Regulatory matters

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2018

Banking And Thrift [Abstract]

Regulatory matters

23.    Regulatory matters

Payment of dividends by M&T’s banking subsidiaries is restricted by various legal and regulatory limitations. Dividends from any banking subsidiary to M&T are limited by the amount of earnings of the banking subsidiary in the current year and the preceding two years. For purposes of this test, at December 31, 2018, approximately $669 million was available for payment of dividends to M&T from banking subsidiaries. M&T may pay dividends and repurchase stock only in accordance with a capital plan that the Federal Reserve Board has not objected to.

Banking regulations prohibit extensions of credit by the subsidiary banks to M&T unless appropriately secured by assets. Securities of affiliates are not eligible as collateral for this purpose.

The bank subsidiaries are required to maintain reserves against certain deposit liabilities. During the maintenance periods that included December 31, 2018 and 2017, cash and due from banks and interest-earning deposits at banks included a daily average of $683,740,000 and $679,401,000, respectively, for such purpose.

M&T and its subsidiary banks are required to comply with applicable capital adequacy regulations established by the federal banking agencies. Failure to meet minimum capital requirements can result in certain mandatory, and possibly additional discretionary, actions by regulators that, if undertaken, could have a material effect on the Company’s financial statements. Pursuant to the rules in effect as of December 31, 2018, the required minimum and well capitalized capital ratios are as follows:

				Well
	Minimum			Capitalized
●   Common equity Tier 1 ("CET1") to risk-weighted assets		4.5	%		6.5	%
●   Tier 1 capital to risk-weighted assets		6.0	%		8.0	%
●   Total capital to risk-weighted assets		8.0	%		10.0	%
●   Leverage — Tier 1 capital to average total assets, as defined		4.0	%		5.0	%

In addition, capital regulations provide for the phase-in of a “capital conservation buffer” composed entirely of CET1 on top of these minimum risk-weighted asset ratios. The fully phased-in capital conservation buffer as of January 1, 2019 is 2.5%. For 2018 and 2017, the phase-in transition portion of that buffer was 1.875% and 1.25%, respectively.

The capital ratios and amounts of the Company and its banking subsidiaries as of December 31, 2018 and 2017 are presented below:

	M&T (Consolidated)			M&T Bank			Wilmington Trust, N.A.
	(Dollars in thousands)
December 31, 2018:
Common equity Tier 1 capital
Amount	$	9,960,811		$	10,636,136		$	585,767
Ratio(a)		10.13	%		10.84	%		60.69	%
Tier 1 capital
Amount		11,193,770			10,636,136			585,767
Ratio(a)		11.38	%		10.84	%		60.69	%
Total capital
Amount		13,454,137			12,475,296			589,671
Ratio(a)		13.68	%		12.72	%		61.10	%
Leverage
Amount		11,193,770			10,636,136			585,767
Ratio(b)		9.88	%		9.42	%		12.51	%
December 31, 2017:
Common equity Tier 1 capital
Amount	$	10,675,735		$	9,978,163		$	529,988
Ratio(a)		10.99	%		10.30	%		48.16	%
Tier 1 capital
Amount		11,908,166			9,978,163			529,988
Ratio(a)		12.26	%		10.30	%		48.16	%
Total capital
Amount		14,328,467			12,012,171			534,235
Ratio(a)		14.75	%		12.40	%		48.54	%
Leverage
Amount		11,908,166			9,978,163			529,988
Ratio(b)		10.31	%		8.68	%		13.03	%

(a) The ratio of capital to risk-weighted assets, as defined by regulation.

(b) The ratio of capital to average assets, as defined by regulation.