As anticipated, the OCC, Federal Reserve Board, and FDIC recently approved and released the Final Rule Requiring Computer-Security Incident Notification (“Final Rule”).  The Final Rule is designed to promote early awareness and stop computer security incidents before they become systemic.  It places new reporting requirements on both U.S. banking organizations, as well as bank service providers.    

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The Federal Reserve Board, FDIC, and OCC (collectively, the “Agencies”) issued on November 23 a short Joint Statement on Crypto-Asset Policy Sprint Initiative and Next Steps (“Joint Statement”), which announced – without further concrete detail – that they had assembled a “crypto asset roadmap” in order to provide greater clarity in 2022 to banks on the permissibility of certain crypto-asset activities. … Continue Reading

In the latest demonstration that there’s a “new CFPB” as well as other new regulatory sheriffs in town, the CFPB, the federal banking agencies (OCC, FDIC, Federal Reserve Board, and NCUA), and state financial regulators issued a joint statement yesterday to announce that they will no longer provide “supervisory and enforcement flexibility” to mortgage servicers in meeting compliance requirements. … Continue Reading

Ballard Spahr attorneys have now completed a months-long project in updating and expanding a 2017 White Paper addressing bank-model lending—programs involving partnerships between banks (or savings associations) and fintech or other nonbank companies in the interstate delivery of loans.

The new White Paper, which runs 49 pages single-spaced, is designed to serve as a comprehensive survey of laws, cases and regulatory attitudes addressing bank-model lending.  … Continue Reading

The CFPB, Federal Reserve Board, FDIC NCUA, OCC, in conjunction with the state bank and state credit union regulators, jointly issued a statement on managing the transition away from LIBOR (Joint Statement).

In 2017, the United Kingdom’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the regulator that oversees the panel of banks on whose submissions LIBOR is based, announced that it would discontinue LIBOR sometime after 2021.… Continue Reading

Marketing by nonbanks of products and services offered with bank partners is coming under increasing scrutiny that focuses on the potential for consumers to be led to believe that the nonbank is a bank, or is FDIC insured.  We discuss recent state and federal regulatory and enforcement developments, including the FDIC’s proposed rule addressing false advertising, misuse of the FDIC logo, and misrepresentation of insured status, and state regulators’ and federal lawmakers’ interest in the issue, and offer takeaways for banks and nonbank partners on what these developments mean for their marketing efforts.… Continue Reading

The OCC’s true lender rule was intended to create a bright line test for when a national bank or federal savings association should be considered the “true lender” in the context of third party partnerships but Congress overturned the rule.  After reviewing the relevant background, we examine the Congressional override’s implications for future federal true lender rulemaking and its impact on existing law, key federal and state court challenges and decisions, state legislative and administrative developments, and risk mitigants for bank/nonbank partnerships, including potential loan program structures.… Continue Reading

The OCC, FDIC, and Federal Reserve Board have issued a guide that is intended to assist community banks in conducting due diligence when considering relationships with financial technology (fintech) companies (Guide).

The issuance of the Guide follows the agencies’ July 2021 release of proposed interagency guidance for banking organizations on managing risks associated with third-party relationships, including relationships with financial technology-focused entities such as bank/fintech sponsorship arrangements. … Continue Reading

The FDIC has filed its reply in support of its motion for summary judgment in the lawsuit filed by a group of state attorneys general to set aside the FDIC’s “Madden-fix” rule.  The reply responds to the AGs’ opposition to the FDIC’s summary judgment motion.  The state AGs have also filed a motion for summary judgment. … Continue Reading

Last week, the OCC, Federal Reserve Board, and FDIC issued proposed guidance for banking organizations on managing risks associated with third-party relationships, including those with financial technology-focused entities such as bank/fintech sponsorship arrangements.  The agencies have made clear that if banks have ineffective risk management processes, agency examiners will closely scrutinize their third-party risk management and identify and report deficiencies in examination reports and recommend appropriate supervisory actions.… Continue Reading