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  • OCC releases enforcement actions and terminations

    Federal Issues

    On May 20, the OCC released a list of recent enforcement actions taken against national banks, federal savings associations, and individuals currently and formerly affiliated with such entities. Included in the release is a formal agreement entered into with a Pennsylvania-based bank on April 20 in connection with alleged unsafe or unsound practices relating to oversight, internal controls, audit, and information technology controls. The agreement requires the bank to (i) establish a compliance committee to monitor the bank’s progress in complying with the agreement’s provisions; (ii) report such progress to the bank’s board on a quarterly basis; and (iii) develop, implement, and adhere to a written risk-based, internal information, technology audit program. The agreement further provides that the technology audit program must be performed by an independent and qualified party and must include fundamental elements of a sound audit program.

    Federal Issues Agency Rule-Making & Guidance Bank Compliance Enforcement OCC Bank Regulatory

  • OCC examines effects of Covid-19 on federal banking system

    Federal Issues

    On May 18, the OCC released its Semiannual Risk Perspective for Spring 2021, which reports on key risk areas posing a threat to the safety and soundness of national banks and federal savings associations. While, overall, banks maintained sound capital and liquidity levels throughout 2020, the OCC noted that bank profitability remains stressed as a result of low interest rates and low loan demand.

    Key risk themes identified in the report include:

    • Credit risk. The OCC reported that credit risk is evolving a year into the Covid-19 pandemic, specifically as the economic downturn continues to affect some borrowers’ ability to service debts and government assistance programs start to expire.
    • Strategic risk. Strategic risk associated with how bank manage net interest margin compressions and earnings is elevated. The OCC suggested that banks attempting to improve earnings could implement various measures, including cost cutting and increasing credit risk.
    • Operational risk. Elevated operational risk can be attributed to complex operating environments and increased cybersecurity threats. A flexible, risk-based approach, including surveillance, reporting, and managing third-party risk, is important for banks to be operationally resilient, the OCC stated.
    • Compliance risk. Compliance risk is also elevated due to the expedited implementation of a number of Covid-19-related assistance programs, including the CARES Act Paycheck Protection Program and federal, state, and bank-initiated forbearance and deferred payment programs. These programs, the OCC noted, require “increased compliance responsibilities, high transaction volumes, and new fraud typologies, at a time when banks continue to respond to a changing operating environment.”

    Federal Issues OCC Covid-19 SBA Compliance Risk Management Fintech Net Interest Margin Bank Regulatory

  • OCC finalizes CIF withdrawal period extensions

    Federal Issues

    On May 21, the OCC issued an interim final rule, which finalizes a rule applicable to national banks and federal savings associations administering a collective investment fund (CIF) invested primarily in real estate or other assets that are not readily marketable. Specifically, under the OCC’s fiduciary activities regulation (12 CFR 9.18), a bank that is administering a CIF invested “primarily in real estate or other assets that are not readily marketable” may require a prior notice period of up to one year for withdrawals. As previously covered by Infobytes, in August 2020, the OCC issued an interim final rule which clarified rules regarding account withdrawals from CIFs in response to the Covid-19 pandemic. The recently released interim final rule codifies the August rule by allowing banks to request to extend the one-year redemption period by another year due to “unanticipated and severe market conditions for specific assets held by the fund,” subject to meeting certain conditions.

    The interim final rule will be effective upon publication in the Federal Register.

    Federal Issues OCC Covid-19 Agency Rule-Making & Guidance Bank Regulatory

  • OCC reconsiders CRA final rule

    Agency Rule-Making & Guidance

    On May 18, the OCC announced it will reconsider its 2020 final rule overhauling the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA). As previously covered by a Buckley Special Alert, the 2020 final rule, finalized last year, was intended to modernize the regulatory framework implementing the CRA by, among other things: (i) updating deposit-based assessment areas; (ii) mandating the inclusion of consumer loans in CRA evaluations; (iii) including quantitative metric-based benchmarks for determining a bank’s CRA rating; and (iv) including a non-exhaustive illustrative list of activities that qualify for CRA consideration.

    “While this reconsideration is ongoing, the OCC will not object to the suspension of the development of systems for, or other implementation of, provisions with a compliance date of January 1, 2023, or January 1, 2024, under the 2020 CRA rule,” the OCC stated. The agency further stressed that its decision to suspend compliance deadlines for the 2020 final rule “will provide for an orderly reconsideration of the June 2020 rule” and “provide the OCC with the opportunity to consider additional stakeholder input, to evaluate issues and questions that have been raised, to reassess the necessary data, and to take additional regulatory action, as appropriate.” The OCC also added that it does not plan to finalize a December 2020 proposed rule covering evaluation measure benchmarks, retail lending distribution test thresholds, and community development minimums under the new general performance standards outlined in the 2020 final rule (covered by InfoBytes here). Moreover, the agency will discontinue the CRA information collection published in the Federal Register last December.

    However, the OCC noted that it will continue to implement certain provisions of the 2020 final rule with a compliance date of October 1, 2020, as outlined in OCC Bulletin 2020-99 (covered by InfoBytes here), and reminded banks to “maintain appropriate documentation for CRA examination purposes” as specified in the bulletin.

    Agency Rule-Making & Guidance Federal Issues OCC CRA Bank Compliance Bank Regulatory

  • Federal regulators discuss Covid-19 responses and priorities

    Federal Issues

    On May 19, the House Financial Services Committee held a hearing entitled “Oversight of Prudential Regulators: Ensuring the Safety, Soundness, Diversity, and Accountability of Depository Institutions.” Committee Chairwoman Maxine Waters (D-CA) opened the hearing by expressing her concerns about the “harmful deregulatory actions” taken by the previous administration’s appointees to “roll back key Dodd-Frank reforms and other consumer protections.” She noted, however, that she was pleased that the Senate is moving forward to reverse the OCC’s true lender rule and commented that she has asked House leadership to address the related Congressional Review Act resolution as soon as possible.

    Fed Vice Chair for Supervision Randal K. Quarles provided an update on the Fed’s Covid-19 regulatory and supervisory efforts, noting that the Fed has “worked to align [the Fed’s] emergency actions with other relief efforts as the economic situation improves” and is maintaining or extending some measures to promote continued access to credit. When Congresswoman Velazquez inquired how government programs like the Paycheck Protection Program helped to stabilize businesses and improve the overall economy, Quarles answered, “We would have experienced a much deeper and more durable economic contraction, and would have had more lasting economic scarring with closed businesses and defaulting obligations [] had those programs not been put in place.”

    OCC Comptroller Michael Hsu discussed the agency’s increasing coordination with other federal and state regulators on fintech policy, in addition to OCC efforts to strengthen Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) regulations and address climate change. The OCC has been encouraging innovation, Hsu said, but added that his “broader concern is that these initiatives were not done in full coordination with all stakeholders. Nor do they appear to have been part of a broader strategy related to the regulatory perimeter.” In his written testimony, Hsu emphasized his concerns with providing charters to fintechs, noting that in doing so, it would “convey the benefits of banking without its responsibilities,” but also “that refusing to charter fintechs will encourage growth of another shadow banking system outside the reach of regulators.” Hsu expressed in his oral statement the importance of finding “a way to consider how fintechs and payment platforms fit into the banking system” and emphasized that it must be done in coordination with the FDIC, Fed, and the states. He also explained that “the regulatory community is taking a fragmented agency-by-agency approach to the technology-driven changes taking place today. At the OCC, the focus has been on encouraging responsible innovation. For instance, we updated the framework for chartering national banks and trust companies and interpreted crypto custody services as part of the business of banking.” When Congressman Bill Huizenga (R-MI) asked how the OCC planned to address the “true lender” rule, which would soften the regulations for national banks to sell loans to third parties, Hsu stated that the OCC originally intended to review the rule, but that after the Senate passed S.J.Res. 15 to invoke the Congressional Review Act and provide for congressional disapproval and invalidation of the rule (covered by InfoBytes here), the agency decided to leave it up to congressional deliberation and will monitor it instead.

    FDIC Chairman Jelena McWilliams discussed, among other things, the FDIC’s policy of granting industrial loan company charters. As previously covered by Infobytes, the agency approved a final rule in December 2020 establishing certain conditions and supervisory standards for the parent companies of industrial banks and ILCs. McWilliams defended the FDIC’s new rule during the hearing, stating it “ensures that the parent company serves as a source of financial strength for the ILC while providing clarity about the FDIC's supervisory expectations of both the ILC and its parent company.”

    NCUA Chairman Todd Harper also outlined agency measures taken in response to the pandemic. Among other things, Harper noted that the NCUA is supporting low-income credit unions through the Community Development Revolving Loan Fund and that the agency is working to strengthen its Consumer Financial Protection Program (CFPP) to ensure fair and equitable access to credit. During the hearing, Harper stated, “there is an increased emphasis on fair lending compliance, and agency staff are studying methods for improving consumer financial protection supervision for the largest credit unions not primarily supervised by the CFPP.”

    Federal Issues House Financial Services Committee OCC CRA Fintech Dodd-Frank FDIC Federal Reserve NCUA SBA Covid-19 True Lender Congressional Review Act Bank Regulatory

  • Senate moves to repeal OCC’s “true lender” rule

    Federal Issues

    On May 11, the U.S. Senate passed S.J. Res. 15 by a vote of 52 - 47 to invoke the Congressional Review Act and provide for congressional disapproval and invalidation of the OCC’s “true lender" rule. Issued last year, the final rule amended 12 CFR Part 7 to state that a bank makes a loan when, as of the date of origination, it either (i) is named as the lender in the loan agreement or (ii) funds the loan. The final rule also clarified that if “one bank is named as the lender in the loan agreement and another bank funds the loan, the bank that is named as the lender in the loan agreement makes the loan.” (Covered by InfoBytes here.) In applauding the passage of the resolution, Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), who introduced S.J. Res. 15, stated that “strik[ing] down the ‘Rent-A-Bank’ rule will help prevent predatory lenders from ripping off consumers by charging loan-shark rates under deceptive terms.” He noted that the legislation has support from a broad array of stakeholder and consumer protection groups, including a bipartisan group of state attorneys generals and the Conference of State Bank Supervisors, as previously covered by InfoBytes here.

    Ranking member of the Senate Banking Committee, Senator Pat Toomey (R-PA) countered, however, that “[w]ithout the rule, the secondary market for these loans would be disrupted, which, again, disproportionately harms lower-income borrowers.” He further added that “[v]oting in favor of the CRA is a direct assault on fintech. It will make it harder for Congress to legislate here. It will make it harder for regulators to issue guidance and rules that promote fintech. Courts will see it as Congress buying into the notion that fintechs are ‘predatory’ lending. And it will scare away state legislatures from promoting fintech.”

    S.J. Res. 15 now heads to the House of Representatives for consideration.

    Federal Issues U.S. Senate OCC True Lender Congressional Review Act Fintech Agency Rule-Making & Guidance Bank Regulatory

  • Michael J. Hsu named acting Comptroller of the Currency

    Federal Issues

    On May 7, Michael J. Hsu was designated acting Comptroller of the Currency, effective May 10. Previously, Hsu served as an associate director in the Federal Reserve’s Division of Supervision and Regulation where he led the Large Institution Supervision Coordinating Committee Program, which supervises global systemically important banking companies operating in the U.S. Hsu’s career over the past 19 years also included positions at the SEC, Treasury Department, and International Monetary Fund. In accepting the position, Hsu stated his focus “will be on solving urgent problems and addressing pressing issues until the 32nd Comptroller is confirmed.”

    Hsu issued a statement to agency staff the same day outlining planned areas of focus including:

    • Addressing the “disproportionate impact” of the Covid-19 pandemic on rural and minority communities;
    • Confronting the risks and challenges of climate change, as well as the acceleration of technological development and digitization in the industry;
    • Understanding how “complacency about risk-taking is of increasing supervisory concern as [the industry enters] a phase of growth and heightened competition”; and
    • Reviewing key regulatory standards, as well as other matters pending before the agency, which will take into account both external and internal views.

    Federal Issues OCC Covid-19 Climate-Related Financial Risks Fintech Supervision Bank Regulatory

  • OCC counters CSBS’s arguments in fintech charter challenge

    Courts

    On April 29, the OCC responded to the Conference of State Bank Supervisors’ (CSBS) most recent challenge to the OCC’s authority to issue Special Purpose National Bank Charters (SPNB). As previously covered by InfoBytes, CSBS filed a complaint last December opposing the OCC’s alleged impending approval of an SPNB for a financial services provider, arguing that the OCC is exceeding its chartering authority.

    The OCC countered, however, that the same fatal flaws that pervaded CSBS’s prior challenges (covered by InfoBytes here), i.e., that its challenge is unripe and CSBS lacks standing, still remain. According to the OCC, the cited application (purportedly curing CSBS’s prior ripeness issues) is not for an SPNB—the proposed bank would conduct a full range of services, including deposit taking. Further, the OCC stated, even it if was an application for a SPNB charter, there are multiple additional steps that need to occur prior to the OCC issuing the charter, which made the challenge unripe. As to standing, the OCC asserted that any alleged injury to CSBS or its members is purely speculative. Finally, the OCC contended that CSBS’s challenge fails on the merits because the challenge relies on the premise that the company’s application must be for a SPNB, not a national bank, because the company is not going to apply for deposit insurance but there is no requirement in the National Bank Act, the Federal Deposit Insurance Act, or the Federal Reserve Act that requires all national banks to acquire FDIC insurance.

    Courts State Issues CSBS OCC Fintech National Bank Act Preemption Fintech Charter Bank Regulatory FDIC FDI Act

  • OCC updates Credit Card Lending booklet

    Agency Rule-Making & Guidance

    On April 29, the OCC issued Bulletin 2021-22 announcing the revision of the Credit Card Lending booklet of the Comptroller’s Handbook. The booklet rescinds OCC Bulletin 2015-14 and replaces version 1.2 of the “Credit Card Lending” booklet that was issued on January 6, 2017. Among other things, the revised booklet (i) discusses the adoption of current expected credit loss methodology and the increased use of such modeling in credit card origination and risk management; (ii) reflects changes to OCC issuances; (iii) includes refining edits regarding supervisory guidance, sound risk management practices, and legal language; and (iv) includes revisions for clarity.

    Agency Rule-Making & Guidance OCC Comptroller's Handbook Credit Cards CECL Bank Regulatory

  • State AGs urge Congress to rescind OCC’s “true lender” rule

    Federal Issues

    On April 21, a coalition of 26 state attorneys general sent a letter urging Congress to exercise its authority under the Congressional Review Act (CRA) and rescind the OCC’s “True Lender Rule” in order to “safeguard states’ fundamental sovereign rights to protect their citizens from financial abuse.” As previously covered by InfoBytes, the OCC’s final rule amended 12 CFR Part 7 to state that a bank makes a loan when, as of the date of origination, it either (i) is named as the lender in the loan agreement or (ii) funds the loan. The final rule also clarified that if “one bank is named as the lender in the loan agreement and another bank funds the loan, the bank that is named as the lender in the loan agreement makes the loan.” In their letter, the AGs expressed concern that the final rule “establishes a simplistic standard to redefine the meaning of ‘true lender,’” enabling predatory lenders to “circumvent” state interest-rate caps through “rent-a-bank” schemes, which would in turn allow banks to act as lenders in name only while passing state law exemptions for banks to non-bank entities. The letter references a complaint filed by eight state AGs against the OCC in January challenging the final rule (covered by InfoBytes here) and argues that in finalizing the rule the OCC “acted in a manner contrary to centuries of case law [and] the OCC’s own prior interpretation of the law,” and seeks to preempt state usury law and “infringe on the States’ historical police powers and facilitate predatory lending.” 

    In March, both House and Senate Democrats introduced CRA resolutions (see H.J. Res. 35 and S.J. Res. 15) intended to provide for congressional disapproval and invalidation of the OCC’s final rule. The OCC responded on April 14, arguing that “disapproval of the rule would return bank lending relationships to the previous state of legal and regulatory uncertainty, which. . . adversely affects the function of secondary markets and restricts the availability of credit.” The OCC further stated that the final rule is intended to enhance the agency’s ability to supervise bank lending and “does not change bank’s authority to export interest rates” nor does it “permit national banks to charge whatever rate they like” as both federal and state-chartered banks are required to conform to applicable interest rate limits. “Disparities of interest rates from state to state result from differences in the state laws that impose these caps, not OCC rules or actions,” the OCC stressed, adding that “[s]tates retain the authority to set interest rates.” However, the Conference of State Bank Supervisors sent a letter to Congress in support of S.J. Res. 15, disagreeing with the OCC and noting that the final rule, if it stands, would “eviscerate the power of state interest rate caps and rid state regulators of the most effective tool to protect consumers from such predatory lending.”

    Federal Issues OCC True Lender State Attorney General U.S. House U.S. Senate Agency Rule-Making & Guidance State Issues Valid When Made Congressional Review Act Bank Regulatory

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