On July 22, 2019, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the National Credit Union Administration, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (collectively, the “federal banking agencies”), and the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (“FinCEN”) issued a joint statement emphasizing their risk-focused … Continue Reading
On Tuesday, June 25, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (the “CFPB”) convened the first in a new series of symposia on consumer protection topics. The symposium series was announced in Director Kathleen Kraninger’s first major speech as the Bureau’s Director on April 17, 2019. The intent of the series is to initiate dialogue with stakeholders … Continue Reading
On June 13, 2019, the FDIC released its first edition of Consumer Compliance Supervisory Highlights, the purpose of which is to increase transparency regarding the FDIC’s consumer compliance supervisory activities. The publication provides a high-level overview of the consumer compliance issues identified through approximately 1,200 consumer compliance examinations conducted in 2018 for non-member state-chartered banks … Continue Reading
On June 4, 2019, Jelena McWilliams, the Chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (“FDIC”), addressed the Community Development Bankers Association. Her remarks emphasized the importance of community banking in the U.S. economy while also touching upon a number of related topics including Minority Depositary Institutions (“MDIs”), the Community Reinvestment Act (“CRA”), Small-Dollar Lending and … Continue Reading
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) released earlier this week its Semmiannual Risk Perspective for Spring 2019. The 30-page report, authored by the OCC’s National Risk Committee, reflects the agency’s view of current risks facing OCC-regulated banks. One of the functions of the National Risk Committee is to guide bank examiners on … Continue Reading
On April 30, 2019, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (“OCC”) opened a 45-day public comment period on its Innovation Pilot Program (the “Program”). In accordance with the agency’s objective of providing constructive and proactive supervision, the OCC’s proposed Program is intended to encourage the testing of innovative activities – including products, services, … Continue Reading
On April 18, 2019, the Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) announced an enforcement action against Eric Powers, a California-based peer-to-peer (P2P) virtual currency exchanger, for violating the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA). This marks the first time FinCEN has taken action against a P2P virtual currency exchanger and the first time it … Continue Reading
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”) announced Tuesday that going forward the agency will provide more information in its Civil Investigative Demands (“CIDs”). The American Bankers Association and others had voiced concerns about the often vague and expansive scope of such demands in response to the Bureau’s 2018 Request for Information (“RFI”) seeking feedback on … Continue Reading
On Wednesday, March 27, 2019, the CFTC’s Market Intelligence Branch of the Division of Market Oversight issued a report on the impact of automated orders in futures markets to determine how technological change affects futures trading. Automated trading refers to orders that are generated or routed without human intervention. The CFTC presented the report before … Continue Reading
On March 21, 2019, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB” or “Bureau”) announced that it was enhancing its advisory committee charters. The announcement follows former Acting Director Mick Mulvaney’s decision in June 2018 to reduce the number of members on the committees and decrease membership terms. Director Kathy Kraninger described these changes as a product … Continue Reading
On March 12, 2019, the CFPB released the 18th edition of its Supervisory Highlights report. The report covers supervision activities completed between June 2018 and November 2018 and discusses supervisory observations related to automobile loan servicing, mortgage servicing, remittances, and deposits. The report also summarizes the CFPB’s previously announced public enforcement actions and guidance during … Continue Reading
On February 12, 2019, for the first time in its history, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”) announced the release of 2019 examination priorities for each of its regulatory Divisions. CFTC Chairman J. Christopher Giancarlo stated that “[t]his first-ever publication of division examination priorities is in line with Project KISS and other agency initiatives to … Continue Reading
On February 6, 2019, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB” or “Bureau”) released its much-anticipated proposed amendments to the payday lending rule. The proposed revision is Kathy Kraninger’s first major regulatory initiative since becoming the director of the CFPB. The Bureau issued two notices of proposed rulemaking that would (i) repeal the mandatory underwriting provisions … 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
It took some time for banking lawyers and compliance officers to get used to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB’s) announcement, under former Acting Director Mick Mulvaney, that it would refer to itself as the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (BCFP). This blog — like many others in the industry — made sure to follow … Continue Reading
The Board of Directors of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) today approved its operating budget for 2019. The budget reflects a decrease in both expenditures (down 2.3%) and headcount (down approximately 3%). The FDIC’s budget memorandum explains that these changes reflect, among other things, consolidation in the industry and a decrease in the frequency … Continue Reading
On December 6, 2018, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (“FDIC”) released a series of documents relating to the process for chartering a de novo FDIC-insured depository institution. A request for information (“RFI”) on all aspects of the FDIC’s deposit insurance application process. The RFI seeks comments on the transparency and efficiency of the application process, … Continue Reading
On December 3, 2018, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (“Federal Reserve), the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (“FDIC”), the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (“FinCEN”), the National Credit Union Administration (“NCUA”), and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (“OCC”) (collectively, “agencies”) released a joint statement on innovative efforts to combat money … Continue Reading
On November 30, 2018, the Federal Reserve requested comments on a new application form—the FR LL-10(e)—for savings and loan holding companies (“SLHCs”). The new form would replace Form H-(e), which was inherited from the Office of Thrift Supervision when the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act transferred supervisory authority for SHLCs to the … Continue Reading
The CFTC’s LabCFTC recently released “A Primer on Smart Contracts” as part of LabCFTC’s initiative to engage with stakeholders on FinTech topics. The primer explains smart contracts, and explores their potential benefits — with a particular focus on the financial sector — and challenges. The CFTC has an interest in smart contracts because, as the … Continue Reading
On November 28, 2018, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (“FDIC”) Chairman Jelena McWilliams delivered keynote remarks regarding resolution planning requirements at the 2018 Annual Conference of The Clearing House and Bank Policy Institute. Chairman McWilliams repeatedly emphasized that the failure of a financial institution should be dealt with through bankruptcy. She stated that she strongly supports … Continue Reading
On October 31, 2018, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (“Board”) released two draft notices of proposed rulemaking (“NPRs”) to tailor its enhanced prudential standards (“EPS”) in accordance with Section 401 of the Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief and Consumer Protection Act (“EGRRCPA”). One NPR, issued by only the Board, would tailor the … 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 October 17, 2018, the Financial Stability Oversight Council (“FSOC”) announced that it voted unanimously to rescind its designation of Prudential Financial, Inc. as a so-called “systemically important financial institution” (“SIFI”). Section 113 of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street and Consumer Protection Act (“Dodd-Frank Act”) enables FSOC to identify a nonbank financial company for supervision by … Continue Reading
