Credit Risk Management

The active management of credit risk has been receiving increasing regulator attention and strategic focus at many financial institutions. Regulators cite poor credit risk management at the portfolio level, weak credit standards for borrowers and counterparties, and insufficient attention to changes in economic and other circumstances affecting the capacity of borrowers and counterparties as the highest contributors to inadequate credit risk management. Regulators have changed capital charges to make financial institutions more responsive to actual credit exposure and have set new rules for how much capital banks must set aside to cover potential losses.
The basic principles for an effective credit risk management process were outlined in the consultative paper “Principles for the Management of Credit Risk,” issued by the Basle Committee on Banking Supervision. We consider it appropriate to underscore these principles in view of the current regulatory and credit market influences.
Definition of Credit Risk
Credit risk is the risk of loss arising from a borrower’s or counterparty’s inability to meet its obligations. The majority of a financial institution’s credit risk arises from its lending activities – outstanding loans and leases, trading account assets, derivative assets, and unfunded lending commitments that include loan commitments, letters of credit, and financial guarantees. It also exists in other activities such as acceptances, interbank transactions, trade finance, and retail and investment settlements.
Managing Credit Risk
It is important to formulate and implement a structured credit policy and related processes to manage credit risk. Strategies for credit risk management, including credit policy development and risk monitoring, is the responsibility of business unit and senior management, and the board of directors.
Financial institutions should establish credit limits to control the risk in all credit-related activity. Limits by industry sector, geographical region, product, customer, and country should be specified, along with the approaches to be used for calculating exposures against those limits, and made part of credit policy. Consideration should also be given to the spread across industries or regions as the default of one firm or industry may also affect others. Larger financial institutions might also consider multiple limits for each borrower or borrower group, by product, operational unit, and borrower member so that banking and trading activities of those borrowers or borrower groups creating credit risk can be more adequately monitored. While the trend has been that many financial institutions monitor total exposures in those categories, most have not set maximum limits on those exposures.
Commercial Portfolio Credit Risk Management
Credit risk in the commercial portfolio can be managed based on the risk profile of the borrower, repayment source, and the nature of underlying collateral given current events and conditions. Commercial credit risk management should begin with an assessment of the credit risk profile of an individual borrower or counterparty based on current analysis of the borrower’s financial position in conjunction with current industry, economic, and macro geopolitical trends. As part of the overall credit risk assessment of an obligor, each commercial credit exposure or transaction should be assigned a risk rating and be subject to approval based on approval standards defined in credit policy. Subsequent to loan origination, risk ratings should be adjusted on an ongoing basis as necessary to reflect changes in the obligor’s financial condition, cash flow, or ongoing financial viability. The regular monitoring of a borrower’s or counterparty’s ability to perform under its obligations allows for adjustments to be made that will affect the credit exposure measurement.
Risk rating aggregations should be considered for measurement and evaluation of concentrations within portfolios. Risk ratings are also a factor in determining the level of assigned economic capital and the allowance for credit losses.
To manage the relative risk within the commercial portfolio, many financial institutions utilize participation or syndication of exposure to other financial institutions or entities, loan sales and securitizations, and credit derivatives to manage the size of the loan portfolio and the relative associated credit risk. These activities can play an important role in reducing credit exposures for risk mitigation purposes or where it has been determined that credit risk concentrations are undesirable.
Consumer Portfolio Credit Risk Management
Credit risk management for consumer credit should begin with initial underwriting and continue throughout a borrower’s credit cycle. Consumer and other common attributes to evaluate credit risk. Statistical techniques may be used to establish product pricing, risk appetite, operating processes, and metrics to balance risks and rewards appropriately. Statistical models can be purchased or created that use detailed behavioral information from external sources such as credit bureaus, along with internal historical experience. These models should be validated periodically to assure they continue to be statistically valid and reflect performance of the institution’s customer base, particularly if used for credit scoring. When used, these models will form the foundation of an effective consumer credit risk management process and may be used in determining approve/decline credit decisions, collections management procedures, portfolio management decisions, adequacy of the allowance for loan and lease losses, and economic capital allocation for credit risk.
Accurate Calculations of Exposures
Assuring accurate calculations of exposures against limits is critical to managing credit risk. Methodologies will vary according to product types. For lending products and current accounts, the book balance is considered an appropriate measure, with related accruals included as part of the exposure as default of a counterparty on the primary exposure would also likely lead to loss of interest income. The current market value should be used for issuer exposures on bonds and equities, with replacement cost of the trade used as measure for any unsettled trades. For foreign exchange and derivatives, exposure should be measured at the replacement cost of the trades plus an add-on value based on the nominal value to reflect potential future adverse movements in the replacement cost.
Concentrations of Credit Risk
Portfolio credit risk should be evaluated to assure that concentrations of credit exposure do not result in undesirable levels of risk or in violations of regulatory requirements. Regular review and measure of concentrations of credit exposure against established limits by product, industry, geography, and customer relationship should be performed. For specialized industries, additional measurement categories may be appropriate, such as geographic location and property type for commercial real estate loans. When exposures exceed established limits, an escalation process should be triggered to avoid potential conflicts and to assure senior management is aware of all excesses. Periodic revalidation of established limits would be appropriate to assure that the limits continue to match the strategic risk appetite, provide for targeted asset mix, and recognize potential exposures as anticipated.