Quarterly report pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d)

COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENT LIABILITIES

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COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENT LIABILITIES
3 Months Ended
Mar. 31, 2018
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]  
COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENT LIABILITIES
COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENT LIABILITIES
Commitments to extend credit
In the ordinary course of business, Huntington makes various commitments to extend credit that are not reflected in the Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements. The contract amounts of these financial agreements at March 31, 2018 and December 31, 2017, were as follows:
(dollar amounts in millions)
March 31,
2018

December 31,
2017
Contract amount represents credit risk
 
 
 
Commitments to extend credit:
 
 
 
Commercial
$
16,265


$
16,219

Consumer
14,353


13,384

Commercial real estate
1,323


1,366

Standby letters of credit
583


510

Commercial letters-of-credit
17


21


Commitments to extend credit generally have fixed expiration dates, are variable-rate, and contain clauses that permit Huntington to terminate or otherwise renegotiate the contracts in the event of a significant deterioration in the customer’s credit quality. These arrangements normally require the payment of a fee by the customer, the pricing of which is based on prevailing market conditions, credit quality, probability of funding, and other relevant factors. Since many of these commitments are expected to expire without being drawn upon, the contract amounts are not necessarily indicative of future cash requirements. The interest rate risk arising from these financial instruments is insignificant as a result of their predominantly short-term, variable-rate nature.
Standby letters-of-credit are conditional commitments issued to guarantee the performance of a customer to a third party. These guarantees are primarily issued to support public and private borrowing arrangements, including commercial paper, bond financing, and similar transactions. Most of these arrangements mature within two years. The carrying amount of deferred revenue associated with these guarantees was $11 million and $10 million at March 31, 2018 and December 31, 2017, respectively.
Commercial letters-of-credit represent short-term, self-liquidating instruments that facilitate customer trade transactions and generally have maturities of no longer than 90 days. The goods or cargo being traded normally secures these instruments.
Commitments to sell loans
Activity related to our mortgage origination activity supports the hedging of the mortgage pricing commitments to customers and the secondary sale to third parties. At March 31, 2018 and December 31, 2017, Huntington had commitments to sell residential real estate loans of $0.8 billion and $0.7 billion, respectively. These contracts mature in less than one year.
Litigation and Regulatory Matters
In the ordinary course of business, Huntington is routinely a defendant in or party to pending and threatened legal and regulatory actions and proceedings.
In view of the inherent difficulty of predicting the outcome of such matters, particularly where the claimants seek very large or indeterminate damages or where the matters present novel legal theories or involve a large number of parties, Huntington generally cannot predict what the eventual outcome of the pending matters will be, what the timing of the ultimate resolution of these matters will be, or what the eventual loss, fines or penalties related to each matter may be.
Huntington establishes an accrued liability when those matters present loss contingencies that are both probable and estimable. In such cases, there may be an exposure to loss in excess of any amounts accrued. Huntington thereafter continues to monitor the matter for further developments that could affect the amount of the accrued liability that has been previously established.
For certain matters, Huntington is able to estimate a range of possible loss. In cases in which Huntington possesses information to estimate a range of possible loss, that estimate is aggregated and disclosed below. There may be other matters for which a loss is probable or reasonably possible but such an estimate of the range of possible loss may not be possible. For those matters where an estimate of the range of possible loss is possible, management currently estimates the aggregate range of possible loss is $0 to $30 million at March 31, 2018 in excess of the accrued liability (if any) related to those matters. This estimated range of possible loss is based upon currently available information and is subject to significant judgment and a variety of assumptions, and known and unknown uncertainties. The matters underlying the estimated range will change from time to time, and actual results may vary significantly from the current estimate. The estimated range of possible loss does not represent Huntington’s maximum loss exposure.
Information is provided below regarding the nature of all of these contingencies and, where specified, the amount of the claim associated with these loss contingencies. Based on current knowledge, management does not believe that loss contingencies arising from pending matters, including the matters described herein, will have a material adverse effect on the consolidated financial position of Huntington. Further, management believes that amounts previously accrued are adequate to address Huntington’s contingent liabilities. However, in light of the inherent uncertainties involved in these matters, some of which are beyond Huntington’s control, and the large or indeterminate damages sought in some of these matters, an adverse outcome in one or more of these matters could be material to Huntington’s results of operations for any particular reporting period.
Meoli v. The Huntington National Bank (Cyberco Litigation). The parties reached an agreement in principle on January 31, 2018 to settle the matter. The Bankruptcy Court entered an order approving the settlement on April 16, 2018, which order will become final on April 30, 2018.
Powell v. The Huntington National Bank. During the 2018 first quarter, the parties settled for a sum that was both immaterial and fully accrued.