The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) – together, the agencies – recently released proposed guidance on third-party risk management practices for banking organizations and credit unions. If finalized, the proposal would rescind and replace the 2023 Interagency Guidance on Third-Party Relationships: Risk …
California Law Strengthens Supervision of Mortgage Lenders for Fair Lending Compliance
California Gov. Gavin Newson recently signed the California Fair Lending Examination Act into law. The legislation requires the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) to periodically examine banks, credit unions, and residential mortgage lenders and servicer licensees for compliance with fair lending laws. The act takes effect on January 1, 2027. The act is a recent example of states expanding their regulatory authority …
FDIC, OCC Redefine ‘Unsafe or Unsound Practices’ and Raise Bar for MRAs
On September 1, 2026, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) published in the Federal Register a joint final rule that defines an “unsafe or unsound practice” under Section 8 of the Federal Deposit Insurance Act and modifies the agencies’ standards for issuing matters requiring attention (MRAs). The rule follows a notice of proposed rulemaking published …
HUD Joins National Fraud Detection Center
On August 25, 2026, the Department of Housing and Urban Development Office of Inspector General (HUD OIG), announced a partnership with the Department of Justice (DOJ) through the launch of the National Fraud Detection Center (NFDC). The NFDC is a prosecutor-led, multi-agency effort intended to strengthen coordination among federal law enforcement, offices of inspector general and state partners in detecting and dismantling fraud schemes targeting …
FTC Is Latest Federal Agency to End Disparate Impact Claims
On August 7, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced in a policy statement that it will no longer pursue claims based on disparate impact or a theory of “unfair discrimination.” In the press release announcing the statement, the agency said it lacks the statutory authority to bring disparate impact claims under either the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA) or Section 5 of the FTC Act, …
Agencies Issue Guidance on Lending to Persons Not Authorized to Work in US
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) recently jointly issued guidance reminding supervised financial institutions of their existing credit risk management obligations to borrowers who are not legally authorized to work in the United States (non-work-authorized borrowers). The guidance follows a recent White House executive order directing financial regulators to address risks “posed …
OCC Clarifies NBA Preemption: State Money Transmitter Licenses Not Required for National Banks
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) issued an interpretive letter confirming that the National Bank Act (NBA) preempts state money transmitter licensing requirements as applied to national banks, regardless of whether the bank satisfies a state law exemption from the licensing requirement. The letter affirms settled doctrine in restating the OCC’s position that states are not permitted to require national banks to …
CFPB Rescinds Advisory Opinion on Special Purpose Credit Programs
On June 17, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) rescinded its 2020 advisory opinion “Equal Credit Opportunity (Regulation B); Special Purpose Credit Program,” which addressed regulatory uncertainty regarding the application of the Equal Credit Opportunity Act’s Regulation B to certain aspects of special purpose credit programs (SPCPs) “designed by for-profit organizations to meet special social needs.” The advisory opinion had clarified the content a for-profit …
Agencies Strip Reputation Risk From Interagency Supervisory Guidance
Recently, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) and Federal Reserve Board (Federal Reserve) jointly updated 15 supervisory interagency guidance documents by removing references to “reputation risk.” The updated guidance follows other agency actions to remove “reputation risk” from supervisory guidance and examinations and is part of a broader federal effort to eliminate so-called politicized or unlawful debanking. …
White House Issues Executive Orders Targeting Financial System Integrity, Fintech Innovation
On May 19, 2026, President Donald Trump signed an executive order titled, “Restoring Integrity to America’s Financial System.” The order is designed to mitigate risks to the financial system “posed by the extension of credit or financial services to the inadmissible and removable alien population.” The order stops short of requiring firms to verify each customer’s citizenship status – a controversial move that was reportedly …