Note 4 - Capital adequacy

SpareBank 1 SMN utilises the Internal Rating Based Approach (IRB) for credit risk. Use of IRB imposes wide-ranging requirements on the bank’s organisational set-up, competence, risk models and risk management systems. As from 31 March 2015 the bank has received permission to apply the Advanced IRB Approach to those corporate portfolios that were previously reported under the Basic Indicator Approach.

As of 31 December 2018 the capital conservation buffer requirement is 2.5 per cent, the systemic risk requirement is 3.0 per cent and the Norwegian countercyclical buffer is 2.0 per cent. These requirements are additional to the requirement of 4.5 per cent CET1 capital, so that the overall minimum requirement on CET1 capital is 12.0 per cent. In addition the financial supervisory authority has set a Pillar 2 requirement of 2.1 per cent for SpareBank 1 SMN. The total minimum requirement on CET1 capital is accordingly 14.1 per cent. From first quarter 2019 the Pillar 2 requirement is changed to 1.9 per cent for SpareBank 1 SMN.

Countercyclical buffer is calculated using differentiated rates. For exposures in other countries the countercyclical buffer rate set by the authorities in the country concerned is applied. If that country has not set a rate, the same rate as for exposures in Norway is applied unless the Ministry of Finance sets another rate. For the fourth quarter of 2018 both the parent bank and the group is below the capital deduction threshold such that the Norwegian rate is applied to all relevant exposures.

Parts of the group’s hybrid capital and subordinated debt were issued under earlier rules. This has been subject to a write-down of 50 per cent in 2017 and 60 per cent in 2018. As at 31 December 2018 the bank held hybrid capital worth NOK 450 million subject to write-down.