2020 Universal registration document and annual financial report - BNP PARIBAS182

4 Consolidated finanCial statements for the year ended 31 deCemBer 2020

4

Notes to the financial statements

Cash flow hedges are particularly used to hedge interest rate risk on floating-rate assets and liabilities, including rollovers, and foreign exchange risks on highly probable forecast foreign currency revenues.

At the inception of the hedge, the Group prepares formal documentation which details the hedging relationship, identifying the instrument, or portion of the instrument, or portion of risk that is being hedged, the hedging strategy and the type of risk hedged, the hedging instrument, and the methods used to assess the effectiveness of the hedging relationship.

On inception and at least quarterly, the Group assesses, in consistency with the original documentation, the actual (retrospective) and expected (prospective) effectiveness of the hedging relationship. Retrospective effectiveness tests are designed to assess whether the ratio of actual changes in the fair value or cash flows of the hedging instrument to those in the hedged item is within a range of 80% to 125%. Prospective effectiveness tests are designed to ensure that expected changes in the fair value or cash flows of the derivative over the residual life of the hedge adequately offset those of the hedged item. For highly probable forecast transactions, effectiveness is assessed largely on the basis of historical data for similar transactions.

Under IAS 39 as adopted by the European Union, which excludes certain provisions on portfolio hedging, interest rate risk hedging relationships based on portfolios of assets or liabilities qualify for fair value hedge accounting as follows:

■ the risk designated as being hedged is the interest rate risk associated with the interbank rate component of interest rates on commercial banking transactions (loans to customers, savings accounts and demand deposits);

■ the instruments designated as being hedged correspond, for each maturity band, to a portion of the interest rate gap associated with the hedged underlying;

■ the hedging instruments used consist exclusively of plain vanilla swaps;

■ prospective hedge effectiveness is established by the fact that all derivatives must, on inception, have the effect of reducing interest rate risk in the portfolio of hedged underlying. Retrospectively, a hedge will be disqualified from hedge accounting once a shortfall arises in the underlying specifically associated with that hedge for each maturity band (due to prepayment of loans or withdrawals of deposits).

The accounting treatment of derivatives and hedged items depends on the hedging strategy.

In a fair value hedging relationship, the derivative instrument is remeasured at fair value in the balance sheet, with changes in fair value recognised in profit or loss in Net gain/loss on financial instruments at fair value through profit or loss , symmetrically with the remeasurement of the hedged item to reflect the hedged risk. In the balance sheet, the fair value remeasurement of the hedged component is recognised in

accordance with the classification of the hedged item in the case of a hedge of identified assets and liabilities, or under Remeasurement adjustment on interest rate risk hedged portfolios in the case of a portfolio hedging relationship.

If a hedging relationship ceases or no longer fulfils the effectiveness criteria, the hedging instrument is transferred to the trading book and accounted for using the treatment applied to this category. In the case of identified fixed-income instruments, the remeasurement adjustment recognised in the balance sheet is amortised at the effective interest rate over the remaining life of the instrument. In the case of interest rate risk hedged fixed-income portfolios, the adjustment is amortised on a straight-line basis over the remainder of the original term of the hedge. If the hedged item no longer appears in the balance sheet, in particular due to prepayments, the adjustment is taken to the profit and loss account immediately.

In a cash flow hedging relationship, the derivative is measured at fair value in the balance sheet, with changes in fair value taken to shareholders equity on a separate line, Changes in fair value recognised directly in equity . The amounts taken to shareholders equity over the life of the hedge are transferred to the profit and loss account under Net interest income as and when the cash flows from the hedged item impact profit or loss. The hedged items continue to be accounted for using the treatment specific to the category to which they belong.

If the hedging relationship ceases or no longer fulfils the effectiveness criteria, the cumulative amounts recognised in shareholders equity as a result of the remeasurement of the hedging instrument remain in equity until the hedged transaction itself impacts profit or loss, or until it becomes clear that the transaction will not occur, at which point they are transferred to the profit and loss account.

If the hedged item ceases to exist, the cumulative amounts recognised in shareholders equity are immediately taken to the profit and loss account.

Whatever the hedging strategy used, any ineffective portion of the hedge is recognised in the profit and loss account under Net gain/loss on financial instruments at fair value through profit or loss .

Hedges of net foreign currency investments in subsidiaries and branches are accounted for in the same way as cash flow hedges. Hedging instruments may be foreign exchange derivatives or any other non- derivative financial instrument.

1.e.10 Determination of fair value

Fair value is the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants in the principal market or most advantageous market, at the measurement date.

The Group determines the fair value of financial instruments either by using prices obtained directly from external data or by using valuation