For purposes of this subpart, the following definitions apply:

Asset-backed securities (ABS) mean investment securities that provide for ownership of a fractional undivided interest or collateral interests in specific assets of a trust that are sold and traded in the capital markets. For the purposes of this subpart, ABS exclude mortgage-backed securities that are defined in this section.

Asset class means a group of securities that exhibit similar characteristics and behave similarly in the marketplace. Asset classes include, but are not limited to, money market instruments, municipal securities, corporate bond securities, MBS, ABS, and any other asset class as determined by FCA.

Country risk classification (CRC) as defined in § 628.2 of this chapter.

Diversified investment fund (DIF) means an investment company registered under section 8 of the Investment Company Act of 1940.

Government-sponsored enterprise (GSE) means an entity established or chartered by the United States Government to serve public purposes specified by the United States Congress but whose debt obligations are not explicitly guaranteed by the full faith and credit of the United States Government.

Loans are defined by § 621.2 of this chapter and they are calculated quarterly (as of the last day of March, June, September, and December) by using the average daily balance of loans during the quarter.

Market risk means the risk to the financial condition of your institution because the value of your holdings may decline if interest rates or market prices change. Exposure to market risk is measured by assessing the effect of changing rates and prices on either the earnings or economic value of an individual instrument, a portfolio, or the entire institution.

Mortgage-backed securities (MBS) means securities that are either:

(1) Pass-through securities or participation certificates that represent ownership of a fractional undivided interest in a specified pool of residential (excluding home equity loans), multifamily or commercial mortgages; or

(2) A multiclass security (including collateralized mortgage obligations and real estate mortgage investment conduits) that is backed by a pool of residential, multifamily or commercial real estate mortgages, pass through MBS, or other multiclass MBSs.

Obligor means an issuer, guarantor, or other person or entity who has an obligation to pay a debt, including interest due, by a specified date or when payment is demanded.

Resecuritization as defined in § 628.2 of this chapter.

Sponsor means a person or entity that initiates a transaction by selling or pledging to a specially created issuing entity, such as a trust, a group of financial assets that the sponsor either has originated itself or has purchased.

United States (U.S.) Government agency means an instrumentality of the U.S. Government whose obligations are fully guaranteed as to the timely payment of principal and interest by the full faith and credit of the U.S. Government.

You means a Farm Credit bank, association, or service corporation.

[64 FR 28895, May 28, 1999, as amended at 70 FR 51589, Aug. 31, 2005; 77 FR 66370, Nov. 5, 2012; 83 FR 27499, June 12, 2018; 85 FR 52253, Aug. 25, 2020]

(a) Each Farm Credit bank may hold eligible investments, listed under § 615.5140, in an amount not to exceed 35 percent of its total outstanding loans, to comply with its liquidity requirements in § 615.5134, manage surplus short-term funds, and manage interest rate risk under § 615.5180. To comply with this calculation, the 30-day average daily balance of investments is divided by loans. Investments are calculated at amortized cost. Loans are calculated as defined in § 615.5131. For the purpose of this calculation, loans include accrued interest and do not include any allowance for credit loss adjustments. Compliance with the calculation is measured on the last day of every month.

(b) The following investments may be excluded when calculating the amount of eligible investments held by the Farm Credit bank pursuant to § 615.5132(a):

(1) Eligible investments listed under § 615.5140 that are pledged by a Farm Credit bank to meet margin requirements for derivative transactions; and

(2) Any other investments FCA determines are appropriate for exclusion.

[77 FR 66371, Nov. 5, 2012, as amended at 87 FR 27492, May 9, 2022]

(a) Responsibilities of board of directors. The board of directors must adopt written policies for managing the institution's investment activities. The board must also ensure that management complies with these policies and that appropriate internal controls are in place to prevent loss. At least annually, the board, or a designated committee of the board, must review the sufficiency of these investment policies.

(b) Investment policies—general requirements. Investment policies must address the purposes and objectives of investments; risk tolerance; delegations of authority; internal controls; due diligence; and reporting requirements. The investment policies must fully address the extent of pre-purchase analysis that management must perform for various classes of investments. The investment policies must also address the means for reporting, and approvals needed for, exceptions to established policies. A Farm Credit bank's investment policy must address portfolio diversification and obligor limits under paragraphs (f) and (g) of this section. Investment policies must be sufficiently detailed, consistent with, and appropriate for the amounts, types, and risk characteristics of its investments.

(c) Investment policies—risk tolerance. Investment policies must establish risk limits for eligible investments and for the entire investment portfolio. The investment policies must include concentration limits to ensure prudent diversification of credit, market, and, as applicable, liquidity risks in the investment portfolio. Risk limits must be based on all relevant factors, including the institution's objectives, capital position, earnings, and quality and reliability of risk management systems and must take into consideration the interest rate risk management program required by § 615.5180 or § 615.5182, as applicable. Investment policies must identify the types and quantity of investments that the institution will hold to achieve its objectives and control credit risk, market risk, and liquidity risk as applicable. Each association or service corporation that holds significant investments and each Farm Credit bank must establish risk limits in its investment policies, as applicable, for the following types of risk:

(1) Credit risk. Investment policies must establish:

(i) Credit quality standards. Credit quality standards must be established for single or related obligors, sponsors, secured and unsecured exposures, and asset classes or obligations with similar characteristics.

(ii) Concentration limits. Concentration limits must be established for single or related obligors, sponsors, geographical areas, industries, unsecured exposures, asset classes or obligations with similar characteristics.

(iii) Criteria for selecting brokers and, dealers. Each institution must buy and sell eligible investments with more than one securities firm. The institution must define its criteria for selecting brokers and dealers used in buying and selling investments.

(iv) Collateral margin requirements on repurchase agreements. To the extent the institution engages in repurchase agreements, it must regularly mark the collateral to fair market value and ensure appropriate controls are maintained over collateral held.

(2) Market risk. Investment policies must set market risk limits for specific types of investments and for the investment portfolio.

(3) Liquidity risk—(i) Liquidity at Farm Credit banks. Investment policies must describe the liquidity characteristics of eligible investments that the bank will hold to meet its liquidity needs and other institutional objectives.

(ii) Liquidity at associations. Investment policies must describe the liquid characteristics of eligible investments that the association will hold.

(4) Operational risk. Investment policies must address operational risks, including delegations of authority and internal controls under paragraphs (d) and (e) of this section.

(d) Delegation of authority. All delegations of authority to specified personnel or committees must state the extent of management's authority and responsibilities for investments.

(e) Internal controls. Each institution must:

(1) Establish appropriate internal controls to detect and prevent loss, fraud, embezzlement, conflicts of interest, and unauthorized investments.

(2) Establish and maintain a separation of duties between personnel who supervise or execute investment transactions and personnel who supervise or engage in all other investment-related functions.

(3) Maintain records and management information systems that are appropriate for the level and complexity of the institution's investment activities.

(4) Implement an effective internal audit program to review, at least annually, the investment management practices including internal controls, reporting processes, and compliance with FCA regulations. This annual review's scope must be appropriate for the size, risk and complexity of the investment portfolio.

(f) Farm Credit bank portfolio diversification—(1) Well-diversified portfolio. Subject to the exemptions set forth in paragraph (f)(3) of this section, each Farm Credit bank must maintain a well-diversified investment portfolio as set forth in paragraph (f)(2) of this section.

(2) Investment portfolio diversification requirements. A well-diversified investment portfolio means that, at a minimum, investments are comprised of different asset classes, maturities, industries, geographic areas, and obligors. These diversification requirements apply to each individual security that the Farm Credit bank holds within a DIF. In addition, except as exempted by paragraph (f)(3) of this section, no more than 15 percent of the investment portfolio may be invested in any one asset class. Securities within each DIF count toward the appropriate asset class. Measurement of this diversification requirement must be based on the portfolio valued at amortized cost.

(3) Exemptions from investment portfolio diversification requirements. The following investments are not subject to the 15-percent investment portfolio diversification requirement specified in paragraph (f)(2) of this section:

(i) Investments that are fully guaranteed as to the timely payment of principal and interest by a U.S. Government agency;

(ii) Investments that are fully and explicitly guaranteed as to the timely payment of principal and interest by a GSE, except that no more than 50 percent of the investment portfolio may be comprised of GSE MBS. Investments in Farmer Mac securities are governed by § 615.5174 and are not subject to this limitation; and

(iii) Money market instruments identified in § 615.5131.

(g) Farm Credit bank obligor limit. No more than 10 percent of a Farm Credit bank's total capital (Tier 1 and Tier 2) as defined by § 628.2 of this chapter may be invested in any one obligor. This obligor limit does not apply to investments in obligations that are fully guaranteed as to the timely payment of principal and interest by U.S. Government agencies or fully and explicitly guaranteed as to the timely payment of principal and interest by GSEs. For a DIF, both the DIF itself and the entities obligated to pay the underlying debt are obligors.

(h) Due diligence—(1) Pre-purchase analysis—(i) Eligibility and compliance with investment policies. Before purchasing an investment, the institution must conduct sufficient due diligence to determine whether the investment is eligible under § 615.5140 and complies with its board's investment policies. The institution must document its assessment and retain any supporting information used in that assessment. The institution may hold an investment that does not comply with its investment policies only with the prior approval of its board.

(ii) Valuation. Prior to purchase, the institution must verify the fair market value of the investment (unless it is a new issue) with a source that is independent of the broker, dealer, counterparty or other intermediary to the transaction.

(iii) Risk assessment. At purchase, the institution must at a minimum include an evaluation of the credit risk (including country risk when applicable), liquidity risk, market risk, interest rate risk, and underlying collateral of the investment, as applicable. This assessment must be commensurate with the complexity and type of the investment. The institution must also perform stress testing on any structured investment that has uncertain cash flows, including all MBS and ABS, before purchase. The stress test must be commensurate with the type and complexity of the investment and must enable the institution to determine that the investment does not expose its capital, earnings, or liquidity if applicable, to risks that are greater than those specified in its investment policies. The stress testing must comply with the requirements in paragraph (h)(4)(ii) of this section. The institution must document and retain its risk assessment and stress tests conducted on investments purchased.

(2) Ongoing value determination. At least monthly, the institution must determine the fair market value of each investment in its portfolio and the fair market value of its whole investment portfolio.

(3) Ongoing analysis of credit risk. The institution must establish and maintain processes to monitor and evaluate changes in the credit quality of each investment in its portfolio and in its whole investment portfolio on an ongoing basis.

(4) Quarterly stress testing. (i) The institution must stress test its entire investment portfolio, including stress tests of each investment individually and the whole portfolio, at the end of each quarter. The stress tests must enable the institution to determine that its investment securities, both individually and on a portfolio-wide basis, do not expose its capital, earnings, or liquidity if applicable, to risks that exceed the risk tolerance specified in its investment policies. If the institution's portfolio risk exceeds its investment policy limits, the institution must develop a plan to comply with those limits.

(ii) The institution's stress tests must be defined in a board-approved policy and must include defined parameters for the security types purchased. The stress tests must be comprehensive and appropriate for the institution's risk profile. At a minimum, the stress tests must be able to measure the price sensitivity of investments over a range of possible interest rates and yield curve scenarios. The stress test methodology must be appropriate for the complexity, structure, and cash flows of the investments in the institution's portfolio. The institution must rely to the maximum extent practicable on verifiable information to support all its stress test assumptions, including prepayment and interest rate volatility assumptions. The institution must document the basis for all assumptions used to evaluate the security and its underlying collateral. The institution must also document all subsequent changes in its assumptions.

(5) Presale value verification. Before the institution sells an investment, it must verify its fair market value with an independent source not connected with the sale transaction.

(i) Reports to the board of directors. At least quarterly, the institution's management must report on the following to its board of directors or a designated board committee:

(1) Plans and strategies for achieving the board's objectives for the investment portfolio;

(2) Whether the investment portfolio effectively achieves the board's objectives;

(3) The current composition, quality, and the risk and liquidity profiles of the investment portfolio;

(4) The performance of each class of investments and the entire investment portfolio, including all gains and losses realized during the quarter on individual investments that the institution sold before maturity and why they were liquidated;

(5) Potential risk exposure to changes in market interest rates as identified through quarterly stress testing and any other factors that may affect the value of its investment holdings;

(6) How investments affect its capital, earnings, and overall financial condition;

(7) Any deviations from the board's policies (must be specifically identified);

(8) The status and performance of each investment described in § 615.5143(a) and (b) or that does not comply with the institution's investment policies; including the expected effect of these investments on its capital, earnings, liquidity, as applicable, and collateral position; and

(9) The terms and status of any required divestiture plan or risk reduction plan.

[83 FR 27499, June 12, 2018; 83 FR 30833, July 2, 2018]

(a) Liquidity policy—(1) Board responsibility. The board of each Farm Credit bank must adopt a written liquidity policy. The liquidity policy must be compatible with the investment management policies that the bank's board adopts pursuant to § 615.5133 of this part. At least once every year, the bank's board must review its liquidity policy, assess the sufficiency of its liquidity policy, and make any revisions it deems necessary. The board of each Farm Credit bank must ensure that adequate internal controls are in place so that management complies with and carries out this liquidity policy.

(2) Policy content. At a minimum, the liquidity policy of each Farm Credit bank must address:

(i) The purpose and objectives of the liquidity reserve;

(ii) Diversification requirements for the liquidity reserve portfolio;

(iii) The target amount of days of liquidity that the bank needs based on its business model and risk profile;

(iv) Delegations of authority pertaining to the liquidity reserve; and

(v) Reporting requirements, which at a minimum must require management to report to the board at least once every quarter about compliance with the bank's liquidity policy and the performance of the liquidity reserve portfolio. However, management must report any deviation from the bank's liquidity policy, or failure to meet the board's liquidity targets to the board before the end of the quarter if such deviation or failure has the potential to cause material loss to the bank.

(b) Liquidity reserve requirement. Each Farm Credit bank must maintain at all times a liquidity reserve sufficient to fund at least 90 days of the principal portion of maturing obligations and other borrowings of the bank. At a minimum, each Farm Credit Bank must hold instruments in its liquidity reserve listed and discounted in the Table below that are sufficient to cover:

(1) Days 1 through 15 only with Level 1 instruments;

(2) Days 16 through 30 only with Level 1 and Level 2 instruments; and

(3) Days 31 through 90 with Level 1, Level 2, and Level 3 instruments.

(c) Unencumbered. All investments that a Farm Credit bank holds in its liquidity reserve and supplemental liquidity buffer in accordance with this section must be unencumbered. For the purpose of this section, an investment is unencumbered if it is free of lien, and it is not explicitly or implicitly pledged to secure, collateralize, or enhance the credit of any transaction. Additionally, an unencumbered investment held in the liquidity reserve cannot be used as a hedge against interest rate risk if liquidation of that particular investment would expose the bank to a material risk of loss.

(d) Marketable. All investments that a Farm Credit bank holds in its liquidity reserve in accordance with this section must be readily marketable. For the purposes of this section, an investment is marketable if it:

(1) Can be easily and quickly converted into cash with little or no loss in value;

(2) Exhibits low credit and market risks;

(3) Has ease and certainty of valuation; and

(4) Except for money market instruments, can be easily bought and sold in active and sizeable markets without significantly affecting prices.

(e) Supplemental liquidity buffer. Each Farm Credit bank must hold supplemental liquid assets in excess of the 90-day minimum liquidity reserve. The supplemental liquidity buffer must be comprised of cash and qualified eligible investments authorized by § 615.5140 of this part. A Farm Credit bank must be able to liquidate any qualified eligible investment in its supplemental liquidity buffer within the liquidity policy timeframe established in the bank's liquidity policy at no less than 80 percent of its book value. A Farm Credit bank must remove from its supplemental liquidity buffer any investment that has, at any time, a market value that is less than 80 percent of its book value. Each investment in the supplemental liquidity buffer that has a market value of at least 80 percent of its book value, but does not qualify for Levels 1, 2, or 3 of the liquidity reserve, must be discounted to (multiplied by) 90 percent of its market value. The amount of supplemental liquidity that each Farm Credit bank holds, at minimum, must meet the requirements of its board's liquidity policy, provide excess liquidity beyond the days covered by the liquidity reserve, and satisfy the applicable portions of the bank's CFP in accordance with paragraph (f).

(f) Contingency Funding Plan (CFP). The board of each Farm Credit bank must adopt a CFP to ensure sources of liquidity are sufficient to fund normal operations under a variety of stress events. Such stress events include, but are not limited to market disruptions, rapid increase in loan demand, unexpected draws on unfunded commitments, difficulties in renewing or replacing funding with desired terms and structures, requirements to pledge collateral with counterparties, and reduced market access. Each Farm Credit bank must maintain an adequate level of unencumbered and marketable assets in its liquidity reserve that can be converted into cash to meet its net liquidity needs for 30 days based on estimated cash inflows and outflows under an acute stress scenario. The board of directors must review and approve the CFP at least once every year and make adjustments to reflect changes in the bank's risk profile and market conditions. The CFP must:

(1) Be customized to the financial condition and liquidity risk profile of the bank and the board's liquidity risk tolerance policy.

(2) Identify funding alternatives that the Farm Credit bank can implement whenever access to funding is impeded, which must include, at a minimum, arrangements for pledging collateral to secure funding and possible initiatives to raise additional capital.

(3) Require periodic stress testing that analyzes the possible effects on the bank's cash inflows and outflows, liquidity position, profitability and solvency under a variety of stress scenarios.

(4) Establish a process for managing events that imperil the bank's liquidity, and assign appropriate personnel and implement executable action plans that carry out the CFP.

[78 FR 23455, Apr. 18, 2013; 78 FR 26701, May 8, 2013, as amended at 83 FR 27501, June 12, 2018]

An emergency shall be deemed to exist whenever a financial, economic, agricultural, national defense, or other crisis could impede the normal access of Farm Credit banks to the capital markets. Whenever the Farm Credit Administration determines, after consultation with the Federal Farm Credit Banks Funding Corporation to the extent practicable, that such an emergency exists, the Farm Credit Administration Board may, in its sole discretion, adopt a resolution that:

(a) Modifies the amount, qualities, and types of eligible investments that Farm Credit banks are authorized to hold pursuant to § 615.5132 of this subpart;

(b) Modifies or waives the liquidity requirement(s) in § 615.5134 of this subpart; and/or

(c) Authorizes other actions as deemed appropriate.

[77 FR 66372, Nov. 5, 2012]

(a) Farm Credit banks—(1) Investment eligibility criteria. A Farm Credit bank may purchase an investment only if it satisfies the following investment eligibility criteria:

(i) The investment must be purchased and held for one or more investment purposes authorized in § 615.5132.

(ii) The investment must be one of the following:

(A) A non-convertible senior debt security;

(B) A money market instrument with a maturity of 1 year or less;

(C) A portion of an MBS or ABS that is fully guaranteed as to the timely payment of principal and interest by a U.S. Government agency;

(D) A portion of an MBS or ABS that is fully and explicitly guaranteed as to the timely payment of principal and interest by a GSE;

(E) The senior-most position of an MBS or ABS that a U.S. Government agency does not fully guarantee as to the timely payment of principal and interest or a GSE does not fully and explicitly guarantee as to the timely payment of principal and interest, provided that the MBS satisfies the definition of “mortgage related security” in 15 U.S.C. 78c(a)(41);

(F) An obligation of an international or multilateral development bank in which the U.S. is a voting member; or

(G) Shares of a diversified investment fund registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, if its portfolio consists solely of securities that satisfy paragraph (a)(1)(ii)(A), (B), (C), (D), (E), or (F) of this section, or are eligible under § 615.5174. The investment company's risk and return objectives and use of derivatives must be consistent with the Farm Credit bank's investment policies.

(iii) At least one obligor of the investment must have very strong capacity to meet its financial commitment for the expected life of the investment. If any obligor whose capacity to meet its financial commitment is being relied upon to satisfy this requirement is located outside the U.S., either:

(A) That obligor's sovereign host country must have the highest or second-highest consensus Country Risk Classification (0 or 1) as published by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) or be an OECD member that is unrated; or

(B) The investment must be fully guaranteed as to the timely payment of principal and interest by a U.S. Government agency.

(iv) The investment must exhibit low credit risk and other risk characteristics consistent with the purpose or purposes for which it is held.

(v) The investment must be denominated in U.S. dollars.

(2) Resecuritizations. Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, System banks may not purchase resecuritizations (except when both principal and interest are fully and explicitly guaranteed by the U.S. Government or a GSE) without approval under paragraph (e) of this section.

(b) Farm Credit associations—(1) Risk management investments. Each Farm Credit System association, with the approval of its funding bank, may purchase and hold investments to manage risks. Each association must identify and evaluate how the investments that it purchases contributes to management of its risks. Only securities that are issued by, or are unconditionally guaranteed or insured as to the timely payment of principal and interest by, the United States Government or its agencies are investments that associations may acquire for risk management purposes under this paragraph (b).

(2) Secondary market Government-guaranteed loans. In addition to investing in the securities described in paragraph (b)(1) of this section, each Farm Credit System association may also manage risk by holding those portions of loans that:

(i) Lenders, which are not Farm Credit System institutions, originate and then sell in the secondary market; and

(ii) The United States Department of Agriculture fully and unconditionally guarantees or insures as to both principal and interest.

(3) Risk management requirements. Each association that purchases investments pursuant to paragraphs (b)(1) and (2) of this section must document how its investment activities contribute to managing risks as required by paragraph (b)(1) of this section. Such documentation must address and evidence that the association:

(i) Complies with § 615.5133(a), (b), (c), (d), (e), (h), and (i). These investment management processes must be appropriate for the size, risk and complexity of the association's investment portfolio.

(ii) Complies with § 615.5182 for investments that exhibit interest rate risk that could lead to significant declines in net income or in the market value of capital.

(iii) Assesses how these investments impact the association's overall credit risk profile and how these investment purchases aid in diversifying, hedging, or mitigating overall credit risk.

(iv) Considers and evaluates any other relevant factors unique to the association or to the nature of the investments that could affect the association's overall risk-bearing capacity, including but not limited to management experience and capability to understand and manage unique risks in investments purchased.

(4) Association investment portfolio limit. The total amount of investments purchased and held under this section must not exceed 10 percent of the association's total outstanding loans. In computing this limit:

(i) Include in the numerator the daily (point-in-time) balance of all investments purchased and held under this section. Unless otherwise directed by FCA, associations must use the investment balance on the last business day of the quarter when calculating the numerator of the portfolio limit under this paragraph. For this calculation, value investments at amortized cost and accrued interest.

(ii) Include in the denominator the 90-day average daily balance of total outstanding loans as defined in § 615.5131. For this calculation, value loans at amortized cost and include accrued interest. The denominator does not include any allowance for credit loss adjustments.

(iii) Exclude from the numerator the following:

(A) Equity investments in unincorporated business entities authorized in § 611.1150 of this chapter;

(B) Equity investments in Rural Business Investment Companies organized under 7 U.S.C. 2009cc et seq.;

(C) Equity investments in Class B Farmer Mac stock authorized in § 615.5173; and

(D) Farmer Mac agricultural mortgage-backed securities under § 615.5174.

(5) Funding bank supervision of association investments. (i) The association must not purchase and hold investments without the funding bank's prior approval. The bank must review the association's prior approval requests and explain in writing its reasons for approving or denying the request. The prior approval is required before the association engages in investment activities and with any significant change(s) in investment strategy.

(ii) In deciding whether to approve an association's request to purchase and hold investments, the bank must evaluate and document that the association:

(A) Has adequate policies, procedures, and controls, in place for its investment accounting and reporting;

(B) Has capable staff with the necessary expertise to manage the risks in investments; and

(C) Complies with paragraph (b)(3) of this section.

(iii) The bank must review annually the investment portfolio of every association that it funds. This annual review must evaluate whether the association's investments manage risks over time, and the continued adequacy of the associations' risk management practices.

(6) Transition for association investments. (i) An association is not required to divest of any investment held on January 1, 2019 that was authorized under § 615.5140 as contained in 12 CFR part 615 revised as of January 1, 2018 or otherwise by official written FCA action that allowed the association to continue to hold such investment. Once such investment matures, the association must not renew it unless the investment is authorized pursuant to this section.

(ii) No association is required to divest of investments if a decline in total outstanding loans causes it to exceed the portfolio limit in paragraph (b)(4) of this section. However, the institution must not purchase new investments unless, after they are purchased, the total amount of investments held falls within the portfolio limit.

(c) Reservation of authority. FCA may, on a case-by-case basis, determine that a particular investment you are holding poses inappropriate risk, notwithstanding that it satisfies the investment eligibility criteria. If so, we will notify you as to the proper treatment of the investment.

(d) [Reserved]

(e) Other investments approved by FCA. You may purchase and hold investments that we approve. Your request for our approval must explain the risk characteristics of the investment and your purpose and objectives for making the investment.

[83 FR 27502, June 12, 2018; 83 FR 30833, July 2, 2018, as amended at 85 FR 62949, Oct. 6, 2020; 85 FR 70955, Nov. 6, 2020; 87 FR 27492, May 9, 2022]

(a) Investments ineligible when purchased. Investments that do not satisfy the eligibility criteria set forth in § 615.5140(a) or (b) or investments FCA had not approved under § 615.5140(e), as applicable, at the time of purchase are ineligible. System institutions must not purchase ineligible investments. If the institution determines that it has purchased an ineligible investment, it must notify FCA within 15 calendar days after the determination. The institution must divest of the investment no later than 60 calendar days after determining that the investment is ineligible unless FCA approves, in writing, a plan that authorizes the institution to divest the investment over a longer period. Until the institution divests of the ineligible investment:

(1) A Farm Credit bank must not use the ineligible investment to satisfy its liquidity requirement(s) under § 615.5134;

(2) The institution must include the ineligible investment in the portfolio limit calculation defined in § 615.5132 or § 615.5140(b)(4), as applicable; and

(3) A Farm Credit bank must exclude the ineligible investment as collateral under § 615.5050.

(b) Investments that no longer satisfy investment eligibility criteria. If the institution determines that an investment (that satisfied the eligibility criteria set forth in § 615.5140(a) or (b), as applicable, when purchased) no longer satisfies the criteria, or that an investment that FCA approved pursuant to § 615.5140(e), no longer satisfies the conditions of approval, the institution may continue to hold the investment, subject to the following requirements:

(1) The institution must notify FCA within 15 calendar days after such determination;

(2) A Farm Credit bank must not use the ineligible investment to satisfy its liquidity requirement(s) under § 615.5134;

(3) The institution must include the ineligible investment in the portfolio limit calculation defined in § 615.5132 or § 615.5140(b)(4), as applicable;

(4) A Farm Credit bank may continue to include the investment as collateral under § 615.5050 at the lower of cost or market value; and

(5) The institution must develop a plan to reduce the investment's risk to the institution.

(c) Reservation of authority. FCA retains the authority to require the institution to divest of any investment at any time for failure to comply with § 615.5132(a) or § 615.5140(a), (b), or (e), or for safety and soundness reasons. The timeframe set by FCA will consider the expected loss on the transaction (or transactions) and the effect on the institution's financial condition and performance.

[83 FR 27503, June 12, 2018; 83 FR 30833, July 2, 2018]

As may be authorized by the banks for cooperatives' or agricultural credit banks boards of directors ownership investment may be made in foreign business entities solely for the purpose of obtaining credit information and other services needed to facilitate transactions which may be financed under section 3.7(b) of the Farm Credit Act Amendments of 1980. Such an investment shall not exceed the level required to access credit and other services of the entity and shall not be made for earnings purposes. The business entity shall be deemed to be principally engaged in providing credit information to and performing such servicing functions for its members where such activities constitute a materially important line of business to its members. Also, investments must be made by a bank for cooperatives or agricultural credit bank for its own account and not on behalf of its members. The bank for cooperatives or agricultural credit bank shall use only those services provided by the business entity as necessary to facilitate transactions authorized by section 3.7(b) of the Farm Credit Act Amendments of 1980.

[46 FR 55088, Nov. 6, 1981, as amended at 54 FR 1151, Jan. 12, 1989; 54 FR 50736, Dec. 11, 1989; 61 FR 67187, Dec. 20, 1996. Redesignated at 64 FR 28899, May 28, 1999]