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Q&As refer to the provisions in force on the day of their publication. The EBA does not systematically review published Q&As following the amendment of legislative acts. Users of the Q&A tool should therefore check the date of publication of the Q&A and whether the provisions referred to in the answer remain the same.

Please note that the Q&As related to the supervisory benchmarking exercises have been moved to the dedicated handbook page. You can submit Q&As on this topic here.

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List of Q&A's

Risk weight of EURATOM debt

Which risk weight shall apply to outstanding/new EURATOM debt instruments?

  • Legal act: Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 (CRR)
  • COM Delegated or Implementing Acts/RTS/ITS/GLs: Not applicable
  • ID: 2017_3204
  • Topic: Credit risk
  • Date of submission:
  • Published as final Q&A: 14/07/2017

Risk weight to apply to exposures to unrated central banks

What risk weight should be assigned to exposures to the central bank of a non EU-member country when the central bank does not have a credit assessment by a nominated ECAI (i.e., it is unrated)? Would it be appropriate to assign a risk weight of 100% to exposures to said central bank, independently of the rating of the central government?

  • Legal act: Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 (CRR)
  • COM Delegated or Implementing Acts/RTS/ITS/GLs: Not applicable
  • ID: 2017_3231
  • Topic: Credit risk
  • Date of submission:
  • Published as final Q&A: 14/07/2017

Speculative immovable property financing

Should the loans that banks grants to build a first home, as a part of the normal business process, where the repayment of the financing comes from the sale of the property to the first buyer, without a speculative purpose of resale, and on the basis of the credit risk valuation of the borrower’s financial strength, be considered as speculative immovable property financing under Article 4(1)(79) CRR?

  • Legal act: Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 (CRR)
  • COM Delegated or Implementing Acts/RTS/ITS/GLs: Not applicable
  • ID: 2017_3131
  • Topic: Credit risk
  • Date of submission:
  • Published as final Q&A: 30/06/2017

Use of bona fide estimates for the determination of the size of a corporation

Is it allowed to use bona fide estimates for the determination of the size of a corporation for the purposes of Articles 153(4) or 162(4) CRR (identification of SMEs) analogous to Article 4(3) of the Annex Commission Recommendation 2003/361/EC? 

  • Legal act: Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 (CRR)
  • COM Delegated or Implementing Acts/RTS/ITS/GLs: Not applicable
  • ID: 2016_3049
  • Topic: Credit risk
  • Date of submission:
  • Published as final Q&A: 30/06/2017

Contingent liabilities within the Merchant Services Industry

Does the contingent liability to which an acquiring bank is subject in the course of the merchant acquirer business qualify as an off-balance sheet item according to Annex I  CRR? 

  • Legal act: Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 (CRR)
  • COM Delegated or Implementing Acts/RTS/ITS/GLs: Not applicable
  • ID: 2016_2916
  • Topic: Credit risk
  • Date of submission:
  • Published as final Q&A: 30/06/2017

Valuation of immovable property performed by statistical model

Does the reference to the independent valuer in Article 229(1) and Article 208(3)(b) of Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 (CRR), permit the recognition of a statistical model of property valuation, the outcomes of which are periodically verified by other independent valuer, as independent valuer?Does the reference to the independent valuer in Article 229(1) and Article 208(3)(b) CRR permit that before a credit decision, a property would be evaluated by a statistical model, the outcomes of which are periodically verified by another independent valuer, without additional confirmation by an independent valuer for each property valuation made by a model?Does the reference to the independent valuer in Article 229(1) and Article 208(3)(b) CRR permit that before a credit decision, a property would be evaluated by a statistical model, where outcomes of a model are periodically verified by another independent valuer, and there is an additional confirmation or correction for the each statistical valuation, after a credit decision by another independent valuer? 

  • Legal act: Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 (CRR)
  • COM Delegated or Implementing Acts/RTS/ITS/GLs: Not applicable
  • ID: 2017_3078
  • Topic: Credit risk
  • Date of submission:
  • Published as final Q&A: 12/05/2017

Implementation of default definition - retail portfolio

In the case of retail exposures, can the default definition be implemented in a way that the default of an exposure secured by mortgage extends to unsecured facilities, but not the other way round?Alternatively, should a bank implement the default definition within the retail non SME portfolio consistently at the level of facility, i.e. at the level of product type without extending the default to other facilities?

  • Legal act: Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 (CRR)
  • COM Delegated or Implementing Acts/RTS/ITS/GLs: Not applicable
  • ID: 2016_2968
  • Topic: Credit risk
  • Date of submission:
  • Published as final Q&A: 12/05/2017

Own estimates of CCF in the retail exposure class

For which product types has a credit conversion factor (CCF) to be used in the retail exposure class, which is based on own estimates?

  • Legal act: Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 (CRR)
  • COM Delegated or Implementing Acts/RTS/ITS/GLs: Not applicable
  • ID: 2015_2397
  • Topic: Credit risk
  • Date of submission:
  • Published as final Q&A: 05/05/2017

Other items

Does the approach specified in Article 134(5) CRR regarding the risk weight to be applied to assets purchased on a forward basis also apply to assets sold on a forward basis?

  • Legal act: Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 (CRR)
  • COM Delegated or Implementing Acts/RTS/ITS/GLs: Not applicable
  • ID: 2016_2935
  • Topic: Credit risk
  • Date of submission:
  • Published as final Q&A: 21/04/2017

Risk weighting attributed to gold bullion coins

Are gold bullion coins included in the term ‘gold bullion’ as used in Article 134(4)?

  • Legal act: Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 (CRR)
  • COM Delegated or Implementing Acts/RTS/ITS/GLs: Not applicable
  • ID: 2016_3011
  • Topic: Credit risk
  • Date of submission:
  • Published as final Q&A: 21/04/2017

Treatment of negative accrued interests in the credit risk

Do negative accrued interests reduce the exposure value, whereas positive accrued interests increase the exposure value?In particular, are negative accrued interests deducted from CET1 and should a reduction be done, if the negative accrued interests are already included in the retained earnings, according to article 26(1)(c), or in the losses for the current financial year, according to Article 36 (1) a of CRR?

  • Legal act: Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 (CRR)
  • COM Delegated or Implementing Acts/RTS/ITS/GLs: Regulation (EU) No 680/2014 - ITS on supervisory reporting of institutions (repealed)
  • ID: 2016_2795
  • Topic: Credit risk
  • Date of submission:
  • Published as final Q&A: 31/03/2017

Monitoring and evaluation of mortgages in cases of portfolio-wholesale transactions

Is it possible to assign the preferential risk weight of 35% according to Article 125 (1) (a) of Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 (CRR) to exposures that have been purchased at a wholesale price based on a) samples as to whether the conditions laid down in Art 208 and 229 CRR are fulfilled and b) a warranty guaranteeing full compensation in case any of these exposures default?

  • Legal act: Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 (CRR)
  • COM Delegated or Implementing Acts/RTS/ITS/GLs: Not applicable
  • ID: 2016_2726
  • Topic: Credit risk
  • Date of submission:
  • Published as final Q&A: 17/03/2017

Application of Article 159 on the level of total own funds

Can the excess of provisions for non-defaulted exposures be used to cover the shortfall of provisions on defaulted exposures?On the reporting side, which of the two options is the correct way for the own funds reporting (C 04.00) in the following case?Option 1 – netting in C.01.00 row 380 “(-) IRB shortfall of credit risk adjustments to expected losses“ – (1000) row 910 „IRB Excess of provisions over expected losses eligible“ – 600 Effect to the total capital – minus 400Option 2 – no netting at all (no recognition of any excess because it is on defaulted exposures) row 380 “(-) IRB shortfall of credit risk adjustments to expected losses“ – (1000) row 910 „IRB Excess of provisions over expected losses eligible“ – 0 Effect to total capital – minus 1000 

  • Legal act: Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 (CRR)
  • COM Delegated or Implementing Acts/RTS/ITS/GLs: Not applicable
  • ID: 2016_2702
  • Topic: Credit risk
  • Date of submission:
  • Published as final Q&A: 10/03/2017

ECAI ratings

1) For the determination of the risk-weight applicable to an exposure, is a “Bank Deposit Rating” an issue rating as per Article 139 of the CRR? 2) For the determination of the risk-weight applicable to an exposure, should a “Bank Deposit Rating” be used instead of an “Issuer rating” for exposures to institutions which are in the form of deposits (i.e. bank deposits)? What would be the treatment in accordance with Article 139 of the CRR?3) For instance, which Moody’s rating should be used to risk-weight an exposure to an institution which is in the form of a deposit (i.e. bank deposit): - the “Issuer Rating”? - the “Bank Deposit Rating”? - the “Obligation rating”? - one of the other ratings described in Moody’s methodology? Similar considerations apply to ratings issued by other ECAIs.

  • Legal act: Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 (CRR)
  • COM Delegated or Implementing Acts/RTS/ITS/GLs: Not applicable
  • ID: 2016_2698
  • Topic: Credit risk
  • Date of submission:
  • Published as final Q&A: 24/02/2017

Obligation to carry out analysis and to consult with EBA on planned increase of risk weights before RTS on this matter are finally adopted and published in the Official Journal of the European Union

Is there an obligation to carry out appropriate analysis and to consult with EBA on planned increase of risk weights since RTS on this matter are not finally adopted and published in the Official Journal of the European Union?

  • Legal act: Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 (CRR)
  • COM Delegated or Implementing Acts/RTS/ITS/GLs: Not applicable
  • ID: 2016_2894
  • Topic: Credit risk
  • Date of submission:
  • Published as final Q&A: 17/02/2017

Scope of asset value correlation adjustment for regulated entities

Should Undertakings for Collective Investment in Transferable Securities (UCITS) be treated as “subject to prudential regulation in the Union,” such that credit exposures to UCITS are only subject to the Asset Value Correlation (AVC) adjustment where the total assets of the counterparty on an individual or consolidated basis exceed EUR 70 billion? Should third country funds which are regulated on a comparable basis to UCITS (for example, US Investment Act 1940 funds, Employee Retirement and Income Security Act funds) receive the same treatment ?

  • Legal act: Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 (CRR)
  • COM Delegated or Implementing Acts/RTS/ITS/GLs: Not applicable
  • ID: 2015_2383
  • Topic: Credit risk
  • Date of submission:
  • Published as final Q&A: 17/02/2017

Can third country insurance companies be considered as unregulated financial entities

If a third country insurance or re-insurance is considered as not subject to "prudential supervisory and regulation requirements at least equivalent to those applied in the union" (as stated in article 142 (4) ) should we definitely consider this entity as neither "large financial sector entity" neither "unregulated financial sector entity" as defined under article 142 (4) and (5) ? Indeed the definition of "unregulated financial sector entity" ("an entity that is not a regulated financial sector entity but that performs, as its main business, one or more of the activities listed in annex I to directive 2013/36/EU or in annex I to directive 2004/36/EC") does not cover insurance activities.

  • Legal act: Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 (CRR)
  • COM Delegated or Implementing Acts/RTS/ITS/GLs: Not applicable
  • ID: 2015_1991
  • Topic: Credit risk
  • Date of submission:
  • Published as final Q&A: 10/02/2017

Third country equivalent large financial sector entities

If the Implementing Act of the EU has stated equivalent third countries for investment firms, exchange and credit institution there is no such a list for insurance and re-insurance companies.Nevertheless, if we understand that CRR contains no list of equivalent countries for insurance and re-insurance companies, or no recommendations on EBA to produce such a list, institutions need clear guidelines if they want to correctly apply article 142 (4) of CRR.

  • Legal act: Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 (CRR)
  • COM Delegated or Implementing Acts/RTS/ITS/GLs: Not applicable
  • ID: 2015_1989
  • Topic: Credit risk
  • Date of submission:
  • Published as final Q&A: 10/02/2017

Credit Risk – treatment of Russian credit institutions

1. Please advise whether Russian Credit Institutions are to be treated as an "Institution" or ‘Corporate client’, considering Article 107, paragraph 3 definition:"For the purposes of this Regulation, exposures to third- country investment firms and exposures to third country credit institutions and exposures to third country clearing houses and exchanges shall be treated as exposures to an institution only if the third country applies prudential and supervisory requirements to that entity that are at least equivalent to those applied in the Union."2. Does definition of an "Institution" in Article 107(3) definition only refer to the capital requirement for credit risk?

  • Legal act: Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 (CRR)
  • COM Delegated or Implementing Acts/RTS/ITS/GLs: Not applicable
  • ID: 2013_529
  • Topic: Credit risk
  • Date of submission:
  • Published as final Q&A: 10/02/2017

Equivalence of third country supervisory and regulatory arrangements to those applied in the Union

Who decides which third countries apply supervisory and regulatory arrangements at least equivalent to those applied in the Union? Unlike other articles in CRR (such as e.g. Article 114(7)), Article 212 does not explicitly empower the Commission to adopt, by way of implementing acts, and subject to the examination procedure referred to in Article 464.2, a decision as to whether a third country applies supervisory and regulatory arrangements at least equivalent to those applied in the Union.

  • Legal act: Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 (CRR)
  • COM Delegated or Implementing Acts/RTS/ITS/GLs: Not applicable
  • ID: 2013_470
  • Topic: Credit risk
  • Date of submission:
  • Published as final Q&A: 10/02/2017