REGIONS FINANCIAL CORPRF
REGIONS FINANCIAL CORP Commitments Disclosure
COMMITMENTS, CONTINGENCIES AND GUARANTEES
COMMERCIAL COMMITMENTS
Regions issues off-balance sheet financial instruments in connection with lending activities. The credit risk associated with these instruments is essentially the same as that involved in extending loans to customers and is subject to Regions’ normal credit approval policies and procedures. Regions measures inherent risk associated with these instruments by recording a reserve for unfunded commitments based on an assessment of the likelihood that the guarantee will be funded and the creditworthiness of the customer or counterparty. Collateral is obtained based on management’s assessment of the creditworthiness of the customer.
Credit risk associated with these instruments as of December 31 is represented by the contractual amounts indicated in the following table:
2015 | 2014 | ||||||
(In millions) | |||||||
Unused commitments to extend credit | $ | 45,516 | $ | 43,724 | |||
Standby letters of credit | 1,477 | 1,697 | |||||
Commercial letters of credit | 63 | 71 | |||||
Liabilities associated with standby letters of credit | 32 | 40 | |||||
Assets associated with standby letters of credit | 33 | 40 | |||||
Reserve for unfunded credit commitments | 52 | 65 | |||||
Unused commitments to extend credit—To accommodate the financial needs of its customers, Regions makes commitments under various terms to lend funds to consumers, businesses and other entities. These commitments include (among others) credit card and other revolving credit agreements, term loan commitments and short-term borrowing agreements. Many of these loan commitments have fixed expiration dates or other termination clauses and may require payment of a fee. Since many of these commitments are expected to expire without being funded, the total commitment amounts do not necessarily represent future liquidity requirements.
Standby letters of credit—Standby letters of credit are also issued to customers which commit Regions to make payments on behalf of customers if certain specified future events occur. Regions has recourse against the customer for any amount required to be paid to a third party under a standby letter of credit. Historically, a large percentage of standby letters of credit expired without being funded. The contractual amount of standby letters of credit represents the maximum potential amount of future payments Regions could be required to make and represents Regions’ maximum credit risk.
Commercial letters of credit—Commercial letters of credit are issued to facilitate foreign or domestic trade transactions for customers. As a general rule, drafts will be drawn when the goods underlying the transaction are in transit.
LEASE COMMITMENTS
Regions and its subsidiaries lease land, premises and equipment under cancelable and non-cancelable leases, some of which contain renewal options under various terms. The leased properties are used primarily for banking purposes. Total rental expense on operating leases for the years ended December 31, 2015, 2014 and 2013 was $174 million, $171 million and $165 million, respectively.
The approximate future minimum rental commitments as of December 31, 2015, for all non-cancelable leases with initial or remaining terms of one year or more are shown in the following table. Included in these amounts are all renewal options reasonably assured of being exercised.
Premises | Equipment | Total | |||||||||
(In millions) | |||||||||||
2016 | $ | 107 | $ | 32 | $ | 139 | |||||
2017 | 99 | 25 | 124 | ||||||||
2018 | 89 | 14 | 103 | ||||||||
2019 | 82 | 10 | 92 | ||||||||
2020 | 70 | 5 | 75 | ||||||||
Thereafter | 279 | — | 279 | ||||||||
$ | 726 | $ | 86 | $ | 812 | ||||||
LEGAL CONTINGENCIES
Regions, its affiliates and subsidiaries, and current and former officers, directors and employees, are sometimes collectively referred to as Regions and certain Related Persons. Regions and its subsidiaries are subject to loss contingencies related to litigation, claims, investigations and legal and administrative cases and proceedings arising in the ordinary course of business. Regions evaluates these contingencies based on information currently available, including advice of counsel. Regions establishes accruals for those matters when a loss contingency is considered probable and the related amount is reasonably estimable. Any accruals are periodically reviewed and may be adjusted as circumstances change. Some of Regions' exposure with respect to loss contingencies may be offset by applicable insurance coverage. In determining the amounts of any accruals or estimates of possible loss contingencies however, Regions does not take into account the availability of insurance coverage. To the extent that Regions has an insurance recovery, the proceeds are recorded in the period the recovery is received.
In addition, as previously discussed, Regions has agreed to indemnify Raymond James for all legal matters resulting from pre-closing activities in conjunction with the sale of Morgan Keegan and recorded an indemnification obligation at fair value in the second quarter of 2012. The indemnification obligation had a carrying amount of approximately $77 million and an estimated fair value of approximately $67 million as of December 31, 2015 (see Note 22).
When it is practicable, Regions estimates possible loss contingencies, whether or not there is an accrued probable loss. When Regions is able to estimate such possible losses, and when it is reasonably possible Regions could incur losses in excess of amounts accrued, Regions discloses the aggregate estimation of such possible losses. Regions currently estimates that it is reasonably possible that it may experience losses in excess of what Regions has accrued in an aggregate amount up to approximately $40 million as of December 31, 2015, with it also being reasonably possible that Regions could incur no losses in excess of amounts accrued. However, as available information changes, the matters for which Regions is able to estimate, as well as the estimates themselves, will be adjusted accordingly. The reasonably possible estimate includes legal contingencies that are subject to the indemnification agreement with Raymond James.
Assessments of litigation and claims exposure are difficult because they involve inherently unpredictable factors including, but not limited to, the following: whether the proceeding is in the early stages; whether damages are unspecified, unsupported, or uncertain; whether there is a potential for punitive or other pecuniary damages; whether the matter involves legal uncertainties, including novel issues of law; whether the matter involves multiple parties and/or jurisdictions; whether discovery has begun or is not complete; whether meaningful settlement discussions have commenced; and whether the lawsuit involves class allegations. Assessments of class action litigation, which is generally more complex than other types of litigation, are particularly difficult, especially in the early stages of the proceeding when it is not known if a class will be certified or how a potential class, if certified, will be defined. As a result, Regions may be unable to estimate reasonably possible losses with respect to some of the matters disclosed below, and the aggregated estimated amount provided above may not include an estimate for every matter disclosed below.
Beginning in December 2007, Regions and certain of its affiliates were named in class-action lawsuits filed in federal and state courts on behalf of investors who purchased shares of certain Regions Morgan Keegan Select Funds (the “Funds”) and stockholders of Regions. These class-action lawsuits have all been resolved among the parties. Court approvals for settlements in the open-end Funds class action and for the investors represented by the Trustee Ad Litem are being sought. Certain of the shareholders in these Funds and other interested parties have entered into arbitration proceedings and individual civil claims, in lieu of participating in the class actions. These lawsuits and proceedings are subject to the indemnification agreement with Raymond James discussed above.
In July 2006, Morgan Keegan and a former Morgan Keegan analyst were named as defendants in a lawsuit filed by a Canadian insurance and financial services company and its American subsidiary in the Circuit Court of Morris County, New Jersey. Plaintiffs alleged civil claims under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (“RICO”) and claims for commercial disparagement, tortious interference with contractual relationships, tortious interference with prospective economic advantage and common law conspiracy. Plaintiffs allege that defendants engaged in a multi-year conspiracy to publish and disseminate false and defamatory information about plaintiffs to improperly drive down plaintiffs’ stock price, so that others could profit from short positions. Plaintiffs allege that defendants’ actions damaged their reputations and harmed their business relationships. Plaintiffs seek monetary damages for a number of categories of alleged damages, including lost insurance business, lost financings and increased financing costs, increased audit fees and directors and officers insurance premiums and lost acquisitions. In September 2012, the trial court dismissed the case with prejudice. Plaintiffs have filed an appeal. This matter is subject to the indemnification agreement with Raymond James.
The SEC and states of Missouri and Texas are investigating alleged securities law violations by Morgan Keegan in the underwriting and sale of $39 million in municipal bonds. An enforcement action brought by the Missouri Secretary of State in April 2013, seeking monetary penalties and other relief, was dismissed and refiled in November 2013. Additionally a class action was brought on behalf of retail purchasers of the bonds in September 2012, seeking unspecified compensatory and punitive damages. The parties agreed to settlement terms in January 2015, and the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri approved the settlement on October 2, 2015. In November 2015, a settlement agreement was reached with all remaining investors who had previously opted out of the class action. An agreement in principle was reached with the Missouri Secretary of State in December 2015. These matters are all subject to the indemnification agreement with Raymond James.
A previously dismissed shareholder derivative action was refiled in June 2015. The original action alleged mismanagement, waste of corporate assets, breach of fiduciary duty and unjust enrichment relating to bonuses and other benefits received by executive management. The named defendants have filed an opposition to the action.
Regions is involved in formal and informal information-gathering requests, investigations, reviews, examinations and proceedings by various governmental regulatory agencies, law enforcement authorities and self-regulatory bodies regarding Regions’ business, Regions' business practices and policies and the conduct of persons with whom Regions does business. Additional inquiries will arise from time to time. In connection with those inquiries, Regions receives document requests, subpoenas and other requests for information. The inquiries, including those described below, could develop into administrative, civil or criminal proceedings or enforcement actions that could result in consequences that have a material effect on Regions' consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows as a whole. Such consequences could include adverse judgments, findings, settlements, penalties, fines, orders, injunctions, restitution, or alterations in our business practices, and could result in additional expenses and collateral costs, including reputational damage.
In 2013, Regions received investigative requests from the Office of Inspector General of HUD regarding its residential mortgage loan origination, underwriting and quality control practices for FHA insured loans made by Regions. Regions has fully cooperated in this investigation and is in discussions to resolve this inquiry. In September 2014, Regions received an investigative request from the Office of Inspector General of the Federal Housing Finance Agency regarding its residential mortgage loan origination, underwriting and quality control practices for loans Regions sold to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Regions has fully cooperated with the inquiry. Both of these inquiries are part of industry-wide investigations. Many institutions have settled these matters on terms that included large monetary penalties, including, in some cases, civil money penalties under applicable banking laws.
While the final outcome of litigation and claims exposures or of any inquiries is inherently unpredictable, management is currently of the opinion that the outcome of pending and threatened litigation and inquiries will not have a material effect on Regions’ business, consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows as a whole. However, in the event of unexpected future developments, it is reasonably possible that an adverse outcome in any of the matters discussed above could be material to Regions’ business, consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows for any particular reporting period of occurrence.
GUARANTEES
INDEMNIFICATION OBLIGATION
As discussed in Note 3, on April 2, 2012 (“Closing Date”), Regions closed the sale of Morgan Keegan and related affiliates to Raymond James. In connection with the sale, Regions agreed to indemnify Raymond James for all legal matters related to pre-closing activities, including matters filed subsequent to the Closing Date that relate to actions that occurred prior to closing. Losses under the indemnification include legal and other expenses, such as costs for judgments, settlements and awards associated with the defense and resolution of the indemnified matters. The maximum potential amount of future payments that Regions could be required to make under the indemnification is indeterminable due to the indefinite term of some of the obligations. However, Regions expects the majority of ongoing legal matters to be resolved within approximately one to two years.
As of the Closing Date, the fair value of the indemnification obligation, which includes defense costs and unasserted claims, was approximately $385 million, of which approximately $256 million was recognized as a reduction to the gain on sale of Morgan Keegan. The fair value was determined through the use of a present value calculation that takes into account the future cash flows that a market participant would expect to receive from holding the indemnification liability as an asset. Regions performed a probability-weighted cash flow analysis and discounted the result at a credit-adjusted risk free rate. The fair value of the indemnification liability includes amounts that Regions had previously determined meet the definition of probable and reasonably estimable. Adjustments to the indemnification obligation are recorded within professional and legal expenses within discontinued operations (see Note 3). As of December 31, 2015, the carrying value of the indemnification obligation was approximately $77 million.
VISA INDEMNIFICATION
As a member of the Visa USA network, Regions, along with other members, indemnified Visa USA against litigation. On October 3, 2007, Visa USA was restructured and acquired several Visa affiliates. In conjunction with this restructuring, Regions' indemnification of Visa USA was modified to cover specific litigation (“covered litigation”).
A portion of Visa's proceeds from its IPO was put into escrow to fund the covered litigation. To the extent that the amount available under the escrow arrangement, or subsequent fundings of the escrow account resulting from reductions in the class B share conversion ratio, is insufficient to fully resolve the covered litigation, Visa will enforce the indemnification obligations of Visa USA's members for any excess amount. At this time, Regions has concluded that it is not probable that covered litigation exposure will exceed the class B share value.
About Commitments Disclosures
Commitments and contingencies disclosures catalog a company's off-balance-sheet obligations and legal exposures — purchase commitments, guarantee arrangements, pending litigation, and regulatory proceedings. These items represent potential future cash outflows that may not appear as liabilities on the balance sheet until they become probable and estimable.
Key signals: litigation reserves and disclosed loss ranges quantify management's estimate of legal exposure, but unquantified "reasonably possible" losses often represent the larger risk. Watch for changes in language around pending cases — shifts from "remote" to "reasonably possible" or increases in estimated loss ranges signal deteriorating outcomes. Unconditional purchase obligations and take-or-pay contracts create fixed cost structures that reduce operational flexibility. Guarantee arrangements for subsidiaries or joint ventures can create cascading obligations. Compare the total commitment schedule against projected free cash flow to assess whether the company can meet its obligations without additional financing.