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COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES | 3 Months Ended
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Mar. 31, 2016
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract] |
COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES | NOTE 10 — COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES Credit Extensions — In the normal course of business, the Company has various outstanding commitments to extend credit that are not reflected in the accompanying Consolidated Financial Statements. While the Company does not anticipate losses as a result of these transactions, commitments to extend credit are included in determining the appropriate level of the allowance for unfunded commitments and unissued commercial letters of credit and standby letters of credit (“SBLCs”). For further information about these commitments, including their terms, see Note 14 — Commitments, Contingencies and Related Party Transactions Policies t o the Consolidated Financial Statements of the Company’s 2015 Form 10-K. The following table presents the Company’s credit-related commitments as of the periods indicated:
($ in thousands) |  | March 31, 2016 |  | December 31, 2015
Loan commitments |  | $ | 3,859,835 |  |  | $ | 3,370,271 |
Commercial letters of credit and SBLCs |  | $ | 1,254,590 |  |  | $ | 1,293,547 |
Loan commitments are agreements to lend to a customer provided there is no violation of any condition established in the agreement. Commitments generally have fixed expiration dates or other termination clauses and may require maintenance of compensatory balances. Since many of the commitments are expected to expire without being drawn upon, the total commitment amounts do not necessarily represent future funding requirements. Commercial letters of credit are issued to facilitate domestic and foreign trade transactions while SBLCs generally are contingent upon the failure of the customers to perform according to the terms of the underlying contract with the third party. As a result, the total contractual amounts do not necessarily represent future funding requirements. The Company’s historical experience is that SBLCs typically expire without being funded. Additionally, in many cases, the Company holds collateral in various forms against these SBLCs. As a part of its risk management activities, the Company monitors the creditworthiness of customers in conjunction with its SBLC exposure. Customers are obligated to reimburse the Company for any payment made on the customers’ behalf. If customers fail to pay, the Company would, as applicable, liquidate the collateral and/or offset accounts. Total letters of credit of $1.25 billion consisted of commercial letters of credit of $45.8 million and SBLCs of $1.21 billion as of March 31, 2016. The Company uses the same credit underwriting criteria in extending loans, commitments, and conditional obligations to customers. Each customer’s creditworthiness is evaluated on a case-by-case basis. Collateral may be obtained based on management’s assessment of the customer’s credit. Collateral may include accounts receivable, inventory, property, plant and equipment, and income-producing commercial property. Estimated exposure to loss from these commitments is included in the allowance for unfunded credit reserves and amounted to $20.8 million and $19.8 million as of March 31, 2016 and December 31, 2015, respectively. These amounts are included in Accrued expenses and other liabilities in the Consolidated Balance Sheets. Guarantees — The Company has sold or securitized loans with recourse in the ordinary course of business. The recourse component in the loans sold or securitized with recourse is considered a guarantee. As the guarantor, the Company is obligated to make payments when the loans default. As of March 31, 2016 and December 31, 2015, the unpaid principal balance of total loans sold or securitized with recourse amounted to $178.4 million and $191.3 million, respectively. The maximum potential future payments of loans subject to full recourse, which is generally the unpaid principal balance of total loans sold or securitized with recourse, was $28.3 million and $29.8 million as of March 31, 2016 and December 31, 2015, respectively. The maximum potential future payments of loans subject to limited recourse was $5.4 million and $5.9 million as of March 31, 2016 and December 31, 2015, respectively. The recourse provision on multifamily loans varies by loan sale and is limited to 4% of the top loss on the underlying loans. The Company’s recourse reserve related to these guarantees is included in the allowance for unfunded credit reserves and totaled $580 thousand and $630 thousand as of March 31, 2016 and December 31, 2015, respectively. The allowance for unfunded credit reserves is included in Accrued expenses and other liabilities in the Consolidated Balance Sheets. The Company continues to experience minimal losses from the single-family and multifamily loan portfolios sold or securitized with recourse. Litigation — The Company is a party to various legal actions arising in the normal course of business. In accordance with ASC 450, Contingencies, the Company accrues reserves for currently outstanding lawsuits, claims, and proceedings when a loss contingency is probable and can be reasonably estimated. The outcome of such legal actions is inherently difficult to predict and it is possible that one or more of the currently pending, threatened legal, or regulatory matters could have a material adverse effect on the Company’s liquidity, consolidated financial position, and/or results of operations. Based on the information currently available, advice of counsel and established reserves, the Company believes that the eventual outcome of pending legal matters will not individually or in the aggregate have a material adverse effect on the Company’s consolidated financial position. On September 8, 2014, a jury in the case titled “F&F, LLC and 618 Investment, Inc. v. East West Bank,” Superior Court of the State of California for the County of Los Angeles, Case No. BC462714, delivered a verdict in favor of plaintiff F&F, LLC. The case is being appealed. The litigation accrual was $36.3 million and $35.4 million as of March 31, 2016 and December 31, 2015, respectively. Other Commitments — The Company has commitments to invest in qualified affordable housing partnerships and other tax credit investments qualifying for historic rehabilitation tax credits or other types of tax credits. These commitments are payable on demand. As of March 31, 2016 and December 31, 2015, these commitments were $163.6 million and $174.7 million, respectively. These commitments are included in Accrued expenses and other liabilities in the Consolidated Balance Sheets.

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