All in Regulatory Update

On May 16, 2018 - just five days after the new customer due diligence (CDD) rules requiring the identification and verification of ultimate beneficial owners (UBOs) went into effect - FinCEN issued a temporary ruling that delays parts of the new requirements for financial institutions.  FinCEN’s ruling, known as FIN-2018-R002, provides a 90-day limited exception for financial institutions in regards to products and services that automatically rollover or renew, such as loan accounts and certificates of deposit (CDs), that were established before the May 11, 2018 deadline for the new rules.

On May 11, 2018, the FFIEC released new examination procedures for the recent “Customer Due Diligence Requirements for Financial Institutions.”  These procedures are intended to be utilized by each regulatory agency - meaning they apply to all banks, savings and loans, savings associations, and credit unions - and will be a part of a financial institution’s BSA examination.  These new procedures replace the prior procedures and financial institutions should expect examiners to utilize them in the near future.

On April 26, 2018, the CFPB released a second set of TRID amendments which address when mortgage lenders with a valid reason may pass on increased closing costs to consumers and disclose them on a Closing Disclosure instead of a Loan Estimate. “Specifically, a timing restriction on when the creditor may use a Closing Disclosure to communicate closing cost increases to the consumer could prevent a creditor from charging the consumer for those cost increases despite a valid reason for doing so, such as a changed circumstance or borrower request. This article takes an in-depth look at the new rules and how they apply to community banks and credit unions.

Both the FDIC and the OCC recently released their list of financial institutions that were evaluated for the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA), as well as the corresponding CRA ratings.  By law, the agencies are required to regularly publish this data and it is always insightful as to what examiners might be looking for when it comes to CRA.  In fact, I strongly believe that one of the best ways to understand CRA is to read the performance evaluations of other financial institutions, specifically those that are...

While this topic is not usually considered to be in the realm of “compliance,” we wanted to share with you a regulatory update that was just issued and applies to the IT department of each financial institution so that you can pass this information to the appropriate person in your organization. Yesterday, the FFIEC issued a statement on “Cyber Insurance and Its Potential Role in Risk Management Programs.”  This statement was...

As the new CDD FAQs on the ultimate beneficial ownership (UBO) rules were released last week, there have been quite a few questions relating to the rules that require compliance by May 11, 2018.  One of those questions relates to non-profit organizations that are not incorporated or registered with the secretary of state. This article will explore how to complete the UBO information for both incorporated nonprofits as well as nonprofits which are unincorporated associations.

For several months now, there have been rumors about a new set of frequently asked questions (FAQs) from FinCEN regarding the new CDD/UBO rules which require compliance by May 11, 2018.  Well, the mysterious FAQs are finally here.  Earlier today, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) released a set of updated FAQs regarding the new BSA rules that will be effective on May 11, 2018.  These FAQs relate to the new customer due diligence requirements for ultimate beneficial owners on accounts for legal entity customers. 

For the first time since the appraisal threshold for commercial real estate transactions was originally established 24 years ago, the threshold requiring an appraisal by a certified or licensed appraiser has been increased.  On April 2, 2018, the OCC, FDIC, and Federal Reserve jointly released guidance that raises the threshold for “commercial real estate transactions” requiring an appraisal.  This rule really doesn’t come as a surprise as it follows the July 2017 proposal to make similar changes. One of the main differences from the proposed rule, however, is that the final rule...