PRA Discontinues SS20/15: Supervising Building Societies’ Treasury and Lending Activities
But here’s the core issue you need to know: the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) is removing its supervisory guidance on how building societies manage their treasury and lending activities, and this change comes into effect immediately upon publication.
What happened
On 5 December 2025, the PRA released Policy Statement PS26/25, which responds to feedback from Consultation Paper 11/25 and announces a final policy: SS20/15 will be deleted in its entirety, with no replacement guidance issued for supervising building societies’ treasury and lending activities.
What this means for the rules
The removal of SS20/15 isn’t happening in isolation. PS26/25 also entails consequential edits to SS31/15, which covers the Internal Capital Adequacy Assessment Process (ICAAP) and the Supervisory Review and Evaluation Process (SREP). These revisions arise from the deletion of SS20/15, ensuring the remaining framework remains coherent and aligned with the new approach.
Implementation timing
A key point in PS26/25 is that the PRA has moved up the implementation date. The withdrawal of SS20/15 will take effect as soon as the policy statement is published, rather than following a delayed rollout.
Why this matters
For building societies, the immediate removal of SS20/15 means there is no longer PRA-specific guidance governing treasury and lending activities under that particular supervisory statement. Institutions should review their internal policies and risk management practices in light of the new, streamlined framework and the updated SS31/15 references to ICAAP/SREP.
Questions to consider
- How will the absence of SS20/15 affect your current treasury and lending oversight?
- Do existing internal controls and ICAAP/SREP processes align with the revised framework?
- What steps should your society take to ensure compliance and maintain robust risk management without the SS20/15 guidance?
If you’d like, this rewrite can be tailored to suit a specific audience (e.g., practitioners, board members, or junior staff) or expanded with practical checklists and illustrative scenarios.
