what is a tier 1 asset 
tier 1 assets or tier 1 capital are the main assets of a financial institution they consist of retained earnings disclosed reserves and common stock it may also include some preferred stock it is the capital used to fund the institution s business activities for its clients the bottom linerisk weighted assets are a risk management measure indicating to banks the number of assets they need to hold in relation to their risk they help reduce instability in the financial marketplace particularly after the great recession 