Regulatory Developments -
CFPB Issues Guidance on Investigation Practices by Consumer Reporting Agencies -
On November 10, the CFPB issued a Consumer Financial Protection Circular (Circular) affirming that consumer...more
In This Issue. In a move that gives him the opportunity to put his stamp on housing policy and the potential overhaul of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, President Biden replaced the Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency...more
6/25/2021
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Bank Secrecy Act ,
Banking Sector ,
Biden Administration ,
BSA/AML ,
Comment Period ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Creditors ,
Debit Cards ,
Durbin Amendment Rules ,
Fannie Mae ,
Federal Reserve ,
FFIEC ,
FHFA ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Freddie Mac ,
Holidays ,
Inflation Adjustments ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
Lenders ,
Mortgages ,
Popular ,
Public Comment ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
TILA-RESPA Integrated Disclosure Rule (TRID) ,
Truth in Lending Act (TILA)
In This Issue. The Chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the SEC), Gary Gensler, issued a statement on the application of the proxy rules to proxy voting advice directed to the SEC staff to consider whether...more
6/11/2021
/ 10b5-1 Plans ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Escrow Accounts ,
Freddie Mac ,
Insider Trading ,
Investment Property ,
Mortgages ,
Proxy Advisory Firms ,
Proxy Voting ,
Proxy Voting Guidelines ,
Regulation X ,
Second Homes ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
In This Issue. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) released updated COVID-19 vaccine guidelines for employers. Meanwhile, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Federal Reserve) remained busy...more
6/4/2021
/ Amended Regulation ,
Banking Sector ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Currency ,
EEO ,
Employment Policies ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Federal Reserve ,
Final Rules ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Fund Transfers ,
Health and Safety ,
Interest Rates ,
Liquidity Management ,
Proposed Rules ,
Public Comment ,
Regulation D ,
Secondary Market Corporate Credit Facility (SMCCF) ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
In This Issue. President Biden signed an executive order addressing climate-related financial risks; the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) finalized a rule applicable to national banks and federal savings...more
5/27/2021
/ Banking Sector ,
Biden Administration ,
Call Reports ,
Climate Change ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Executive Orders ,
FDIC ,
Federal Insurance Office ,
Federal Reserve ,
Federal Savings Associations ,
Final Rules ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
FSOC ,
Governor Baker ,
Investment Funds ,
Masks ,
OCC ,
Proxy Voting ,
Re-Opening Guidelines ,
Secretary of the Treasury
In This Issue. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) announced that it will reconsider its controversial June 2020 final rule revising its Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) rules, and published its Semiannual...more
5/21/2021
/ Artificial Intelligence ,
Banking Sector ,
Comment Period ,
Community Reinvestment Act ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Depository Institutions ,
Digital Assets ,
FDIC ,
Federal Savings Associations ,
Final Rules ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Lenders ,
OCC ,
Public Comment ,
Request For Information ,
Risk Management ,
TILA-RESPA Integrated Disclosure Rule (TRID)
In this Issue. The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Federal Reserve) invited public comment on proposed changes to Regulation II, better known as the Durbin Amendment, regarding network availability for...more
5/14/2021
/ Banking Sector ,
Bitcoin ,
Community Banks ,
Comptroller ,
Congressional Review Act ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Debit Cards ,
Digital Assets ,
Division of Investment Management ,
Durbin Amendment Rules ,
FDIC ,
Federal Reserve ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Investment Company Act of 1940 ,
Investment Management ,
Investors ,
Lenders ,
Mutual Funds ,
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) ,
OCC ,
Public Comment ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
True Lender ,
U.S. Treasury
In This Issue. The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Federal Reserve), in response to an increased number of inquiries and access requests from companies with fintech and other narrow purpose charters, invited...more
5/7/2021
/ Acquisitions ,
AMG Capital Management LLC v FTC ,
Anti-Money Laundering ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Banking Sector ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Cash Transactions ,
Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Depository Institutions ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Enforcement Authority ,
Federal Reserve ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Financial Institutions ,
FinCEN ,
FinTech ,
FTC Act ,
FTCA Section 13(b) ,
Geographic Targeting Order ,
Injunctive Relief ,
Lenders ,
Loan Applications ,
Mergers ,
Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) ,
Payment Services Directive ,
Permanent Injunctions ,
Pre-Dispute Arbitration ,
Private Placements ,
Public Comment ,
Real Estate Transactions ,
Residential Real Estate Market ,
SBA ,
SCOTUS ,
Title Insurance ,
Unregistered Securities
In This Issue. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) granted preliminary conditional approval to a third cryptocurrency firm chartering a national trust bank; the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB)...more
5/4/2021
/ American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 ,
Banking Sector ,
Closed-End Funds ,
COBRA ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Depository Institutions ,
Final Rules ,
Income Taxes ,
Investment Funds ,
Investors ,
Mortgages ,
National Bank Charters ,
NYSE ,
OCC ,
Private Funds ,
Proposed Amendments ,
Proposed Rules ,
Public Comment ,
Qualified Mortgage Rule
In This Issue. The Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) Division of Investment Management provided notice that it would terminate or withdraw certain temporary relief provided in response to the COVID-19 pandemic; the...more
5/3/2021
/ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Current Expected Credit Losses (CECL) ,
Debt Collection ,
Debtors ,
Division of Investment Management ,
Eviction ,
Interim Final Rules (IFR) ,
Moratorium ,
OCC ,
Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) ,
Relief Measures ,
SBA ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Small Business ,
Tenants ,
Written Notice
On April 16, 2021, the staff of the SEC Division of Trading and Markets reminded broker-dealers borrowing fully paid and excess margin securities from their customers (FPL programs) that they are obligated to comply with...more
In This Issue. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Division of Examinations issued a Risk Alert raising concerns about misleading Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) disclosures by investment firms; the...more
4/20/2021
/ Advertising ,
Anti-Money Laundering ,
Bank Secrecy Act ,
Banking Sector ,
BSA/AML ,
Comment Period ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Fannie Mae ,
FDIC ,
Federal Reserve ,
Freddie Mac ,
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) ,
Public Comment ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Risk Alert ,
Risk Management ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Supervisory Guidance
In This Issue. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) continued to be active under its new leadership this week, warning mortgage servicers to prepare now for an anticipated surge of homeowners needing assistance...more
4/8/2021
/ Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) ,
ATDS ,
Auto-Dialed Calls ,
Beneficial Owner ,
Borrowers ,
Comment Period ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Transparency Act ,
Debt Collection ,
Facebook ,
Facebook Inc v Duguid ,
FDIC ,
FinCEN ,
Foreclosure ,
Homeowners ,
Loss Mitigation ,
Mortgage Servicers ,
Mortgage Servicing Rules ,
Mortgages ,
Proposed Rules ,
Public Comment ,
Random or Sequential Number Generator ,
Regulation X ,
Robocalling ,
SCOTUS ,
TCPA
In This Issue. President Biden signed a bill extending the Small Business Administration’s (SBA) Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) through May 31, 2021; the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced the rescission...more
4/2/2021
/ Artificial Intelligence ,
Automotive Industry ,
Biden Administration ,
Capital Requirements ,
Causation ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Dividends ,
Federal Reserve ,
Final Rules ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Regulatory Agencies ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Ford Motor ,
Ford Motor Co. v Bandemer ,
Ford Motor Co. v Montana Eighth Judicial District Court ,
Jurisdiction ,
Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) ,
Payday Lending Rule ,
Personal Jurisdiction ,
Policy Statement ,
SBA ,
SCOTUS ,
Share Buybacks ,
Small Dollar Lenders ,
Stress Tests ,
Supervisory Guidance
On March 15, 2021, ISDA published the ISDA 2021 Security-Based Swaps (SBS) Top-Up Protocol (the SBS Top-Up Protocol). The SBS Top-Up Protocol enables SBS dealers (SBSDs) and other market participants to comply with certain...more
In early March, the New York State Department of Financial Services (“NYDFS”) announced a consent order that required Maine-based mortgage servicer Residential Mortgage Services, Inc. (“Residential”) to pay a $1.5 million...more
3/23/2021
/ Banking Sector ,
Business E-Mail Compromise (BEC) ,
Consent Order ,
Covered Entities ,
Cyber Incident Reporting ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Data Security ,
Failure to Report ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Mortgage Servicers ,
Non-Public Information ,
NYDFS ,
Personally Identifiable Information ,
Sensitive Personal Information
On March 17, 2021, Acting CFTC Chairman Rostin Behnam announced that the derivatives regulator had established a new interdivisional group called the Climate Risk Unit or the “CRU” to focus on the derivatives markets’ role in...more
On March 9, 2021, SEC Commissioner Caroline Crenshaw indicated that the SEC should take a tougher stance regarding corporate wrongdoers. In a virtual conference before the Council of Institutional Investors, Crenshaw conveyed...more
On March 11, 2021, the staff of the SEC’s Division of Investment Management issued a statement addressing cross trading among affiliated registered funds and soliciting feedback in this area. The staff issued the statement in...more
The Department of Labor (DOL) recently announced that it will not enforce its own rule on investment duties under ERISA. The rule makes it more difficult for investment fiduciaries to consider environmental, social,...more
A flurry of recent climate-related announcements from the SEC forecasts an upcoming policy battle at the agency. Acting Chair Allison Herren Lee has signaled that “ESG” will clearly be in focus across the SEC’s various...more
In this Issue. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) delayed publication of the “fair access” rule finalized late in the Trump Administration; the OCC also announced the availability of the 2021 list of bank...more
2/9/2021
/ Banking Sector ,
Banks ,
California Consumer Financial Protection Law (CCFPL) ,
Community Reinvestment Act ,
Debt Collection ,
Debtors ,
Delays ,
Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) ,
Fair Access to Credit ,
FDIC ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
FinCEN ,
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) ,
OCC ,
Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) ,
Proposed Rules ,
SBA ,
Securities Regulation ,
Trump Administration ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices
In this Issue. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) issued guidance on its authority to charter limited purpose trust companies, raising the possibility that a limited purpose national bank could be organized...more
1/15/2021
/ Banking Sector ,
Capital Rules ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Debt Instruments ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Employee Stock Purchase Plans ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Filing Deadlines ,
Incentive Stock Options ,
Interpretive Letters ,
MD&A Statements ,
New Guidance ,
OCC ,
Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) ,
SBA ,
TCPA ,
Terms of Service ,
U.S. Treasury
In the News. Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) published its proxy voting guidelines updates for 2021, which include new and updated voting recommendations on federal forum and exclusive forum provisions in companies’...more
11/19/2020
/ Affordable Housing ,
Amended Regulation ,
Banking Sector ,
Board of Directors ,
Borrowers ,
Consent Order ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Act (CFPA) ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Governance ,
Debt Collection ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Diversity ,
E-Signatures ,
EDGAR ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Exclusive Forum ,
Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) ,
Fannie Mae ,
FHFA ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Final Rules ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Freddie Mac ,
Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) ,
Interpretive Letters ,
Investment Management ,
Lenders ,
Loan Origination Funds ,
MNPI ,
Mortgages ,
Multi-Family Housing ,
No-Action Letters ,
Non-Public Information ,
OCC ,
Proxy Voting ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
In the News. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) granted a no-action letter (NAL) regarding a proposed small-dollar credit product and sought comment on the CFPB’s plan to study how consumers locate, comprehend...more
11/12/2020
/ Banking Sector ,
Banks ,
Blockchain ,
Board of Directors ,
Consumer Financial Protection Act (CFPA) ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Debt Settlement Services ,
Disclosure ,
Diversity ,
Enforcement Actions ,
FDCPA ,
FDIC ,
Federal Bank Regulatory Agencies ,
Federal Reserve ,
Final Rules ,
Financial Regulatory Agencies ,
Financial Services Industry ,
FinCEN ,
Geographic Targeting Order ,
Interest Rates ,
Joint Statements ,
Libor ,
Loans ,
New Guidance ,
New Rules ,
No-Action Letters ,
OCC ,
Payday Loans ,
PayPal ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Real Estate Transactions ,
Shareholders ,
Small Dollar Lenders ,
Student Loans ,
Telemarketing Sales Rule ,
Title Insurance