Appendix E Operational Deposits
Appendix E: Operational Deposits20
1. Certain banking activities related to payments and settlement systems lead to customers needing to place, or leave, deposits with a bank in order to cover such transactions. This is conditional on the fact that the activities have a substantive dependency with the bank and the deposit is required for such activities;
2. Qualifying activities in this context refer to clearing, custody or cash-management activities that meet the following criteria:
a. The customer is reliant on the bank to perform these services as an independent third party intermediary in order to fulfil its normal banking activities over the next 30 days. For example, this condition would not be met if the bank is aware that the customer has adequate back-up arrangements;
b. These services must be provided under a legally-binding agreement to customers; and
c. The termination of such agreements shall be subject either to a notice period of at least 30 days or significant switching costs (such as those related to transaction, information technology, early termination or legal costs) to be borne by the customer if the operational deposits are moved before 30 days.
3. Qualifying operational deposits generated by such activities are ones where:
a. The deposits are by-products of the underlying services provided by the bank and are not sought out in the wholesale market; and
b. The deposits are held in specifically designated accounts and priced without giving an economic incentive to the customer.
4. Only that part of the deposit balance with the service provider that is proven to serve a customer's operational needs can qualify as stable. Excess balances should be treated in the appropriate category for (non-operational) deposits. If the bank is unable to determine the amount of the excess balance, the entire deposit should be considered non-operational;
5. Banks must determine the methodology for identifying excess balances in operational accounts. The methodology should be conducted at a sufficiently granular level to adequately assess the risk of withdrawal in an idiosyncratic stress. The methodology should take into account relevant factors, such as the average balances in advance of specific payment needs;
6. If the deposit arises out of correspondent banking, or from the provision of prime brokerage services, it will be treated as if it was a non-operational activity for the purpose of determining run-off factors21 .
Appendix E: Operational Deposits22 (Continued)
7. The portion of the operational deposits generated by clearing, custody and cash management activities that is fully covered by deposit insurance can receive the same treatment as 'stable' retail deposits;
8. A clearing relationship, in this context, refers to a service arrangement, granted by the bank as a direct participant in settlement systems that enables customers to transfer funds (or securities) indirectly through participants in domestic settlements systems to final recipients. Such services are limited to the following activities; transmission, overdraft and settlement;
9. A custody relationship refers to the provision of safekeeping, reporting, processing of assets or the facilitation of the operational and administrative elements of related activities on behalf of customers in the process of their transacting and retaining financial assets. Such services are limited to the settlement of securities transactions, the transfer of contractual payments, the processing of collateral, and the receipt of dividends and other income, transfer of funds and stocks and agency services, including payment and settlement services (excluding correspondent banking);
10. A cash management relationship refers to the provision of cash management and related services to customers. Cash management services refers to those products and services provided to a customer to manage its cash flows, assets and liabilities, and conduct financial transactions necessary to the customer's operational activities. Such services are limited to payment remittance, collection and aggregation of funds, payroll administration, and control over the disbursement of funds.
20 Based on the definition of operational deposits in the LCR guidelines.
21 Correspondent banking refers to arrangements under which one bank (correspondent) holds deposits owned by other banks (respondents) and provides payment and other services in order to settle foreign currency transactions (e.g. so called 'nostro' and 'vostro' accounts used to settle transactions in a currency other than the domestic currency of the respondent bank, for the provision of clearing and settlement of payments). Prime brokerage is a package of services offered to large active investors, particularly institutional hedge funds. These services usually include: clearing, settlement and custody; consolidated reporting; financing (margin, repo or synthetic); securities lending; capital introduction, and risk analytics.
22 Based on the definition of operational deposits in the LCR guidelines.
August 2018