§__.23(e) – 2
Q: How do examiners evaluate an institution’s qualified investment in a fund, the primary purpose of which is community development, as defined in the CRA regulations?
A2. When evaluating qualified investments that benefit an institution’s assessment area(s) or a broader statewide or regional area that includes its assessment area(s), examiners will look at the following four performance criteria:
- The dollar amount of qualified investments;
- The innovativeness or complexity of qualified investments;
- The responsiveness of qualified investments to credit and community development needs; and
- The degree to which the qualified investments are not routinely provided by private investors.
With respect to the first criterion, examiners will determine the dollar amount of qualified investments by relying on the figures recorded by the institution according to generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP). Although institutions may exercise a range of investment strategies, including short-term investments, long-term investments, investments that are immediately funded, and investments with a binding, up-front commitment that are funded over a period of time, institutions making the same dollar amount of investments over the same number of years, all other performance criteria being equal, would receive the same level of consideration. Examiners will include both new and outstanding investments in this determination. The dollar amount of qualified investments also will include the dollar amount of legally binding commitments recorded by the institution according to GAAP.
The extent to which qualified investments receive consideration, however, depends on how examiners evaluate the investments under the remaining three performance criteria — innovativeness and complexity, responsiveness, and degree to which the investment is not routinely provided by private investors. Examiners also will consider factors relevant to the institution’s CRA performance context, such as the effect of outstanding long-term qualified investments, the pay-in schedule, and the amount of any cash call, on the capacity of the institution to make new investments.
Source: Interagency Questions & Answers Regarding Community Reinvestment | July 2016