Effective January 1, 2021, the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021 (the “Act”) became law. Among other provisions, the Act contains the most significant changes to the Bank Secrecy Act (the “BSA”) since 2001. Most significantly, the Act requires the Department of the Treasury, through the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (“FinCEN”), to adopt regulations within one year that will establish a framework by which smaller, closely held businesses, regardless of the type of enterprise (e.g., corporation, limited liability company or partnership) will be required to disclose their beneficial ownership to FinCEN.
Continue Reading BSA/AML Update: Significant New Requirements Ahead

Financial Graph

On October 2, 2020, the Small Business Administration (the “SBA”) issued a procedural notice (the “Notice”) detailing the requirements for an entity (a “PPP Borrower”) that received a Paycheck Protection Program (“PPP”) loan (“PPP Loan”) to enter into a change of ownership/sale transaction without defaulting on such loan. The Notice provides much needed guidance, particularly in light of months of delays in the PPP Loan forgiveness process. A brief summary of the Notice’s requirements is provided below. Click here to download the Notice for more detailed information.Continue Reading PPP Update: SBA Issues Guidance on M&A Transactions

Bank Vault

Markets like certainty.  On July 20, 2020, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (the “OCC”) proposed a new rule for national banks and federal savings associations that would solve the “true lender” question and help bring certainty to financial markets.  Under the proposed rule, a bank will be deemed the “true lender” in a bank partnership model if it is either (i) the named lender in the underlying loan agreement or (ii) the party that funds the loan.
Continue Reading OCC Proposal Would Bring Certainty to the Identity of the “True Lender”

On July 11, 2018, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (“OCC”), the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (“FDIC”) and the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (“FRB”) (the OCC, FRB and FDIC are collectively, the “Federal Banking Agencies”) issued revisions to the Interagency Biographical and Financial Report (the “Report”).

In general, individual directors, officers, or an individual or group of shareholders acting in concert that will own or control 10 percent (10%) or more of a bank must file the Report in connection with the following: (i) applications to establish a de novo bank, (ii) notices for a change in control, (iii) Section 914 applications for new executive officers and directors, and (iv) applications for new executive officers and directors following a change in control.Continue Reading Bringing a Level of Clarity to the Interagency Biographical and Financial Report