§ 228.18 Outside retail lending areas.

(a) In general—(1) Large banks. The Board evaluates a large bank's record of helping to meet the credit needs of its entire community in its outside retail lending area pursuant to § 228.22. However, the Board will not evaluate a large bank in its outside retail lending area if it did not originate or purchase loans in any product lines in the outside retail lending area during the evaluation period. (2) Intermediate or small banks. The Board evaluates the record of an intermediate bank, or a small bank that opts to be evaluated under the Retail Lending Test, of helping to meet the credit needs of its entire community in its outside retail lending area pursuant to § 228.22, for a particular calendar year, if: (i) The bank opts to have its major product lines evaluated in its outside retail lending area; or (ii) In the prior two calendar years, the bank originated or purchased outside the bank's facility-based assessment areas more than 50 percent of the bank's home mortgage loans, multifamily loans, small business loans, small farm loans, and automobile loans if automobile loans are a product line for the bank, as described in paragraph II.a.2 of appendix A to this part. (b) Geographic requirements of outside retail lending areas—(1) In general. A bank's outside retail lending area consists of the nationwide area, excluding: (i) The bank's facility-based assessment areas and retail lending assessment areas; and (ii) Any county in a nonmetropolitan area in which the bank did not originate or purchase any closed-end home mortgage loans, small business loans, small farm loans, or automobile loans if automobile loans are a product line for the bank. (2) Component geographic area. The outside retail lending area is comprised of component geographic areas. A component geographic area is any MSA or the nonmetropolitan area of any State, or portion thereof, included within the outside retail lending area.