12 CFR § 221.4 - Employee stock option, purchase, and ownership plans.

---
identifier: "/us/cfr/t12/s221.4"
source: "ecfr"
legal_status: "authoritative_unofficial"
title: "12 CFR § 221.4 - Employee stock option, purchase, and ownership plans."
title_number: 12
title_name: "Banks and Banking"
section_number: "221.4"
section_name: "Employee stock option, purchase, and ownership plans."
chapter_name: "FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM"
subchapter_number: "A"
subchapter_name: "BOARD OF GOVERNORS OF THE FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM"
part_number: "221"
part_name: "CREDIT BY BANKS AND PERSONS OTHER THAN BROKERS OR DEALERS FOR THE PURPOSE OF PURCHASING OR CARRYING MARGIN STOCK (REGULATION U)"
positive_law: false
currency: "2026-04-05"
last_updated: "2026-04-05"
format_version: "1.1.0"
generator: "[email protected]"
authority: "15 U.S.C. 78c, 78g, 78q, and 78w."
regulatory_source: "Reg. U, 63 FR 2827, Jan. 16, 1998, unless otherwise noted."
cfr_part: "221"
---


# 221.4 Employee stock option, purchase, and ownership plans.

(a) *Plan-lender; eligible plan.* (1) Plan-lender means any corporation, (including a wholly-owned subsidiary, or a lender that is a thrift organization whose membership is limited to employees and former employees of the corporation, its subsidiaries or affiliates) that extends or maintains credit to finance the acquisition of margin stock of the corporation, its subsidiaries or affiliates under an eligible plan.

(2) *Eligible plan.* An eligible plan means any employee stock option, purchase, or ownership plan adopted by a corporation and approved by its stockholders that provides for the purchase of margin stock of the corporation, its subsidiaries, or affiliates.

(b) *Credit to exercise rights under or finance an eligible plan.* (1) If a plan-lender extends or maintains credit under an eligible plan, any margin stock that directly or indirectly secured that credit shall have good faith loan value.

(2) Credit extended under this section shall be treated separately from credit extended under any other section of this part except § 221.3(b)(1) and (b)(3).

(c) *Credit to ESOPs.* A nonbank lender may extend and maintain purpose credit without regard to the provisions of this part, except for § 221.3(b)(1) and (b)(3), if such credit is extended to an employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) qualified under section 401 of the Internal Revenue Code, as amended (26 U.S.C. 401).