JPMorgan Chase & Co./2020 Form 10-K 226 Notes to consolidated financial statements As a result of the adoption of the amended AFS securities impairment guidance, an allowance for credit losses on AFS securities is required for impaired securities if a credit loss exists. AFS securities are considered impaired if the fair value is less than the amortized cost. The Firm recognizes impairment losses in earnings if the Firm has the intent to sell the debt security, or if it is more likely than not that the Firm will be required to sell the debt security before recovery of its amortized cost. In these circumstances the impairment loss recognized in investment securities gains/(losses) is equal to the full difference between the amortized cost (net of allowance if applicable) and the fair value of the securities. For impaired debt securities that the Firm has the intent and ability to hold, the securities are evaluated to determine if a credit loss exists. If it is determined that a credit loss exists, that loss is recognized as an allowance for credit losses through the provision for credit losses in the Consolidated Statements of Income, limited by the amount of impairment. Any impairment not due to credit losses is recorded in OCI. Factors considered in evaluating credit losses include adverse conditions specifically related to the industry, geographic area or financial condition of the issuer or underlying collateral of a security; and payment structure of the security. When assessing securities issued in a securitization for credit losses, the Firm estimates cash flows considering relevant market and economic data, underlying loan-level data, and structural features of the securitization, such as subordination, excess spread, overcollateralization or other forms of credit enhancement, and compares the losses projected for the underlying collateral (“pool losses”) against the level of credit enhancement in the securitization structure to determine whether these features are sufficient to absorb the pool losses, or whether a credit loss exists. For beneficial interests in securitizations that are rated below “AA” at their acquisition, or that can be contractually prepaid or otherwise settled in such a way that the Firm would not recover substantially all of its recorded investment, the Firm evaluates impairment for credit losses when there is an adverse change in expected cash flows. Based on its assessment, the Firm did not recognize an allowance for credit losses on impaired AFS securities as of January 1, 2020 or December 31, 2020. Allowance for credit losses