InfoBytes Blog
Federal Reserve Announces Off-Site Electronic Loan File Review Process
On April 19, the Federal Reserve issued a letter announcing a new off-site loan file review program available to banking institutions with less than $50 billion in total assets. According to the letter, recent technological advancements, i.e. secure data transmission and electronic file imaging, allow the Federal Reserve to collect and review loan file information off-site “without compromising the effectiveness of the examination process.” To determine if the off-site loan review program is appropriate for an institution, the Federal Reserve will consider the following: (i) if the institution uses a secure transmission method to submit the loan file data; (ii) if the institution can provide loan data and imaged documents that are legible, easily viewable, and properly organized; and (iii) if the loan files are sufficiently comprehensive, allowing examiners to reach a conclusion regarding the appropriate rating of a credit without requesting additional information. Regarding adjustments to the examination process of an off-site loan review, the letter cautions that examiners will need to allocate sufficient time before an examination begins to ensure loan file data was successfully transmitted to the Reserve Bank, and communicate with institutional management throughout the examination process. Finally, the letter discusses the scope of the off-site examination process verses that of an on-site examination process, noting that (i) certain portions of examination work will remain off-site regardless of whether the institution is participating in the new off-site program; and (ii) at examiners’ discretion, Reserve Banks “may hold either off-site or on-site discussions with the institution’s management regarding preliminary loan review findings such as the appropriateness of individual credit ratings assigned by [a state member bank or foreign banking organization] and the completeness of credit file documentation.”