District Circular Letters
January 5, 2000
GUIDE TO THE INTERAGENCY COUNTRY EXPOSURE REVIEW COMMITTEE (ICERC)
PROCESS
To Bank Holding Companies,
State Member Banks,
U.S. Branches and Agencies of Foreign Banks,
Edge and Agreement Corporations, and
Others Concerned in the Twelfth Federal Reserve District
Document Describing the Interagency Country Exposure Review Committee
Process is Released
The Federal Reserve Board, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency
(OCC), and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) have developed
a document entitled Guide to the Interagency Country Exposure Review
Committee Process. The agencies developed the guide to clarify the
role of the ICERC in the supervisory process.
The Role of the ICERC in Regulating International Banking Activities
In 1979, the above agencies established the Interagency Country Exposure
Review Committee (ICERC). The ICERC is responsible for providing an assessment
of the degree of transfer risk that is inherent in the cross-border and
cross-currency exposures of U.S. banks. "Transfer risk" refers to the
possibility that an asset may not be serviced in the currency of payment
because of restricted availability of needed foreign exchange in the obligor's
country. Transfer risk is one facet of "country risk," which encompasses
any and all uncertainties arising from the economic, social, and political
conditions in a country. Country risk is also an important consideration
when evaluating the level of credit risk associated with individual entities
in a country.
Copies
Copies of the Board's notice [SR
99-35 (SUP)] and Guide to the Interagency Country Exposure
Review Committee Process are available from our Corporate
Services Department. To request copies to be sent via mail, please call
(415) 974-2060. To request copies of the guide to be
sent via fax, please call (415) 974-3333, and specify
document number 4187. Board notices are also available
via the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco's Internet site, at http://www.frbsf.org/banking/bsr/regletters/.
Additional Information
For additional information regarding these matters, please contact our
Banking Supervision and Regulation Department at (415) 974-2911.
FEDERAL RESERVE BANK OF SAN FRANCISCO
|
