Background Information

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2019

Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]

Nature of Operations

The Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco (Bank), a federally chartered corporation exempt from ordinary federal, state, and local taxation except real property taxes, is one of 11 regional Federal Home Loan Banks (FHLBanks). The FHLBanks are government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) that serve the public by enhancing the availability of credit for residential mortgages and targeted community development by providing a readily available, competitively priced source of funds to their member institutions. Each FHLBank is operated as a separate entity with its own management, employees, and board of directors. The Bank does not have any special purpose entities or any other type of off-balance sheet conduits. The Bank has a cooperative ownership structure. Regulated financial depositories and insurance companies engaged in residential housing finance, with principal places of business located in Arizona, California, and Nevada, are eligible to apply for membership. In addition, authorized community development financial institutions are eligible to be members of the Bank. All members are required to purchase capital stock in the Bank. State and local housing authorities that meet certain statutory criteria may also borrow from the Bank. While eligible to borrow, these housing authorities are not members of the Bank, and, as such, are not required to hold capital stock. To access the Bank’s products and services, a financial institution must be approved for membership and purchase capital stock in the Bank. The member's capital stock requirement is generally based on its use of Bank products, subject to a minimum asset-based membership requirement that is intended to reflect the value to the member of having ready access to the Bank as a reliable source of competitively priced funds. Bank capital stock is issued, transferred, redeemed, and repurchased at its par value of $100 per share, subject to certain regulatory and statutory limits. It is not publicly traded. All shareholders may receive dividends on their capital stock, to the extent declared by the Bank’s Board of Directors.

The Bank conducts business with members in the ordinary course of business. See Note 21 – Transactions with Certain Members, Certain Nonmembers, and Other FHLBanks for more information.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (Finance Agency), an independent federal agency in the executive branch of the United States government, supervises and regulates the FHLBanks and the FHLBanks’ Office of Finance.

The Office of Finance is a joint office of the FHLBanks that facilitates the issuance and servicing of the debt instruments (consolidated obligations) of the FHLBanks and prepares the combined quarterly and annual financial reports of the FHLBanks.

The primary source of funds for the FHLBanks is the proceeds from the sale to the public of the FHLBanks’ consolidated obligations through the Office of Finance using authorized securities dealers. As provided by the Federal Home Loan Bank Act of 1932, as amended (FHLBank Act), or regulations governing the operations of the FHLBanks, all the FHLBanks have joint and several liability for all FHLBank consolidated obligations. Other funds are provided by deposits, other borrowings, and the issuance of capital stock to members. The Bank primarily uses these funds to provide advances to members.