from Mortgage Banking , Warehouse Lending and PPP1 loans more than offset the negative impacts of industry - wide headwinds , such as net interest margin compression and soft non - PPP commercial loan growth . These positive factors contributed to a 64 % increase in Core Bank net income for the first quarter of 2021 compared to the first quarter of 2020 . " In addition to the strong net income from our Core Banking operations during the quarter , our balance sheet continued to exhibit solid activity . During the quarter , we originated an additional $ 176 million of PPP loans to just over 1,000 clients , while further assisting in the forgiveness or payoff of $ 182 million of 2020 PPP originations for over 1,800 clients . On the liability side of the ledger , our core deposits² continued to soar to new heights , growing another $ 232 million , or 5 % , during the first quarter of 2021 after record - breaking growth in 2020. While finding suitable investments for our robust liquidity remains a challenge in the current environment , we are excited about the opportunities this strong deposit growth provides for our potential long - term prosperity , " concluded Trager .