Federal Reserve Announces Quantitative Impact Study for Insurance Holding Companies

Federal Reserve Basel

On September 30, the Federal Reserve Board announced that it will begin a quantitative impact study (QIS) in order to better understand the potential effects of its revised regulatory capital framework. The study will focus on the effects on savings and loan holding companies, as well as nonbank financial companies that are supervised by the Federal Reserve and significantly engaged in insurance underwriting activity. In July 2013, the Federal Reserve finalized its revised regulatory capital framework in order to implement the Basel III capital rules for bank holding companies, certain savings and loan holding companies, and state member banks. In order to give the Federal Reserve time to adapt the capital rules for savings and loan holding companies substantially engaged in insurance underwriting activity, such entities were excluded from the 2013 framework. The QIS is being conducted in order to provide the Federal Reserve with a better understanding of how to design a capital framework for the insurance holding companies that is consistent with safety and sounds principles and the requirements of section 171 of Dodd-Frank (the Collins Amendment). The results of the QIS will allow the Federal Reserve to explore and address areas of concern raised by commenters during the proposal stage of the revised regulatory capital framework rulemaking. The Federal Reserve has contacted the insurance holding companies subject to its supervision and has requested their participation in the QIS. The requested information should be submitted by December 31, 2014.