Today, the OCC released an interpretive letter concluding that national banks and federal savings associations (together, “banks”) may permissibly provide cryptocurrency custody services for customers. The letter, written by Chief Counsel Jonathan Gould, describes custody of cryptocurrency as a modern form of the traditional banking activity of providing safekeeping and custody services, which the agency … Continue Reading
On May 15, 2020, the federal banking agencies issued an interim final rule to permit depository institutions to exclude from their supplementary leverage ratio (“SLR”) denominators through March 31, 2021 the balance sheet value of U.S. Treasury securities and funds on deposit at a Federal Reserve Bank, subject to restrictions on capital distributions. The interim … Continue Reading
Today, May 5, 2020, the federal banking agencies released an interim final rule to neutralize the effect of participating in the Paycheck Protection Program Liquidity Facility (“PPPLF”) and Money Market Liquidity Facility (“MMLF”) on a banking organization’s Liquidity Coverage Ratio (“LCR”).… Continue Reading
Today, March 23, 2020, the Federal Reserve issued an interim final rule that revises the definition of “eligible retained income” for purposes of the total loss-absorbing capacity (“TLAC”) buffer requirements that apply to global systemically important banking organizations (“G-SIBs”). The rule amends the “eligible retained income” definition in the same manner as the federal banking … Continue Reading
On October 29, 2019, the House Committee on Financial Services held a hearing entitled “Financial Services and the LGBTQ+ Community: A Review of Discrimination in Lending and Housing.” Witnesses at the hearing included Harper Jean Tobin, the Director of Policy at the National Center for Transgender Equality, Michael Adams, CEO of SAGE (Services and Advocacy … Continue Reading
The federal banking agencies issued a final rule today that permits banking organizations not subject to the advanced approaches capital rules to adopt simplifications to the calculation of their regulatory capital beginning January 1, 2020, rather than April 1, 2020 as was originally finalized in July 2019.… Continue Reading
On October 22, 2019, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (“GAO”) issued two letters concluding that three Federal Reserve Supervision and Regulation letters, SR 12-17: Consolidated Supervision Framework for Large Financial Institutions, SR 14-8: Consolidated Recovery Planning for Certain Large Domestic Bank Holding Companies, and SR 11-7: Guidance on Model Risk Management, are “rules” under the … Continue Reading
On October 17, 2019, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, and National Credit Union Administration released for public comment a proposed interagency policy statement on allowances for credit losses (“ACLs”). The proposed policy statement reflects the Financial Accounting Standards Board’s adoption … Continue Reading
On July 9, 2019, the federal banking agencies released a final rule to simplify aspects of the regulatory capital rules for banking organizations that are not “advanced approaches” banking organizations, i.e., those with less than $250 billion in total consolidated assets and less than $10 billion in total foreign exposure. Initially proposed in September 2017 … Continue Reading
On March 29, 2019, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (the “FDIC”) proposed changes to its Part 370 rule that would significantly reduce the compliance burdens on large insured depository institutions subject to that rule. The Part 370 rule, entitled Recordkeeping for Timely Deposit Insurance Determination, imposes new requirements on certain large insured depository institutions to … Continue Reading
On April 2, 2019, the federal banking agencies proposed a rule that would require large banking organizations to deduct from their regulatory capital certain investments in total loss-absorbing capacity (“TLAC”) debt issued by global systemically important banking organizations (“G-SIBs”) rather than to risk-weight such investments as is currently done. The rule is intended to reduce … Continue Reading
On March 29, 2019, the board of the FDIC approved a notice of proposed rulemaking that would revise the supplementary leverage ratio (“SLR”) to exclude certain deposits placed at central banks from custodial banks’ SLR denominators, implementing section 402 of the Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief, and Consumer Protection Act (“EGRRCPA”). The OCC and Federal Reserve … Continue Reading
On March 27, 2019, the White House released a memorandum on federal housing finance that instructed the Treasury Secretary to develop (i) a “Treasury Housing Reform Plan” that addresses the roles of the government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) – Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac – and (ii) a “HUD Reform Plan” for certain programs of the Department … Continue Reading
On March 6, 2019, the Federal Reserve issued a final rule to exempt from the qualitative component of the Comprehensive Capital Analysis and Review (“CCAR”) exercise large firms that have participated in CCAR for four consecutive years and have passed the final year’s qualitative component without objection. The final rule serves to provide an immediate … Continue Reading
The partial federal government shutdown could affect the timing of processing of certain new merger and acquisition applications by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (the “Board”). Pursuant to special procedures outlined in a December 2018 notice, the Office of the Federal Register is not publishing documents during the partial government shutdown … Continue Reading
In a November 9, 2018 speech, Federal Reserve Vice Chairman for Supervision Randal K. Quarles outlined potential adjustments to the revisions to the capital planning regime that the Federal Reserve proposed in April 2018. Governor Quarles also said he will ask the Federal Reserve to exempt banks with less than $250 billion in assets from … Continue Reading
Today, the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection issued a public statement of its intent to issue proposed rules in January 2019 to reconsider its final rule regarding payday, vehicle title, and certain high-cost installment loans, commonly referred to as the “payday loan rule,” and to address the rule’s compliance date. The Bureau is currently planning … Continue Reading
On October 25, 2018, the Conference of State Bank Supervisors (“CSBS”) filed a complaint in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia to stop the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (“OCC”) from issuing special purpose national bank charters to fintech companies. The lawsuit follows a similar suit against the OCC by … Continue Reading
On September 10, 2018, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (“OCC”) released a proposed rule to implement section 206 of the Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief, and Consumer Protection Act, codified in section 5A of the Home Owners’ Loan Act (“HOLA”). Section 5A permits a federal savings association with total consolidated assets of $20 … Continue Reading
On September 11, 2018, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the National Credit Union Administration, and the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (the “Bureau”, and, collectively, the “Agencies”) issued a statement “clarifying the role of supervisory guidance.” The release … Continue Reading
On July 16, 2018, Republican and Democratic leadership of the House Financial Services Committee announced that they have reached agreement to advance a package of financial services reforms known as the “JOBS Act 3.0,” consisting of 32 pieces of legislation that have passed the Committee or the full House with bipartisan support. While much of … Continue Reading
On July 16, 2018, the Financial Stability Board (“FSB”) issued a report to the G20 Ministers of Finance and Central Bank Governors summarizing the work that the FSB and other international standard-setting bodies have undertaken regarding crypto-assets. The FSB notably reported that it has developed a framework for monitoring financial stability risks related to crypto-assets, … Continue Reading
A recent United States Supreme Court case and new executive order will change the way federal agencies hire administrative law judges (“ALJs”), and together are expected to increase ALJs’ accountability to the heads of their agencies. On June 21, 2018, the United States Supreme Court held in Lucia v. Securities and Exchange Commission that the … Continue Reading
On June 1, 2018, the OCC and FDIC issued a final rule shortening the settlement cycle for securities transactions effected by OCC- and FDIC-regulated institutions. Under the final rule, all such banks will be required to adhere to the standard industry settlement cycle, which currently requires trades to be settled no later than the second … Continue Reading
