On 20 April 2022, the UK Financial Conduct Authority (“FCA”) published its Policy Statement PS 22/3 on disclosures regarding diversity and inclusion targets for the boards and executive committees of UK-listed companies. These measures reflect the growing importance of Environmental, Social and Governance (“ESG”) considerations, and have gained particular traction in the financial services sector,
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Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Issues Proposed Statement on Principles of Climate-Related Financial Risk Management for Large Financial Institutions
On March 30, 2022, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (“FDIC”) released a proposed policy statement related to sound management of exposures to climate-related financial risks (the “Proposal”). The Proposal is targeted at FDIC-supervised financial institutions with more than $100 billion in total consolidated assets (“covered banks”) and is intended to provide a high-level framework for…
Congress Repeals the OCC’s True Lender Rule
On June 30, President Biden signed into law a joint resolution to repeal the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency’s (OCC) so-called true lender rule. The rule was repealed under the Congressional Review Act (CRA), which allows Congress to repeal new federal regulations by passing a joint resolution of disapproval that must be later…
Second Circuit Rejects New York State Department of Financial Services’ Lawsuit Against the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency
By Corey Hall
On June 3, 2021, in Lacewell v. OCC, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit (the “Second Circuit”) dismissed the New York State Department of Financial Services’ (“DFS”) lawsuit against the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (“OCC”). DFS challenged the OCC’s decision to commence accepting applications for special-purpose national…
OCC to Reconsider June 2020 Community Reinvestment Act Final Rule
On Tuesday, May 18, 2021, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (“OCC”) announced that it will reconsider its June 5, 2020 final rule (“final rule”) overhauling its regulations implementing the Community Reinvestment Act (the “CRA”). The final rule, which applies only to national banks, federal savings associations, and insured federal branches (“OCC-regulated banks”),…
Federal Reserve Proposes Guidelines on Requests for Accounts and Payment Services at Federal Reserve Banks
On Wednesday, May 5, 2021, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (“Federal Reserve”) issued a notice requesting public comment on proposed guidelines articulating a series of principles to be used by Federal Reserve Banks in evaluating requests for Reserve Bank master accounts and payment services (the “Proposed Guidelines”). The Federal Reserve intends…
Treasury Secretary Yellen to Appoint Acting Comptroller of the Currency
On May 3, 2021, media outlets reported that Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen will appoint Michael Hsu to serve as Acting Comptroller of the Currency. Mr. Hsu currently serves as an Associate Director of the Division of Supervision and Regulation at the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, where he heads the Large Institution…
CFPB Rescinds Abusiveness Policy Statement
On March 11, 2021, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (the “CFPB” or “Bureau”) announced it was rescinding its “Statement of Policy Regarding Prohibition on Abusive Acts or Practices” (the “2020 Policy Statement”). The rescission is the latest in a series of actions under Acting Director David Uejio that demonstrate a recalibration in the Bureau’s regulatory…
CFPB Issues Interpretive Rule Clarifying that ECOA’s Prohibition of Discrimination Based on Sex Extends to Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity
On March 9, 2021, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB” or “Bureau”) issued an interpretive rule clarifying that the Equal Opportunity Credit Act (“ECOA”) and its implementing regulation, Regulation B, prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. The CFPB made clear that this prohibition also extends to “actual or perceived nonconformity with traditional…
The UK Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner’s January 2021 Report: Mitigating Modern Slavery in Financial Services
The UK Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner’s January 2021 report—entitled “Preventing Modern Slavery & Human Trafficking: An Agenda for Action across the Financial Services Sector” (the “report”)—has concluded that there is a significant lack of awareness of modern slavery risks within the financial services sector (the “sector”).
The Commissioner, Dame Sara Thornton, notes that “modern slavery…