12. Commitments and contingencies In the normal course of business, various commitments and contingent liabilities are outstanding. The following table presents the Company's significant commitments. Certain of these commitments are not included in the Company's consolidated balance sheet. March 31, December 31, 2020 2019 (In thousands) Commitments to extend credit Home equity lines of credit $ 5,480,697 $ 5,442,160 Commercial real estate loans to be sold 291,459 164,076 Other commercial real estate 9,021,342 9,029,608 Residential real estate loans to be sold 711,970 423,056 Other residential real estate 810,145 448,375 Commercial and other 15,220,152 16,170,731 Standby letters of credit 2,440,312 2,441,432 Commercial letters of credit 34,841 41,059 Financial guarantees and indemnification contracts 4,072,127 4,108,572 Commitments to sell real estate loans 1,323,837 906,037 Commitments to extend credit are agreements to lend to customers, generally having fixed expiration dates or other termination clauses that may require payment of a fee. In addition to the amounts in the preceding table, the Company had discretionary funding commitments to commercial customers of $8.9 billion and $9.1 billion at March 31, 2020 and December 31, 2019, respectively, that the Company had the unconditional right to cancel prior to funding. Standby and commercial letters of credit are conditional commitments issued to guarantee the performance of a customer to a third party. Standby letters of credit generally are contingent upon the failure of the customer to perform according to the terms of the underlying contract with the third party, whereas commercial letters of credit are issued to facilitate commerce and typically result in the commitment being funded when the underlying transaction is consummated between the customer and a third party. The credit risk associated with commitments to extend credit and standby and commercial letters of credit is essentially the same as that involved with extending loans to customers and is subject to normal credit policies. Collateral may be obtained based on management's assessment of the customer's creditworthiness. Financial guarantees and indemnification contracts are oftentimes similar to standby letters of credit and include mandatory purchase agreements issued to ensure that customer obligations are fulfilled, recourse obligations associated with sold loans, and other guarantees of customer performance or compliance with designated rules and regulations. Included in financial guarantees and indemnification contracts are loan principal amounts sold with recourse in conjunction with the Company's involvement in the Fannie Mae Delegated Underwriting and Servicing program. The Company's maximum credit risk for recourse associated with loans sold under this program totaled approximately $3.8 billion and $3.9 billion at March 31, 2020 and December 31, 2019, respectively. Since many loan commitments, standby letters of credit, and guarantees and indemnification contracts expire without being funded in whole or in part, the contract amounts are not necessarily indicative of future cash flows. The Company utilizes commitments to sell real estate loans to hedge exposure to changes in the fair value of real estate loans held for sale. Such commitments are considered derivatives and along with commitments to originate real estate loans to be held for sale are generally recorded in the consolidated balance sheet at estimated fair market value. The Company is contractually obligated to repurchase previously sold residential real estate loans that do not ultimately meet investor sale criteria related to underwriting procedures or loan documentation. When required to do so, the Company may reimburse loan purchasers for losses incurred or may repurchase certain loans. The Company reduces residential mortgage banking revenues by an estimate for losses related to its obligations to loan purchasers. 12. Commitments and contingencies, continued The amount of those charges is based on the volume of loans sold, the level of reimbursement requests received from loan purchasers and estimates of losses that may be associated with previously sold loans. At March 31, 2020, the Company believes that its obligation to loan purchasers was not material to the Companys consolidated financial position. Wilmington Trust, N.A., a wholly owned subsidiary of M&amp;T, provides retirement services, including serving in certain trustee roles relating to Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs). Beginning in 2010, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) announced that it would increase its focus on ESOP transactions, particularly with regard to valuation issues relating to ESOP transactions. Beginning in late 2013, Wilmington Trust, N.A. began receiving requests for information and subpoenas relating to certain ESOP transactions for which it acted as trustee. In June 2016, Wilmington Trust, N.A. received a DOL subpoena seeking information on its global ESOP trustee business. In addition to these investigations, the DOL has commenced three lawsuits against Wilmington Trust, N.A. relating to its role as trustee of three ESOP transactions. In July 2019, Wilmington Trust, N.A. reached a settlement in principle with the DOL to resolve certain pending DOL ESOP matters. On April 28, 2020, Wilmington Trust N.A. and the DOL executed a formal settlement agreement. The total amount of the settlement was $88 million, which included $80 million in payments to 21 ESOPs. The settlement amount is within the Companys reserve for litigation matters as of March 31, 2020. Wilmington Trust, N.A. has also been named as a defendant in five private party lawsuits relating to its role as trustee for five ESOP transactions. Two of the five private party lawsuits relating to ESOP transactions have been resolved through settlements, which have been preliminarily approved by Courts, and are in the process of administration. Neither of the two settlements is material. Under applicable transaction documents, Wilmington Trust, N.A. may be entitled to indemnification by the ESOP plan sponsors. These matters could result in damages, settlements, penalties, restitution, reputational damage or additional costs and expenses. M&amp;T and its subsidiaries are subject in the normal course of business to various other pending and threatened legal proceedings and matters in which claims for monetary damages are asserted. On an on-going basis management, after consultation with legal counsel, assesses the Companys liabilities and contingencies in connection with such proceedings. For those matters where it is probable that the Company will incur losses and the amounts of the losses can be reasonably estimated, the Company records an expense and corresponding liability in its consolidated financial statements. The Company increased its recorded liability for legal-related matters by $50 million during the three months ended March 31, 2019. To the extent pending or threatened litigation could result in exposure in excess of the recorded liability, the amount of such excess is not currently estimable. Although not considered probable, the range of reasonably possible losses for such matters in the aggregate, beyond the existing recorded liability, was estimated to be between $0 and $50 million as of March 31, 2020. Although the Company does not believe that the outcome of pending legal matters will be material to the Companys consolidated financial position, it cannot rule out the possibility that such outcomes will be material to the consolidated results of operations for a particular reporting period in the future.