The Federal Reserve Board has published in the Federal Register a notice of proposed rulemaking with request for comment on a proposal to simplify and increase transparency of its rules for determining control of a banking organization.  The proposal’s comment period closes on July 15, 2019. The proposed revisions to the Board’s control regulations would significantly expand the number of presumptions used by the Board to determine control and would, in codifying those presumptions, provide…

The FDIC has issued an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPR) seeking comment on its regulatory approach to brokered deposits and interest rate restrictions. The FDIC’s current regulations on brokered deposits and interest rate restrictions are set forth at 12 C.F.R. Section 337.6.  Such regulations implement Section 29 of the Federal Deposit Insurance Act which restricts an insured depository institution that is less than well capitalized from soliciting or accepting deposits by or through a…

At the Online Lending Policy Institute’s (OLPI) annual summit in Washington, D.C. earlier this week, the OCC’s recent decision to accept applications from non-depository financial technology firms for a special purpose national bank (SPNB) charter was the focus of considerable discussion. The summit speakers included Grovetta Gardineer, the Senior Deputy Comptroller for Compliance and Community Affairs at the OCC.  Comments made by attendees indicated that there is substantial interest in the SPNB charter but a…

Last Wednesday the Federal Reserve published approved final amendments to Regulation CC (Availability of Funds and Collections of Checks) which update the liability provisions of Reg. CC to address the nearly-complete conversion of the nation’s check collection system from a paper to an electronic environment. Historically, when banks disputed which party should be responsible for the liability arising from an unauthorized check, the risks were split in two.  The paying bank (the bank that would…

On September 12th, the Conference of State Bank Supervisors (CSBS) announced that it would again pursue litigation in opposition to the OCC’s recent decision to accept applications from non-depository financial technology firms for a special purpose national bank (SPNB) charter. While it announced that its Board of Directors had approved renewing litigation against the OCC at an August 28 meeting, the CSBS did not indicate when it plans to file the lawsuit.  The lawsuit would…

In a recent interview (her first since being sworn in as Chair of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation), Jelena McWilliams provided insight into the FDIC’s likely regulatory agenda. Ms. McWilliams stated that the FDIC’s top priorities included: (1) reducing regulatory burden on community banks; (2) increasing the speed with which the FDIC reviews charter and deposit insurance applications; and (3) assisting banks to introduce new financial products that serve underserved communities. Unlike the previous FDIC…

Last week, Representative Blaine Luetkemeyer, Chair of the House Financial Services Committee’s Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit, and Representative Scott Tipton sent a letter to Jelena McWilliams, Chair of the FDIC, that identified concerns with the FDIC’s interpretations and regulations surrounding brokered deposits and requested the FDIC to revisit its June 2016 Frequently Asked Questions on Identifying, Accepting and Reporting Brokered Deposits “in light of the rapid technological changes in the banking and…