A total value that a bank is exposed to at the time of default. Each underlying exposure that a bank has is given an EAD value and is identified within the bank's internal system. Using the internal ratings board (IRB) approach, financial institutions will often use their own risk management default models to calculate their respective EAD systems.

|||Exposure at default - along with loss given default (LGD) and probability of default (PD) - is used to calculate the credit risk capital of financial institutions. The expected loss that will arise at default is often measured over one year. The calculation of EAD is done by multiplying each credit obligation by an appropriate percentage. Each percentage used coincides with the specifics of each respective credit obligation.