The Georgia Merchant Acquirer Limited Purpose Bank (MALPB) offers a compelling alternative to traditional sponsor bank models by enabling payment processors to directly access card networks like Visa and Mastercard without...more
Industrial banks or industrial loan companies (ILCs)—FDIC-insured banks chartered by certain states, notably Utah—have long been a niche component of the U.S. financial system. These institutions may be owned by commercial...more
This second installment in a series of insights on bank charter considerations describes the consequences of operating through an insured depository institution charter, including capital requirements, supervision and...more
The Trump Administration has made clear that it intends to lessen the barriers to bank merger and acquisition activity. As we previously noted, the FDIC has moved to lower some of the impediments to mergers under its 2024...more
Federal banking agencies under a second Trump Administration are expected to be more receptive to industry proposals for bank mergers, acquisitions, and related transactions. We've previously explored national trust banks and...more
On July 30, the FDIC released an NPRM to regulate parent companies of industrial banks and industrial loan companies (the industrial entities). The proposed rule would revise the definition of “Covered Company” to include...more
CFPB Announces Intention to Expand Enforcement Against Unfair Discrimination - The CFPB has published an updated examination manual for evaluating unfair, deceptive, and abusive acts and practices (“UDAAPs”), which explains...more
On July 9, 2021, President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. signed an executive order "on promoting competition in the American economy" (the "Order"). The White House characterized the Order as an effort to reduce the trend of...more
There has been recent speculation that banks are about to enter the cryptocurrency markets. This makes a lot of commercial sense: There clearly is customer demand for banks to offer services similar to those they offer for...more
Court Rules that Debt Collector Violated FDCPA with Communication to Dunning Vendor - A federal appellate court has recently ruled that a debt collector violated certain privacy requirements under the federal Fair Debt...more
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) approved on Dec. 15, 2020, a final rule that clarifies how it intends to treat applications to insure an industrial bank or industrial loan company (each, an ILC) or to merge...more
In the News. The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Federal Reserve) proposed rules to modernize the regulations that implement the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA); the Conference of State Bank Supervisors...more
On July 31, 2020, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) approved the national bank charter application of Varo Bank, N.A., a wholly-owned subsidiary of fintech Varo Money, Inc. The approved application is for a...more
As we reported, Acting Comptroller of the Currency Brian Brooks has previewed the OCC’s plans to introduce another special purpose national bank charter that would give payment companies a nationwide servicing platform and...more
The New York Department of Financial Services (DFS) has filed its opening brief with the Second Circuit in the OCC’s appeal from the district court’s final judgment in DFS’s lawsuit challenging the OCC’s issuance of special...more
On June 25, 2020, the Federal Reserve Board, the OCC, the FDIC, the SEC and the CFTC (collectively, the "Agencies") adopted amendments (the "Amendments") to the regulations implementing section 13 of the Bank Holding Company...more
On March 17, the FDIC released for public comment a proposed rule for industrial banks and industrial loan companies (together, “ILCs”) and their parent companies and signaled that it is considering two pending ILC...more
Federal Reserve Revises Framework for Determining Control of a Banking Organization The Federal Reserve has adopted a final rule to simplify and clarify its regulations for determining control of a banking organization for...more
On January 30, 2020, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (the “Federal Reserve”) approved a final rule (the “Final Rule”) revising the regulations related to the determination of “control” of banks under the...more
On January 30, 2020, five federal agencies (the “Agencies”) proposed amendments to the rules implementing section 13 of the Bank Holding Company Act of 1956 (the “Volcker Rule”) related to the prohibition on investing,...more
On January 30, 2020, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity...more
In This Issue. Federal financial regulators brought January to an impactful conclusion last week. On the morning of January 30, five federal financial regulators issued a proposed rule that would fundamentally modify the...more
In a press release, the organizers of Varo Bank, N.A. announced they have been granted preliminary approval by the OCC of their application to form a de novo national bank, which they claim “put[s] Varo on track to become the...more
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency announced on July 31 that it will begin accepting applications for special purpose national bank charters from nondepository financial technology companies (fintechs) that are...more
On July 31, 2018 the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) announced that, effective immediately, it is now accepting national bank charter applications from nondepository financial technology (fintech) companies...more