Regulatory Capital

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Regulatory Capital Disclosure [Abstract]

Regulatory Capital

Note 13 - Regulatory Capital

Synovus is subject to regulatory capital requirements administered by the federal and state banking agencies. Failure to meet minimum capital requirements can initiate certain mandatory, and possibly additional discretionary actions by regulators that, if undertaken, could have a direct material effect on the consolidated financial statements. Under capital adequacy guidelines and the regulatory framework for prompt corrective action, Synovus must meet specific capital levels that involve quantitative measures of both on- and off-balance sheet items as calculated under regulatory capital guidelines. Capital amounts and classification are also subject to qualitative judgments by the regulators about components, risk weightings, and other factors.

The Basel III capital rules became effective January 1, 2015, for Synovus and Synovus Bank, subject to a transition period for several aspects, including the capital conservation buffer and certain regulatory capital adjustments and deductions, as described below. Under the Basel III capital rules, the minimum capital requirements for Synovus and Synovus Bank include a common equity Tier 1 (CET1) ratio of 4.5%; Tier 1 capital ratio of 6%; total capital ratio of 8%; and leverage ratio of 4%. When fully phased-in on January 1, 2019, the Basel III capital rules include a capital conservation buffer of 2.5% that is added on top of each of the minimum risk-based capital ratios. The implementation of the capital conservation buffer began on January 1, 2016 at the 0.625% level and will be phased-in over a three-year period (increasing by that amount on each subsequent January 1, until it reaches 2.5% on January 1, 2019). As a financial holding company, Synovus and its subsidiary bank, Synovus Bank, are required to maintain capital levels required for a well-capitalized institution as defined by federal banking regulations. Under the Basel III capital rules, Synovus and Synovus Bank are well-capitalized if each has a CET1 ratio of 6.5% or greater, a Tier 1 risk-based capital ratio of 8% or greater, a total risk-based capital ratio of 10% or greater, a leverage ratio of 5% or greater, and are not subject to any written agreement, order, capital directive, or prompt corrective action directive from a federal and/or state banking regulatory agency to meet and maintain a specific capital level for any capital measure.

Management currently believes, based on internal capital analysis and earnings projections, that Synovus' capital position is adequate to meet current and future regulatory minimum capital requirements.

The following table summarizes regulatory capital information at December 31, 2017 and 2016 on a consolidated basis and for Synovus’ significant subsidiary, defined as any direct subsidiary with assets or net income levels exceeding 10% of the consolidated totals.

	Actual						For Capital Adequacy Purposes						To Be Well Capitalized Under Prompt Corrective Action Provisions (1)
(dollars in thousands)	2017			2016			2017			2016			2017			2016
Synovus Financial Corp.
Common equity tier 1 capital	$	2,763,168		$	2,654,287		$	1,250,488		$	1,199,794		N/A			N/A
Tier 1 capital	2,872,001			2,685,880			1,660,074			1,599,725			N/A			N/A
Total risk-based capital	3,383,081			3,201,268			2,213,432			2,132,966			N/A			N/A
Common equity tier 1 capital ratio	9.99		%	9.96		%	4.50		%	4.50		%	N/A			N/A
Tier 1 capital ratio	10.38			10.07			6.00			6.00			N/A			N/A
Total risk-based capital ratio	12.23			12.01			8.00			8.00			N/A			N/A
Leverage ratio	9.19			8.99			4.00			4.00			N/A			N/A
Synovus Bank
Common equity tier 1 capital	$	3,155,163		$	3,187,583		$	1,247,462		$	1,197,976		$	1,795,004		$	1,730,410
Tier 1 capital	3,155,163			3,187,583			1,656,927			1,597,302			2,209,236			2,129,736
Total risk-based capital	3,406,243			3,441,563			2,209,236			2,129,736			2,761,545			2,662,169
Common equity tier 1 capital ratio	11.43		%	11.97		%	4.50		%	4.50		%	6.50		%	6.50		%
Tier 1 capital ratio	11.43			11.97			6.00			6.00			8.00			8.00
Total risk-based capital ratio	12.33			12.93			8.00			8.00			10.00			10.00
Leverage ratio	10.12			10.68			4.00			4.00			5.00			5.00

⁽¹⁾ The prompt corrective action provisions are applicable at the bank level only.