On November 18, 2021, 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) (each, an “Agency” and, collectively, the “Agencies”) finalized a uniform regulation, codified at 12 C.F.R. Part 53, 12 C.F.R. Part 225.300 and 12 C.F.R. Part 304, with the stated purpose of improving the sharing of information about cybersecurity incidents harmful to the U.S. banking system (the “Regulation”). Pursuant to the Regulation, banks will be required to notify their primary federal regulatory Agency within thirty-six (36) hours of “any significant computer-security incident.”Continue Reading Federal Bank Regulators Expand Duty to Notify after a Cybersecurity Event

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

On April 10, 2018, the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (the “FFIEC”), an interagency body composed of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, National Credit Union Administration, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the State Liaison Committee, issued guidance to assist financial institutions in analyzing the use of cyber insurance in an effective risk management program (the “Guidance”).
Continue Reading How to Evaluate Cyber Insurance Options?

In a recent interview, Comptroller of the Currency Joseph Otting, announced the OCC’s plan to “clarify” its support of bank-offered deposit advance products. “Deposit advance products” are typically defined as small-dollar, short-term loans or lines of credit that are to be repaid from the proceeds of the consumer’s next direct deposit.  The WSJ reports that the OCC’s planned announcement will focus on 45-to-90 day loans.
Continue Reading Pay Day Lending: Here Come the Banks!