The asset-size thresholds that determine an institution's Community Reinvestment Act obligations were adjusted for inflation Wednesday by the federal banking agencies.
The annual tweaking of definitions for "small" and "intermediate-small" banks for CRA purposes was based on a 3.32% increase in the Consumer Price Index, the agencies said.
As of Jan. 1 a small bank will be one with assets of less than $1.033 billion. Any bank below that level qualifies for one of two easier CRA exams. An intermediate-small bank was defined as one with assets of $258 million to $1.033 billion; it would qualify for a simpler exam but face an additional "community development test." Banks with less than $258 million of assets would not be subject to the extra test.
The agencies plan to post a list of the current and historical asset size thresholds online at www.ffiec.gov/cra.
