On September 17, 2024, the Antitrust Division of the United States Department of Justice (the “DOJ”) announced that it withdrew its 1995 Bank Merger Guidelines and instead, for purposes of evaluating the competitive impact of...more
In an effort to increase transparency in the Bank Merger Act (BMA) approval process, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) has recently issued a proposed policy statement (the “Policy Statement”) which is...more
Beginning in January 2024, many small businesses and family investment companies will be required to report ownership and management information to the U.S. Department of the Treasury. The reporting requirements arise under...more
In a significant development for state nonmember banks with assets of at least $10 billion (Covered Institutions), the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) has recently proposed comprehensive corporate governance and...more
On August 23, 2023, a divided U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued new rules (the Rules) relating to the regulation of private fund advisers. The Rules aim to help protect investors in private funds (including...more
8/31/2023
/ Financial Services Industry ,
Investment ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investors ,
Marketing ,
New Rules ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Private Funds ,
SEC Advertising Rule ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation
In remarks before the Brookings Institution on June 20, 2023, Assistant United States Attorney General (AAG) Jonathan Kanter provided detailed insights into the work by the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Antitrust Division to...more
On May 11, 2023, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) approved a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPR) to place a special assessment on larger banks in order to recover the costs associated with protecting uninsured...more
On March 12, 2023, in response to concerns about the ongoing ripple effects of recent bank failures, the Federal Reserve Board established the new Bank Term Funding Program (the Program) to provide additional funding to...more
On December 14, 2022, in its final meeting of the year, the Securities and Exchange Commission adopted final rules relating to Rule 10b5-1 trading plans....more
On October 14, 2022, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) and the Federal Reserve Board (FRB) both approved the acquisition of MUFG Union Bank, National Association, by U.S. Bancorp and its subsidiary U.S. Bank...more
2021 is in the books…another eventful year on so many different fronts. For financial institutions, it was a year in flux, with various governmental appointments taking on new importance in the day-to-day life of banks. ...more
1/11/2022
/ Acquisition Agreements ,
Bank Merger Act ,
Banks ,
Competition ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employees ,
Financial Markets ,
Financial Services Industry ,
FinTech ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Interest Rates ,
Merger Agreements ,
Resignation
Bank mergers and acquisitions are on the rise, with the total number of bank M&As in 2021 surpassing that of 2020. With this increase, institutions should pay close attention to trends and new regulatory guidelines to prepare...more
9/15/2021
/ Acquisitions ,
Banking Sector ,
Banks ,
Best Practices ,
Continuing Legal Education ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Regulatory Agencies ,
Financial Services Industry ,
FinTech ,
Mergers ,
Professional Plaintiffs ,
Webinars
On July 9, 2021, President Biden signed an “Executive Order on Promoting Competition in the American Economy.” Included within the order is a sweeping recommendation that the Attorney General, in consultation with the heads...more
When Michael Hsu became acting U.S. Comptroller of the Currency earlier this month, banking industry experts predicted a shift away from the aggressive innovation pushed by fintech-friendly Brian Brooks, who resigned as the...more
What can we really say about 2020?—a year more unique than any year we can remember. For financial institutions, it was a year that started off with lots of hope and drifted into levels of significant concern as COVID-19 took...more
What Happened -
On September 1, 2020, the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division (the Division) announced that it is seeking public comment on whether revisions should be made to its 1995 Bank Merger Competitive...more
On August 3, 2020, the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council1 (FFIEC) issued a new joint statement of principles for banks to consider while working with their loan customers as the end of COVID-19 initial loan...more
8/25/2020
/ Board of Governors ,
Borrowers ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
FDIC ,
FFIEC ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Joint Statements ,
Loans ,
Risk Management
Following ongoing efforts to promote the expansiveness of the national bank charter, on July 22, 2020, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) issued an interpretive letter confirming the authority of a national...more
8/6/2020
/ Banking Regulators ,
Banking Sector ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Currency ,
Financial Markets ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
FinTech ,
Internal Controls ,
Interpretive Letters ,
National Bank Charters ,
OCC
On June 25, 2020, federal banking and securities regulators issued new regulations that will ease burdens on banks that involve themselves with certain types of investment funds. By creating new exclusions from the definition...more
7/2/2020
/ Banks ,
Community Reinvestment Act ,
Debt Instruments ,
Final Rules ,
Internal Revenue Code (IRC) ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
New Regulations ,
Qualified Opportunity Funds ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation ,
Volcker Rule
On May 20, the OCC issued its final rule intended to modernize and clarify the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA). The rule included the surprising footnote that the FDIC, which had joined as a partner in the Notice of Proposed...more
6/12/2020
/ Banks ,
Community Development ,
Community Reinvestment Act ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
FDIC ,
Federal Reserve ,
Final Rules ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Lending ,
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) ,
OCC ,
Rulemaking Process
The Federal Reserve Bank issued new guidance for the Main Street Lending Program (the Program) on May 27, 2020. In addition to an expanded set of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs), the Federal Reserve posted forms and...more
Aiming to encourage financial institutions to accommodate borrowers affected by COVID-19, federal and state regulators issued an interagency statement on loan modifications.
The statement recognized the “unique and...more
In new alerts, both state and federal regulators are cautioning the financial services industry about heightened cybersecurity risk amid a climate of increased geopolitical tensions....more
Washington Legislature Resumes Consideration of the Washington Privacy Act -
On January 14, a new version of the proposed Washington Privacy Act, Senate Bill 6281, was introduced in the state Senate. Similar to last year’s...more
Has the Secure and Fair Enforcement (SAFE) Banking Act hit a snag in Congress?
After making it farther than any prior legislation enabling financial services to be provided to legitimate marijuana businesses, the bill...more