FED Updates Relief Measures to Address Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic
FED revised the term sheet and updated the frequently asked questions (FAQs) on Secondary Market Corporate Credit Facility (SMCCF), which will now begin buying a broad and diversified portfolio of corporate bonds to support market liquidity and the availability of credit for large employers. FED also announced that it will be seeking public feedback on a proposal to expand its Main Street Lending Program to provide access to credit for non-profit organizations. As with the existing Main Street Lending Program, which targets small and medium-size businesses, the proposed expansion would offer loans to small and medium-size non-profits that were in sound financial condition before the COVID-19 pandemic. Feedback may be submitted until June 22, 2020. Additionally, FED announced that it will resume examination activities for all banks, after previously announcing a reduced focus on the examination activity in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Updates on SMCCF. As detailed in the revised term sheet and the updated frequently asked questions (FAQs), the SMCCF will purchase corporate bonds to create a corporate bond portfolio that is based on a broad, diversified market index of U.S. corporate bonds. This index is made up of all the bonds in the secondary market that have been issued by U.S. companies that satisfy the facility's minimum rating, maximum maturity, and other criteria. This indexing approach will complement the facility's current purchases of exchange-traded funds. The Primary Market and Secondary Market Corporate Credit Facilities were established with the approval of the Treasury Secretary and with USD 75 billion in equity provided by the Treasury Department under the CARES Act.
Proposal to Expand Main Street Lending Program. Loan terms under the proposed Main Street non-profit loans, including the interest rate, the deferral of principal and interest payments, and the five-year term, are proposed to be the same as the terms for Main Street business loans. The minimum loan size is USD 250,000 while the maximum loan size is USD 300 million. Principal payments would be fully deferred for the first two years of the loan while interest payments would be deferred for one year. Two loan options would be offered under the proposal. Borrower eligibility requirements for the proposed non-profit facilities would be modified from the for-profit facilities to reflect the operational and accounting practices of the non-profit sector and include:
- Minimum of 50 and maximum of 15,000 employees
- Financial thresholds based on operating performance, liquidity, and ability to repay debt
- An operational history of at least five years
- A limit, of no more than USD 3 billion, on endowments
Related Links
- Press Release on Updates to SMCCF
- Press Release on Proposal to Expand Main Street Lending Program
- Press Release on Resumption of Examination Activities for Banks
Comment Due Date: June 22, 2020
Keywords: Americas, US, Banking, COVID-19, SME, Main Street Lending Program, Corporate Credit Facility, SMCCF, Corporate Bonds, Credit Risk, FED
Featured Experts
Victor Calanog, Ph.D.
Leading economist; commercial real estate; performance forecasting, econometric infrastructure; data modeling; credit risk modeling; portfolio assessment; custom commercial real estate analysis; thought leader.
Previous Article
EBA Consults on Standards for Non-Modellable Risks Under FRTBRelated Articles
EBA Proposes Standards for IRRBB Reporting Under Basel Framework
The European Banking Authority (EBA) proposed implementing technical standards on the interest rate risk in the banking book (IRRBB) reporting requirements, with the comment period ending on May 02, 2023.
FED Issues Further Details on Pilot Climate Scenario Analysis Exercise
The U.S. Federal Reserve Board (FED) set out details of the pilot climate scenario analysis exercise to be conducted among the six largest U.S. bank holding companies.
US Agencies Issue Several Regulatory and Reporting Updates
The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (FED) adopted the final rule on Adjustable Interest Rate (LIBOR) Act.
ECB Issues Multiple Reports and Regulatory Updates for Banks
The European Central Bank (ECB) published an updated list of supervised entities, a report on the supervision of less significant institutions (LSIs), a statement on macro-prudential policy.
HKMA Keeps List of D-SIBs Unchanged, Makes Other Announcements
The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) published a circular on the prudential treatment of crypto-asset exposures, an update on the status of transition to new interest rate benchmarks.
EU Issues FAQs on Taxonomy Regulation, Rules Under CRD, FICOD and SFDR
The European Commission (EC) adopted the standards addressing supervisory reporting of risk concentrations and intra-group transactions, benchmarking of internal approaches, and authorization of credit institutions.
CBIRC Revises Measures on Corporate Governance Supervision
The China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission (CBIRC) issued rules to manage the risk of off-balance sheet business of commercial banks and rules on corporate governance of financial institutions.
HKMA Publications Address Sustainability Issues in Financial Sector
The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) made announcements to address sustainability issues in the financial sector.
EBA Updates Address Basel and NPL Requirements for Banks
The European Banking Authority (EBA) published regulatory standards on identification of a group of connected clients (GCC) as well as updated the lists of identified financial conglomerates.
ESMA Publishes 2022 ESEF XBRL Taxonomy and Conformance Suite
The General Board of the European Systemic Risk Board (ESRB), at its December meeting, issued an updated risk assessment via the quarterly risk dashboard and held discussions on key policy priorities to address the systemic risks in the European Union.
