Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection; Comment Request

AGENCIES:

Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), Treasury; Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Board); and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC).

ACTION:

Joint notice and request for comment.

SUMMARY:

In accordance with the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. chapter 35), the OCC, the Board, and the FDIC (the “agencies”) may not conduct or sponsor, and the respondent is not required to respond to, an information collection unless it displays a currently valid Office of Management and Budget (OMB) control number. The Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC), of which the agencies are members, has approved the agencies' publication for public comment of a proposal to extend, with revision, the Country Exposure Report (FFIEC 009) and the Country Exposure Information Report (FFIEC 009a), which are currently approved collections of information. The agencies propose to modify these collections effective September 30, 2016, to (1) have institutions provide their Legal Entity Identifier (LEI) on both reporting forms, only if they already have one, and (2) add Intermediate Holding Companies (IHCs) to the Board's respondent panel. At the end of the comment period, the comments and recommendations received will be analyzed to determine the extent to which the FFIEC and the agencies should modify the proposed revisions prior to giving final approval. The agencies will then submit the revisions to OMB for review and approval.

DATES:

Comments must be submitted on or before June 13, 2016.

ADDRESSES:

Interested parties are invited to submit written comments to any or all of the agencies. All comments, which should refer to the OMB control number(s), will be shared among the agencies.

OCC: Because paper mail in the Washington, DC, area and at the OCC is subject to delay, commenters are encouraged to submit comments by email, if possible. Comments may be sent to: Legislative and Regulatory Activities Division, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, Attention “1557-0100, FFIEC 009 and FFIEC 009a,” 400 7th Street SW., Suite 3E-218, Mail Stop 9W-11, Washington, DC 20219. In addition, comments may be sent by fax to 571-465-4326 or by electronic mail to prainfo@occ.treas.gov.

You may personally inspect and photocopy comments at the OCC, 400 7th Street SW., Washington, DC 20219. For security reasons, the OCC requires that visitors make an appointment to inspect comments. You may do so by calling 202-649-6700. Upon arrival, visitors will be required to present valid government-issued photo identification and submit to security screening in order to inspect and photocopy comments.

All comments received, including attachments and other supporting materials, are part of the public record and subject to public disclosure. Do not include any information in your comments or supporting materials that you consider confidential or inappropriate for public disclosure.

Board: You may submit comments, which should refer to “FFIEC 009 and FFIEC 009a,” by any of the following methods:

• Agency Web site: http://www.federalreserve.gov. Follow the instructions for submitting comments on the http://www.federalreserve.gov/generalinfo/foia/ProposedRegs.cfm.
• Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
• Email: regs.comments@federalreserve.gov. Include the reporting form numbers in the subject line of the message.
• FAX: 202-452-3819 or 202-452-3102.
• Mail: Robert deV. Frierson, Secretary, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, 20th Street and Constitution Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20551.

All public comments are available from the Board's Web site at http://www.federalreserve.gov/generalinfo/foia/ProposedRegs.cfm as submitted, unless modified for technical reasons. Accordingly, your comments will not be edited to remove any identifying or contact information. Public comments may also be viewed electronically or in paper in Room MP-500 of the Board's Martin Building (20th and C Streets NW.) between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. on weekdays.

FDIC: You may submit comments, which should refer to “FFIEC 009 and FFIEC 009a,” by any of the following methods:

• Agency Web site: https://www.fdic.gov/regulations/laws/federal/. Follow the instructions for submitting comments on the FDIC Web site.
• Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
• Email: Comments@FDIC.gov. Include “FFIEC 009 and FFIEC 009a” in the subject line of the message.
• Mail: Gary A. Kuiper, Counsel, Room MB-3016, or Manuel E. Cabeza, Counsel, Room MB-3105, Attn: Comments, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, 550 17th Street NW., Washington, DC 20429.
• Hand Delivery: Comments may be hand delivered to the guard station at the rear of the 550 17th Street Building (located on F Street) on business days between 7:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m.

Public Inspection: All comments received will be posted without change to https://www.fdic.gov/regulations/laws/federal/ including any personal information provided. Paper copies of public comments may be requested from the FDIC Public Information Center by telephone at 877-275-3342 or 703-562-2200.

Additionally, commenters may send a copy of their comments to the OMB desk officer for the agencies by mail to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, U.S. Office of Management and Budget, New Executive Office Building, Room 10235, 725 17th Street NW., Washington, DC 20503; by fax to 202-395-6974; or by email to oira_submission@omb.eop.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

For further information about the proposed revisions to the FFIEC 009 and FFIEC 009a discussed in this notice, please contact any of the agency staff whose names appear below. In addition, copies of the FFIEC 009 and FFIEC 009a reporting forms can be obtained at the FFIEC's Web site ( http://www.ffiec.gov/ffiec_report_forms.htm ).

OCC: Mary H. Gottlieb, OCC Clearance Officer, 202-649-5490, Legislative and Regulatory Activities Division, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, Washington, DC 20219.

Board: Nuha Elmaghrabi, Federal Reserve Board Clearance Officer, 202-452-3884, Division of Research and Statistics, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, 20th and C Streets NW., Washington, DC 20551. Telecommunications Device for the Deaf (TDD) users may call 202-263-4869.

FDIC: Gary Kuiper, Counsel, (202) 898-3877, or Manuel E. Cabeza, Counsel, (202) 898-3767, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, 550 17th Street NW., Washington, DC 20429.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

The agencies are proposing to revise and extend for three years the FFIEC 009 and FFIEC 009a, which are currently an approved collection of information for each agency.

Report Titles: Country Exposure Report and Country Exposure Information Report.

Form Numbers: FFIEC 009 and FFIEC 009a.

Frequency of Response: Quarterly.

Affected Public: Business or other for profit.

OCC

OMB Number: 1557-0100.

Estimated Number of Respondents: 16 (FFIEC 009), 9 (FFIEC 009a).

Estimated Average Time per Response: 131 hours (FFIEC 009), 6 hours (FFIEC 009a).

Estimated Total Annual Burden: 8,384 hours (FFIEC 009), 216 hours (FFIEC 009a).

Board

OMB Number: 7100-0035.

Estimated Number of Respondents: 45 (FFIEC 009), 33 (FFIEC 009a).

Estimated Average Time per Response: 131 hours (FFIEC 009), 6 hours (FFIEC 009a).

Estimated Total Annual Burden: 23,580 hours (FFIEC 009), 792 hours (FFIEC 009a).

FDIC

OMB Number: 3064-0017.

Estimated Number of Respondents: 17 (FFIEC 009), 9 (FFIEC 009a).

Estimated Average Time per Response: 131 hours (FFIEC 009), 6 hours (FFIEC 009a).

Estimated Total Annual Burden: 8,908 hours (FFIEC 009), 216 hours (FFIEC 009a).

General Description of Reports

The Country Exposure Report (FFIEC 009) is filed quarterly with the agencies and provides information on international claims of U.S. banks, savings associations, bank holding companies, and savings and loan holding companies that is used for supervisory and analytical purposes. The information is used to monitor the foreign country exposures of reporting institutions to determine the degree of risk in their portfolios and assess the potential risk of loss. The Country Exposure Information Report (FFIEC 009a) is a supplement to the FFIEC 009 and provides publicly available information on material foreign country exposures (all exposures to a country in excess of 1 percent of total assets or 20 percent of capital, whichever is less) of U.S. banks, savings associations, bank holding companies, and savings and loan holding companies that file the FFIEC 009 report. As part of the Country Exposure Information Report, reporting institutions also must furnish a list of countries in which they have lending exposures above 0.75 percent of total assets or 15 percent of total capital, whichever is less.

Discussion of Proposed Revisions

A. The Legal Entity Identifier (LEI) is a 20-digit alpha-numeric code that uniquely identifies entities that engage in financial transactions. The recent financial crisis spurred the development of a Global LEI System (GLEIS). Internationally, regulators and market participants have recognized the importance of the LEI as a key improvement in financial data systems. The Group of Twenty (G-20) nations directed the Financial Stability Board to lead the coordination of international regulatory work and deliver concrete recommendations on the GLEIS by mid-2012, which in turn were endorsed by the G-20 later that same year. In January 2013, the LEI Regulatory Oversight Committee (ROC), including participation by regulators from around the world, was established to oversee the GLEIS on an interim basis. With the establishment of the full Global LEI Foundation in 2014, the ROC continues to review and develop broad policy standards for LEIs. The OCC, the Board, and the FDIC are all members of the ROC.

The LEI system is designed to facilitate several financial stability objectives, including the provision of higher quality and more accurate financial data. In the United States, the Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC) has recommended that regulators and market participants continue to work together to improve the quality and comprehensiveness of financial data both nationally and globally. In this regard, the FSOC also has recommended that its member agencies promote the use of the LEI in reporting requirements and rulemakings, where appropriate.

Effective beginning October 31, 2014, the Board started requiring holding companies to provide their LEI on the cover pages of the FR Y-6, FR Y-7, and FR Y-10 reports only if a holding company already has an LEI. Thus, if a reporting holding company does not have an LEI, it is not required to obtain one for purposes of these Board reports. Additionally, effective for December 2015, the Board expanded the collection of the LEI to all holding company subsidiary banking and nonbanking legal entities reportable on certain schedules of the FR Y-10 and in one section of the FR Y-6 and FR Y-7 if an LEI has already been issued for the reportable entity. With respect to the FFIEC 009 and FFIEC 009a, the agencies are proposing to have reporting institutions provide their LEI on the cover page of each report beginning September 30, 2016, only if an institution already has an LEI. As with the Board reports, an institution that does not have an LEI would not be required to obtain one for purposes of reporting it on the FFIEC 009 and FFIEC 009a.

B. On December 14, 2012, the Board invited comment on a notice of proposed rulemaking (proposed Regulation YY) that would have required a Foreign Banking Organization (FBO) with $50 billion in non-branch assets to establish a U.S. IHC, imposed enhanced prudential standards on the IHC, and required the IHC to submit any reporting forms in the same manner and to the same extent as a bank holding company. On February 18, 2014, the Board adopted a final rule implementing enhanced prudential standards for FBOs (Regulation YY), with certain revisions in response to comments. The Board indicated in the preamble to Regulation YY that it would address the reporting requirements for IHCs at a later date. Based on the background provided above, the agencies propose to add IHCs to the FFIEC 009 and FFIEC 009a panel of Board respondents beginning September 30, 2016.

Legal Basis for the Information Collection

These information collections are mandatory under the following statutes: 12 U.S.C. 161 and 1817 (national banks), 12 U.S.C. 1464 (federal savings associations), 12 U.S.C. 248(a)(1) and (2), 1844(c), and 3906 (state member banks and bank holding companies); 12 U.S.C. 1467a(b)(2)(A) (savings and loan holding companies); 12 U.S.C. 5365(a) (intermediate holding companies); and 12 U.S.C. 1817 and 1820 (insured state nonmember commercial and savings banks and insured state savings associations). The FFIEC 009 information collection is given confidential treatment (5 U.S.C. 552(b)(4) and (b)(8)). The FFIEC 009a information collection is not given confidential treatment.

Request for Comment

The agencies invite comment on the following topics related to this collection of information:

(a) Whether the information collections are necessary for the proper performance of the agencies' functions, including whether the information has practical utility;

(b) The accuracy of the agencies' estimates of the burden of the information collections, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions used;

(c) Ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected;

(d) Ways to minimize the burden of information collections on respondents, including through the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology; and

(e) Estimates of capital or start-up costs and costs of operation, maintenance, and purchase of services to provide information.

Comments submitted in response to this joint notice will be shared among the agencies. All comments will become a matter of public record.