Regulation

While the eventual emergence from lockdown will help ease the pressure on overworked compliance departments, there is still an obvious need for tools that will make the anti-money laundering process simpler and stress-free, says SmartSearch's Martin Cheek.

Acting Comptroller of the Currency Michael Hsu said he plans to prioritize "solving urgent problems and addressing pressing issues" until the Biden administration selects a permanent head of the agency.

The banks disclosed this week that they are under scrutiny for conduct that may have harmed consumers. The timing raises questions about whether the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau under President Biden is poised to bring more enforcement actions against large banks than it did under Trump-appointed Director Kathy Kraninger.

The visibility of automated transactions provides a clear view of the flow of transactions, says Hummingbird's Joe Robinson.

Critics say the regulation issued by the Office of the Comptroller Currency is a gift to predatory lenders. But the trade organizations warned lawmakers that invalidating it will make it difficult for the agency to create an improved framework in the future.

The probe is the latest example of the consumer bureau scrutinizing sales tactics at big banks following the Wells Fargo fake-accounts scandal. U.S. Bancorp said it is cooperating fully.

Wall Street firms have urged the Biden administration to ease the industry’s burden in complying with a flood of financial sanctions the U.S. has levied in recent years as a primary tool of foreign policy toward Russia, China, Iran and other adversaries.

Organizations representing banks and other financial services firms said implementing the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency's overhaul of the Community Reinvestment Act could be wasteful as regulators discuss a new interagency plan to modernize the law.

The Biden administration may finally be close to naming an acting comptroller of the currency. Whoever gets the interim job or is confirmed to run the agency over the longer term will have a lengthy to-do list, from Community Reinvestment Act reform to deciding the fate of divisive Trump-era rules.

The fintech reached an agreement with California regulators to disclose clearly that it’s not a bank and that its services are provided through bank partnerships.