Superintendency of Banks reforms liquidity regulations and requires minimum coverage

The Superintendency of Banks reformed the liquidity chapter of its Codification of Rules through Resolution No. SB-2026-3088, published in Official Registry No. 384 on Tuesday, October 6, 2026. The regulation replaces the immediate and structural liquidity approach with a structural liquidity scheme and the mandatory calculation of the Liquidity Coverage Ratio (LCR), with a minimum threshold of 100% over a thirty-day horizon. The act was signed in Quito on September 21, 2026, by the Superintendent of Banks, Roberto Romero von Buchwald.

The scope of the reform

Chapter VII of the control rules is renamed “Rules for public and private sector financial entities to maintain an adequate level of structural liquidity and calculation of the Liquidity Coverage Ratio (LCR)”. The reform is issued in exercise of the powers of the Organic Monetary and Financial Code (COMF) and the Codification of Monetary, Financial, Securities, and Insurance Resolutions.

The text entirely replaces Section II, regarding the LCR calculation methodology, and incorporates articles 6 to 17. According to the recitals, the objective is to “strengthen the measurement and prudential supervision of liquidity risk” and to have a methodology consistent with international banking supervision standards.

The background of the file consists of:

• Resolution No. SB-2023-02562, dated December 5, 2023, which added Section II to Chapter VII.
• Memorandum No. SB-INRE-2026-0454-M, dated June 14, 2026, from the National Superintendency of Risks and Studies, containing the technical report of the proposal.
• Technical adjustment table of August 24, 2026.
• Memorandum No. SB-INJ-2026-0956-M, dated September 16, 2026, from the National Legal Superintendency, with a favorable opinion.
• Minutes No. SB-CN-2026-08, dated September 21, 2026, from the Regulatory Committee of the Superintendency of Banks, which approved the proposal unanimously.

How the Liquidity Coverage Ratio will work

Entities must continuously maintain a buffer of high-quality liquid assets (HQLA) sufficient to withstand a thirty-day liquidity stress scenario. The indicator is calculated with HQLA in the numerator and net thirty-day cash outflows in the denominator, and the ratio must be equal to or greater than 100%. Offsetting between entities of the same group is not permitted.

HQLA consist of Level 1 and Level 2 assets, at market value, and must be free of liens, pledges, or restrictions. The technical limits are:

• Level 2 assets participate up to 40% of the HQLA.
• Level 2B assets may be included up to 15%.
• Cash inflows only offset up to 75% of total projected outflows.
• HQLA must be at least equal to 25% of total cash outflows.

The detail of assets, weightings, outflows, and inflows will be developed in the Technical Note of the Liquidity Coverage Ratio, which will be issued by the Superintendency itself.

Deadlines, reports, and consequences of non-compliance

The Sole Transitional Provision sets a period of ninety days, counted from the effective date of the resolution, for the Superintendency to issue the LCR Technical Note and the structure and technical manual for the submission of information.

Controlled entities must permanently monitor the indicator, incorporate it into their quarterly risk reports, and report the information on a monthly basis. Those who do not achieve an LCR of at least 100% for two consecutive or non-consecutive months within a four-month period must activate their liquidity contingency plan and inform the Superintendency, without prejudice to the sanctions provided for in the COMF.

The reformed Fourth General Provision empowers the Superintendency to execute supervision processes in any of the phases established in the Technical Note. The resolution repeals the first and second transitional provisions of the chapter and governs from its signing, without prejudice to its publication in the Official Registry.

Who it binds

An unnumbered general provision specifies that the chapter applies only to financial entities comprising banks of the public and private financial sector and corporations, according to articles 161 and 162 of the COMF. Savings and credit cooperatives and other entities of the popular and solidarity sector are excluded from this scope and remain under the supervision of the Superintendency of Popular and Solidarity Economy.

The reform tightens the prudential liquidity standard of the Ecuadorian banking system and moves the operational details of the calculation to a subsequent Technical Note. For depositors, the change aims for banks to maintain sufficient liquid asset buffers to cover one month of stress, while entities will have to adjust manuals, reporting systems, and contingency plans in the coming months.

Source: Official Registry No. 384, Tuesday, October 6, 2026, Transparency and Social Control Function — Superintendency of Banks, p. 34 (official reference: Resolution No. SB-2026-3088).