Virtually over night, the euro became the single currency for 11 - and since 2001, when Greece introduced the euro, for 12 - sovereign Member States of the European Union. Together, these countries with a population of some 300 million represent an economic area comparable in terms of economic power to the U.S. market.
The new data will be useful to examiners in identifying particular loan products or geographic areas with significant pricing disparities and establishing one or more focal points for a pricing analysis that would include a review of all the factors relevant to a particular institution’s pricing decisions. The Board did consider adding other data elements relevant to pricing to the HMDA collection.