12 CFR 704.5 – Investments
(a) Policies. A corporate credit union must operate according to an investment policy that is consistent with its other risk management policies, including, but not limited to, those related to credit risk management, asset and liability management, and liquidity management. The policy must address, at a minimum:
Terms Used In 12 CFR 704.5
- Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
- Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
- Mortgage: The written agreement pledging property to a creditor as collateral for a loan.
- National Bank: A bank that is subject to the supervision of the Comptroller of the Currency. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency is a bureau of the U.S. Treasury Department. A national bank can be recognized because it must have "national" or "national association" in its name. Source: OCC
- Settlement: Parties to a lawsuit resolve their difference without having a trial. Settlements often involve the payment of compensation by one party in satisfaction of the other party's claims.
(1) Appropriate tests and criteria for evaluating investments and investment transactions before purchase; and
(2) Reasonable and supportable concentration limits for limited liquidity investments in relation to capital.
(b) General. All investments must be U.S. dollar-denominated and subject to the credit policy restrictions set forth in § 704.6.
(c) Authorized activities. A corporate credit union may invest in:
(1) Securities, deposits, and obligations set forth in Sections 107(7), 107(8), and 107(15) of the Federal Credit Union Act, 12 U.S.C. § 1757(7), 1757(8), and 1757(15), except as provided in this section;
(2) Deposits in, the sale of federal funds to, and debt obligations of corporate credit unions, Section 107(8) institutions, and state banks, trust companies, and mutual savings banks not domiciled in the state in which the corporate credit union does business;
(3) CUSOs, subject to the limitations of § 704.11;
(4) Marketable debt obligations of corporations chartered in the United States. This authority does not apply to debt obligations that are convertible into the stock of the corporation; and
(5) Domestically-issued asset-backed securities.
(d) Repurchase agreements. A corporate credit union may enter into a repurchase agreement provided that:
(1) The corporate credit union, directly or through its agent, receives written confirmation of the transaction, and either takes physical possession or control of the repurchase securities or is recorded as owner of the repurchase securities through the Federal Reserve Book-Entry Securities Transfer System;
(2) The repurchase securities are legal investments for that corporate credit union;
(3) The corporate credit union, directly or through its agent, receives daily assessment of the market value of the repurchase securities and maintains adequate margin that reflects a risk assessment of the repurchase securities and the term of the transaction; and
(4) The corporate credit union has entered into signed contracts with all approved counterparties and agents, and ensures compliance with the contracts. Such contracts must address any supplemental terms and conditions necessary to meet the specific requirements of this part. Third party arrangements must be supported by tri-party contracts in which the repurchase securities are priced and reported daily and the tri-party agent ensures compliance; and
(e) Securities Lending. A corporate credit union may enter into a securities lending transaction provided that:
(1) The corporate credit union, directly or through its agent, receives written confirmation of the loan, obtains a first priority security interest in the collateral by taking physical possession or control of the collateral, or is recorded as owner of the collateral through the Federal Reserve Book-Entry Securities Transfer System;
(2) The collateral is a legal investment for that corporate credit union;
(3) The corporate credit union, directly or through its agent, receives daily assessment of the market value of collateral and maintains adequate margin that reflects a risk assessment of the collateral and terms of the loan; and
(4) The corporate credit union has entered into signed contracts with all agents and, directly or through its agent, has executed a written loan and security agreement with the borrower. The corporate credit union or its agent ensures compliance with the agreements.
(f) Investment companies. A corporate credit union may invest in an investment company registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission under the Investment Company Act of 1940 (15 U.S.C. § 80a), or a collective investment fund maintained by a national bank under 12 CFR 9.18 or a mutual savings bank under 12 CFR 550.260, provided that the company or fund prospectus restricts the investment portfolio to investments and investment transactions that are permissible for that corporate credit union.
(g) Investment settlement. A corporate credit union may only contract for the purchase or sale of an investment if the transaction is settled on a delivery versus payment basis within 60 days for mortgage-backed securities, within 30 days for new issues (other than mortgage-backed securities), and within three days for all other securities.
(h) Prohibitions. A corporate credit union is prohibited from:
(1) Purchasing or selling derivatives, except for embedded options not required under GAAP to be accounted for separately from the host contract or forward sales commitments on loans to be purchased by the corporate credit union;
(2) Engaging in trading securities unless accounted for on a trade date basis;
(3) Engaging in adjusted trading or short sales;
(4) Purchasing mortgage servicing rights, small business related securities, residual interests in collateralized mortgage obligations, residual interests in real estate mortgage investment conduits, or residual interests in asset-backed securities;
(5) Purchasing net interest margin securities;
(6) Purchasing collateralized debt obligations or collateralized loan obligations;
(7) Purchasing private label residential mortgage-backed securities;
(8) Purchasing subordinated securities; and
(9) Purchasing stripped mortgage-backed securities (SMBS), or securities that represent interests in SMBS, except as described in subparagraphs (i) and (iii) below.
(i) A corporate credit union may invest in exchangeable collateralized mortgage obligations (exchangeable CMOs) representing beneficial ownership interests in one or more interest-only classes of a CMO (IO CMOs) or principal-only classes of a CMO (PO CMOs), but only if:
(A) At the time of purchase, the ratio of the market price to the remaining principal balance is between .8 and 1.2, meaning that the discount or premium of the market price to par must be less than 20 points;
(B) The offering circular or other official information available at the time of purchase indicates that the notional principal on each underlying IO CMO should decline at the same rate as the principal on one or more of the underlying non-IO CMOs, and that the principal on each underlying PO CMO should decline at the same rate as the principal, or notional principal, on one or more of the underlying non-PO CMOs; and
(C) The credit union investment staff has the expertise dealing with exchangeable CMOs to apply the conditions in paragraphs (h)(5)(i)(A) and (B) of this section.
(ii) A corporate credit union that invests in an exchangeable CMO may exercise the exchange option only if all of the underlying CMOs are permissible investments for that credit union.
(iii) A corporate credit union may accept an exchangeable CMO representing beneficial ownership interests in one or more IO CMOs or PO CMOs as an asset associated with an investment repurchase transaction or as collateral in a securities lending transaction. When the exchangeable CMO is associated with one of these two transactions, it need not conform to the conditions in paragraphs (h)(5)(i)(A) or (B) of this section.
(i) Conflicts of interest. A corporate credit union’s officials, employees, and immediate family members of such individuals, may not receive pecuniary consideration in connection with the making of an investment or deposit by the corporate credit union. Employee compensation is exempt from this prohibition. All transactions not specifically prohibited by this paragraph must be conducted at arm’s length and in the interest of the corporate credit union.
(j) Grandfathering. A corporate credit union’s authority to hold an investment is governed by the regulation in effect at the time of purchase. However, all grandfathered investments are subject to the other requirements of this part.