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Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation issues notice to currency exchange and money transmitter licensees
On March 30, the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (Department) issued a notice encouraging currency exchange and money transmitter licensees to provide the Department with advance notice of any changes to their usual business practices. The Department expects all licensees to act responsibly and proactively to address any consumer harm that may arise.
Idaho Department of Finance issues memorandum to money transmitter licensees and applicants
On March 26, the Idaho Department of Finance issued a memorandum to Idaho money transmitter licensees and applicants regarding agency operations and communications due to Covid-19. The memorandum includes information on the Department’s teleworking arrangements and notes that routine examinations of registered entities and agents have been suspended. Registration staff continues to process licensing/registration applications through the CRD/IARD/NMLS systems and U.S. mail. In line with the NMLS Policy committee’s decisions and recommendations, the Department has also extended deadlines by 60 days for the filing of certain reports and statements.
NMLS extends deadline for reports and SAFE MLO test enrollment
On March 25, in response to the Covid-19 pandemic, the NMLS Policy Committee extended the deadline for certain reporting obligations satisfied through NMLS, and the enrollment window for taking the SAFE MLO test.
Companies required to submit financial statements, the Mortgage Call Report, and the Money Services Businesses Call Report will have an additional 60 days from pre-established deadlines to submit such reports. Individuals will have the testing window on their test appointments extended 180 days.
The NMLS Resource Center has been updated with additional resources to provide updates on state agency operating status. In addition, the NMLS Policy Committee is encouraging states to accept documentation electronically that otherwise may have been required in hard copy.
The full announcement can be found on the NMLS Resource Center.
Kansas Office of the State Bank Commissioner issues work from home guidance
On March 16, the Kansas Office of the State Bank Commissioner (OSBC) issued temporary guidance allowing licensed mortgage companies, mortgage loan originators, supervised loan licensees, credit services organizations, money transmitters, credit notification registrants and their employees to work remotely due to the Covid-19 crisis. Licensed or registered individuals and entities will be allowed to work from their residences or a company designated location--even if the residence or location is not a licensed or registered branch location--providing they have temporary policies, procedures, and a plan for supervision in place. OSBC also set forth best practices for remote work to ensure that security of information is maintained.
CSBS seeks additional comments on money services businesses model law
On February 25, the Conference of State Bank Supervisors (CSBS) issued a second request for comments on its draft model law language for money services businesses (MSB Model Law)—a primary part of CSBS’s Vision 2020 initiatives, which are intended to modernize state regulation of non-banks and fintech firms. (Vision 2020 InfoBytes coverage is available here.) According to CSBS, the draft MSB Model Law is comprised of “an integrated, 50-state licensing and supervisory system that recognizes standards across state lines.” As previously covered by InfoBytes, last October CSBS requested comments on the draft MSB Model Law language focusing on issue areas identified by the Fintech Industry Advisory Panel—Control, Activity and Exemption Definitions, Safety & Soundness, and Supervision. To finalize the areas of control and supervision, CSBS is seeking a second round of comments by March 11 to address the following issues identified from comments received during the first round.
- The industry expressed implementation concerns, with several parties noting, “that CSBS has no authority to implement the MSB Model Law in individual states and utilizing NMLS to drive consistency could compound differences between states.”
- The proposed control language failed to address uncertainty over the identification of control persons. Moreover, “attempts to exclude passive investors [did] not achieve the intended results.”
- The industry strongly suggested that parity language contained in the draft MSB Model Law—designed to facilitate state adoption—“was overly broad and would create uncertainty if used.”
- Definitions and exemptions fell short on several critical issues.
- The existence of proponents and detractors of both the safety and soundness proposals signaled a divergence within the industry as to the appropriate safeguards for customer funds.
CSBS notes that the MSB Model Law language will help harmonize operations between states. After the comment period ends, CSBS will prioritize the MSB Model Law for release, with control and coordination language expected to be released in the second quarter of 2020, followed by activities and exemption definitions in May. CSBS also plans to work with states and the industry on safety and soundness language, which may be released as early as August.
CSBS releases Vision 2020 Accountability Report on fintech initiatives
On January 7, the Conference of State Bank Supervisors (CSBS) released a report by its Fintech Industry Advisory Panel outlining progress made on several initiatives to streamline state licensing and supervision of financial technology companies. As previously covered by InfoBytes, the panel was convened in 2017 as part of Vision 2020—a state regulator initiative to modernize the regulation of fintech companies and other non-banks by creating an integrated, 50-state system of licensing and supervision. The Accountability Report charts progress on initiatives identified by the panel, which, according to the announcement, fit into four focus areas: (i) the use of CSBS regtech for licensing and exams, including expanding the use of NMLS among states across all license types for nonbank financial services, developing “state licensing requirements for multi-state consistency,” and launching a new state examination system; (ii) improved consistency among states, including 26 states signing on to the Multistate Money Service Business (MSB) Licensing Agreement, which is intended to streamline the MSB licensing process; (iii) the creation of uniform definitions and practices and the development of a 50-state MSB model law and state accreditation programs for MSBs, which will encourage greater consistency among states; and (iv) increased regulatory transparency, including online resources for state guidance and exemptions, as well as information sessions with regulators and industry to discuss fintech developments.
FinCEN report: SARs help prevent elder financial exploitation
On December 4, FinCEN announced the release of a Financial Trend Analysis titled, “Elders Face Increased Financial Threat from Domestic and Foreign Actors.” In compiling the report, FinCEN reviewed Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) elder financial exploitation suspicious activity reports (SARs) from 2013 to 2019 to detect patterns and trends. Among other things, the study found that (i) elder financial exploitation filings nearly tripled during the study period, from around 2,000 per month in 2013 to nearly 7,500 in 2019, the majority of which were filed by money services businesses (MSBs) and depository institutions; (ii) while the amount of SARs filed by MSBs ebbed and flowed from 2013 to 2019, those of depository institutions steadily increased; (iii) MSBs filed nearly 80 percent of all SARs describing financial scams, while securities and futures firms filed just over 70 percent of all SARs describing theft; (iv) financial theft from elders is most frequently perpetrated by family members or caregivers; (v) SARs indicated that the most common scams included lottery, person-in-need, and romance scams, the majority of which saw elder victims transferring funds through MSBs; and (vi) money transfer scam SARs were most commonly filed by MSBs who transferred money to a receiver located outside the U.S.
FinCEN director discusses CVC compliance requirements
On November 15, Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) Director Kenneth Blanco delivered remarks at the Chainalysis Blockchain Symposium to discuss, among other things, the agency’s focus on convertible virtual currency (CVC) and remind attendees—particularly financial institutions—of their compliance obligations. Specifically, Blanco emphasized that FinCEN applies a “technology-neutral regulatory framework to any activity that provides the same functionality at the same level of risk, regardless of its label.” As such, money transmissions denominated in CVC, Blanco stated, are money transmissions. Blanco discussed guidance issued by FinCEN in May (previously covered by InfoBytes here) that reminded persons subject to the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) how FinCEN regulations relating to money services businesses apply to certain business models involving money transmissions denominated in CVC. Blanco also highlighted the agency’s recent collaboration with the CFTC and the SEC to issue joint guidance on digital asset compliance obligations. (Previous InfoBytes coverage here.) Highlights of Blanco’s remarks include (i) suspicious activity reporting related to CVC has increased, including “filings from exchanges identifying potential unregistered, foreign-located money services businesses”; (ii) compliance with the “Funds Travel Rule” is mandatory and applies to CVC; (iii) for anti-money laundering/combating the funding of terrorism purposes, accepting and transmitting activity denominated in stablecoins falls within FinCEN's definition of “money transmission services” under the BSA; and (iv) administrators of stablecoins must register as money services businesses with FinCEN.
CSBS seeks comments on money services businesses model law
On October 1, the Conference of State Bank Supervisors (CSBS) issued a request for comments on its Draft Model Law Language for money services businesses (MSBs). According to CSBS, state regulation of MSBs is a primary part of Vision 2020—a state regulator initiative to modernize the regulation of fintech companies and other non-banks by creating an integrated, 50-state system of licensing and supervision. (Previously covered by InfoBytes here.) The model MSB law draft addresses recommendations made by the Payments Subgroup of the Fintech Industry Advisory Panel, and “is based on and overlays the Uniform Money Services Act.” In addition, the draft amends definitions and interpretations that vary between states, and consists of three primary policies: (i) regulations “must sufficiently protect consumers from harm, including all forms of loss”; (ii) regulations “must enable the states’ ability to prevent bad actors from entering the money services industry”; and (iii) regulations “must preserve public confidence in the financial services sector, including the states’ ability to coordinate.” According to the Fintech Industry Advisory Panel, differences in standards and procedures for change in control have created significant administrative burdens, which the working group addressed by standardizing change of control triggers and the definition of control persons. The draft also includes implementation language designed to provide the legal framework to facilitate interstate coordination and the adoption of consistent standards and processes. The proposed language is adapted from current state laws, which focus “on permitting interstate supervision and creating parity between national and state chartered banks.” CSBS notes that using these models will grant states the legal authority to adjust to new products, risks, processes, and technological capabilities in a coordinated manner.
Comment are due November 1.
23 states agree to streamline money service licensing process for fintech companies
On June 24, the Conference of State Bank Supervisors (CSBS) announced that financial regulators from 23 states have now agreed to a multi-state compact that will offer a streamlined licensing process for money services businesses (MSB), including fintech firms. As previously covered by InfoBytes, in February 2018, the original agreement included seven states. According to the announcement, 15 companies are currently involved in the initiative, and as of June 20, they have received 72 licenses. The 23 states participating in the MSB licensing agreement are: California, Connecticut, Georgia, Iowa, Idaho, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Mississippi. North Carolina, North Dakota, Nebraska, Ohio, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Texas, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Washington, and Wyoming.