A major type of risk that banks face is
credit risk or the failure of a counter-party to perform according to a
contractual arrangement. This risk applies not only to loans but also to other
on-and-off balance sheet exposures such as guarantees, acceptances and
securities investments. Serious banking problems have arisen from the failure of
banks to recognize impaired assets, to create reserves for writing off these
assets, and to suspend recognition of interest income when
appropriate.
The word "exposures" in this paragraph can be understood as "risks".