WASHINGTON — Charles Schwab Corp. is trying to simplify its regulatory oversight by converting its three-year-old banking unit into a federal thrift.
Charles Schwab Bank, a subsidiary of the brokerage company, holds $11.5 billion of assets and $10.7 billion of deposits. The company filed an application earlier this week with the Office of Thrift Supervision to convert its national bank charter, which is supervised by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, into a federal thrift charter. Both the OTS and the OCC are independent divisions of the Treasury Department.
"What this represents is the ongoing effort on the part of our company to simplify our operations," Charles Schwab spokesman Glen Mathison said.
Charles Schwab Bank is based in Reno, Nev. It offers checking accounts, originates loans and supports the company's brokerage operations.
