Significant Accounting Policies (Policies)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2014

Consolidation, Variable Interest Entity, Policy [Policy Text Block]

Principles of Consolidation and Basis of Presentation

The unaudited consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP for interim financial information. Accordingly, they do not include all of the information and footnotes required by U.S. GAAP for complete consolidated financial statements. In the opinion of management, all adjustments, consisting only of normal recurring adjustments, which are necessary for a fair presentation of the results of operations in these financial statements, have been made.

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with U.S. GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the amounts reported in the financial statements and accompanying notes. Actual results could vary from these estimates. Certain reclassifications have been made to prior period amounts to conform to the current period presentation.

The Company evaluated subsequent events through the date its financial statements were issued.

These financial statements should be read in conjunction with the Company’s 2013 Annual Report on Form 10-K. There have been no significant changes to the Company’s accounting policies as disclosed in the Company’s 2013 Annual Report on Form 10-K.

Share-based Compensation, Option and Incentive Plans Policy [Policy Text Block]

The Company sponsors various short-term incentive plans and LTI plans for eligible employees, which may be delivered through various incentive programs, such as RSUs, restricted stock, and LTI cash. AIP is the Company's short-term cash incentive plan for key employees that provides for potential annual cash awards based on the Company's performance and/or the achievement of business unit and individual performance objectives. Awards under the LTI cash plan generally cliff vest over a period of three years from the date of the award and are paid in cash. All incentive awards are subject to clawback provisions. Compensation expense for these incentive plans with cash payouts was $61 million and $30 million for the three months ended September 30, 2014 and 2013, respectively and $157 million and $108 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2014 and 2013.

Stock-Based Compensation

The Company provides stock-based awards through the 2009 Stock Plan under which the Compensation Committee of the Board of Directors has the authority to grant stock options, stock appreciation rights, restricted stock, and RSUs to key employees of the Company. Some awards may have performance or other conditions, such as vesting tied to the Company's total shareholder return relative to a peer group or vesting tied to the achievement of an absolute financial performance target.

In February 2014, the Compensation Committee and Board of Directors approved, subject to shareholder approval, an amendment to the 2009 Stock Plan to remove the sub-limit on shares available for grant that may be issued as restricted stock or RSUs. Following shareholder approval of the Plan amendment, which occurred on April 22, 2014, all of the 17 million remaining authorized shares previously under the Plan became available for grant as stock options, stock appreciation rights, restricted stock, or RSUs. Prior to the Plan amendment, only a portion of such shares were available to be granted as either restricted stock or RSUs. At September 30, 2014, approximately 17 million shares remained available for grant.

Shares or units of restricted stock may be granted to employees and directors. Generally, grants to employees either cliff vest after three years or vest pro rata annually over three years. Restricted stock grants may be subject to one or more criteria, including employment, performance, or other conditions as established by the Compensation Committee at the time of grant. Any shares of restricted stock that are forfeited will again become available for issuance under the Stock Plan. An employee or director has the right to vote the shares of restricted stock after grant unless and until they are forfeited. Compensation cost for restricted stock is equal to the fair market value of the shares on the grant date of the award and is amortized to compensation expense over the vesting period. Dividends are paid on awarded but unvested restricted stock. SunTrust does not pay dividends on unvested RSU awards but instead accrue and reinvest them in equivalent shares of SunTrust common stock and pay them only if the underlying RSU award vests. Generally, RSU awards are classified as equity.

Stock options were granted at an exercise price that was no less than the fair market value of a share of SunTrust common stock on the grant date and were either tax-qualified incentive stock options or non-qualified stock options. Stock options typically vest pro-rata over three years and generally have a maximum contractual life of ten years. Upon exercise, shares are generally issued from treasury stock. No stock options were granted during the nine months ended September 30, 2014, consistent with the Company's decision to discontinue the issuance of stock options in 2014. The weighted average fair value of options granted during the nine months of 2013 was $7.37 per share. The fair value of each option grant was estimated on the date of grant using the Black-Scholes option pricing model based on the following assumptions for the nine months ended September 30, 2013:



Dividend yield	1.28	%
Expected stock price volatility	30.98
Risk-free interest rate (weighted average)	1.02
Expected life of options	6 years

Accounting Policies Recently Adopted and Pending Accounting Pronouncements

In January 2014, the FASB issued ASU 2014-01, "Investments - Equity Method and Joint Ventures (Topic 323): Accounting for Investments in Qualified Affordable Housing Projects (a consensus of the FASB Emerging Issues Task Force)." The ASU allows the use of the proportional amortization method for investments in qualified affordable housing projects if certain conditions are met. Under the proportional amortization method, the initial cost of the investment is amortized in proportion to the tax credits and other tax benefits received and the net investment performance is recognized in the income statement as a component of income tax expense. The ASU provides for a practical expedient, which allows for amortization of the investment in proportion to only the tax credits if it produces a measurement that is substantially similar to the measurement that would result from using both tax credits and other tax benefits. The ASU is effective for fiscal years and interim periods beginning after December 15, 2014. As early adoption is permitted, the Company adopted this ASU effective January 1, 2014, utilizing the practical expedient method. The standard is required to be applied retrospectively; therefore prior period amounts included in noninterest expense prior to adoption have been reclassified. During the three and nine months ended September 30, 2013, $13 million and $33 million, respectively, of investment amortization expense was included in other noninterest expense in the Consolidated Statements of Income which was reclassified to income tax expense upon adoption. There has been no other impact on the Company's financial position, results of operations, or EPS.

In January 2014, the FASB issued ASU 2014-04, "Receivables—Troubled Debt Restructurings by Creditors (Subtopic 310-40): Reclassification of Residential Real Estate Collateralized Consumer Mortgage Loans upon Foreclosure (a consensus of the FASB Emerging Issues Task Force)." The ASU clarifies that a creditor is considered to have received physical possession, resulting from an in substance repossession or foreclosure, of residential real estate property collateralizing a consumer mortgage loan upon the occurrence of either (1) the creditor obtaining legal title to the residential real estate property upon completion of a foreclosure or (2) the borrower conveying all interest in the residential real estate property to the creditor to satisfy that loan through completion of a deed in lieu of foreclosure or through a similar legal agreement. The ASU is effective for fiscal years and interim periods beginning after December 15, 2014. The adoption of this ASU is not expected to have a significant impact on the Company's financial position, results of operations, or EPS.

In April 2014, the FASB issued ASU 2014-08, "Presentation of Financial Statements (Topic 205) and Property, Plant, and Equipment (Topic 360): Reporting Discontinued Operations and Disclosures of Disposals of Components of an Entity." The ASU changes the requirements for reporting discontinued operations. The ASU is effective for fiscal years and interim periods beginning after December 15, 2014. Early adoption is permitted only for disposals (or classifications as held for sale) that have not been reported in financial statements previously issued. The Company will adopt the ASU at the beginning of 2015. The adoption is not expected to have an impact on the Company's financial position, results of operations, or EPS.

In May 2014, the FASB issued ASU 2014-09, "Revenue from Contracts with Customers (Topic 606)." The ASU supersedes the revenue recognition requirements in Topic 605, Revenue Recognition, and most industry-specific guidance throughout the Industry Topics of the Codification. The core principle of the ASU is that an entity should recognize revenue to depict the transfer of promised goods or services to customers in an amount that reflects the consideration to which the entity expects to be entitled in exchange for those goods or services. The ASU is effective for fiscal years and interim periods beginning after December 15, 2016 and early adoption is not permitted. The Company is continuing to evaluate the impact of the ASU.

In June 2014, the FASB issued ASU 2014-11, "Transfers and Servicing (Topic 860): Repurchase-to-Maturity Transactions, Repurchase Financings, and Disclosures." The ASU changes the accounting for repurchase-to-maturity transactions from sale to secured borrowing accounting. Also, for repurchase financing arrangements, the amendments require separate accounting for a transfer of a financial asset executed contemporaneously with a repurchase agreement with the same counterparty, which will result in secured borrowing accounting for the repurchase agreement. Additional disclosures are required for all types of repurchase agreements. The ASU is effective for fiscal years and interim periods beginning after December 15, 2014 and early adoption is not permitted. Adoption of the ASU will not have a significant impact on the Company's financial position, results of operations, or EPS.

In June 2014, the FASB issued ASU 2014-12, "Compensation—Stock Compensation (Topic 718): Accounting for Share-Based Payments When the Terms of an Award Provide That a Performance Target Could Be Achieved after the Requisite Service Period.” The ASU requires that a performance target that affects vesting and that could be achieved after the requisite service period shall be treated as a performance condition. Under existing guidance in Topic 718, a performance target that falls under the scope of this amendment should not be reflected in estimating the grant-date fair value of the award; but rather compensation cost should be recognized in the period in which it becomes probable that the performance target will be achieved and should represent the compensation cost attributable to the period(s) for which the requisite service has already been rendered. The ASU is effective for fiscal years and interim periods beginning after December 15, 2015. Adoption of the ASU will not have a significant impact on the Company's financial position, results of operations, or EPS.

In August 2014, the FASB issued ASU 2014-13, "Consolidation (Topic 810): Measuring the Financial Assets and the Financial Liabilities of a Consolidated Collateralized Financing Entity (a consensus of the FASB Emerging Issues Task Force)." The ASU allows measurement of financial assets and financial liabilities of in-scope consolidated collateralized financing entities using either the measurement alternative included in the ASU or Topic 820 on fair value measurement. The measurement alternative in this ASU allows for measurement of both the financial assets and the financial liabilities of a consolidated collateralized financing entity using the more observable of the fair value of the financial assets or the fair value of the financial liabilities. The ASU is effective for fiscal years and interim periods beginning after December 15, 2015. Adoption of the ASU is not expected to impact the Company's financial position, results of operations, or EPS.

In August 2014, the FASB issued ASU 2014-14, "Receivables—Troubled Debt Restructurings by Creditors (Subtopic 310-40): Classification of Certain Government-Guaranteed Mortgage Loans upon Foreclosure (a consensus of the FASB Emerging Issues Task Force)." The ASU requires that a guaranteed mortgage loan be derecognized and that a separate other receivable be recognized upon foreclosure if certain conditions are met. Upon foreclosure, the separate other receivable should be measured based on the guaranteed amount of the loan balance (principal and interest) expected to be recovered from the guarantor. The ASU is effective for fiscal years and interim periods beginning after December 15, 2014. The Company is already accounting for government guaranteed mortgage loans using this approach upon foreclosure; therefore, adoption of the ASU will not have an impact on the Company's financial position, results of operations, or EPS.

In August 2014, the FASB issued ASU 2014-15, "Presentation of Financial Statements—Going Concern (Subtopic 205-40): Disclosure of Uncertainties about an Entity’s Ability to Continue as a Going Concern." The ASU requires an evaluation of whether there are conditions or events, considered in the aggregate, that raise substantial doubt about the Company's ability to continue as a going concern within one year after the date that the financial statements are issued. In the event there is substantial doubt, the ASU requires disclosure of the relevant facts and circumstances. The ASU is effective for fiscal years and interim periods ending after December 15, 2016. Adoption of the ASU will not have an impact on the Company's financial position, results of operations, or EPS.

On November 3, 2014, the FASB issued ASU 2014-16, "Derivatives and Hedging (Topic 815): Determining Whether the Host Contract in a Hybrid Financial Instrument Issued in the Form of a Share Is More Akin to Debt or to Equity (a consensus of the FASB Emerging Issues Task Force)." The ASU clarifies how current guidance should be interpreted in evaluating the economic characteristics and risks of a host contract in a hybrid financial instrument that is issued in the form of a share. Specifically, the amendments clarify that an entity should consider all relevant terms and features, including the embedded derivative feature being evaluated for bifurcation, in evaluating the nature of a host contract. The ASU is effective for fiscal years and interim periods beginning after December 15, 2015. The Company is currently evaluating the impact of the ASU.