Bank Regulatory News
April 2000

April 27, 2000 - The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) today released a list of orders of administrative enforcement actions taken against banks and individuals in March. No administrative hearings are scheduled for May.

April 27, 2000 - Agencies Announce Working Group On Public Disclosure
The Federal Reserve Board, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) today announced that the Board has established a private-sector working group to develop options for improving the public disclosure of financial information by banking and securities organizations. The OCC and the SEC will participate with the Board in support of the effort.

April 26, 2000 - OTS Grants Thrift Charter to New Internet Bank
WASHINGTON, D.C., April 26, 2000 - The Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS) has granted a federal thrift charter to Bank of Internet USA (BOI), which will operate both as a traditional thrift institution and as a full-service Internet operation.

April 26, 2000 - The Federal Reserve Board today announced that it has reissued the brochure, A Guide to Business Credit for Women, Minorities, and Small Businesses.

April 26, 2000 - The Federal Reserve Board today announced that it has issued a revision of its brochure, the Consumer Handbook to Credit Protection Laws. The new edition, the thirteenth, reflects recent changes in law and regulation.

April 26, 2000 - OCC RELEASES CRA EVALUATIONS FOR 46 NATIONAL BANKS
WASHINGTON, DC -- The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) today released a list of Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) performance evaluations that became public during the period of March 15 through April 14. The list contains only national banks and insured federal branches of foreign banks that have received ratings. The possible ratings are outstanding, satisfactory, needs to improve, and substantial noncompliance.

April 25, 2000 - Some political pundits predicted that implementation of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) in 1994 would drive a huge number of manufacturing jobs out of the United States. An analysis of export data by an economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, however, reveals that 46 states actually experienced increases in their GDP-adjusted manufacturing exports to Mexico and Canada.  Additional Information

April 25, 2000 - Common BSA Compliance Deficiencies
Under 12 CFR 21.21, banks must have adequate internal controls, independent testing, responsible personnel, and training to comply with the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA), including suspicious activity reporting. Failure to establish and maintain adequate systems and controls can expose banks to supervisory and enforcement actions as well as significant legal and reputation risks.

April 24, 2000 - The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) on Tuesday, April 25, will hold a roundtable discussion on deposit insurance. The event will be made available at 9:00 a.m. Eastern Time the following day for viewing via the Internet. The roundtable will consist of three sessions--pricing deposit insurance, maintaining the deposit insurance funds, and determining the right level of deposit insurance coverage. Participants will include the FDIC staff, banking and financial industry trade groups, consumer groups and individuals. The event on April 25 will begin at 9:30 a.m. and run approximately two-and-one-half hours.

April 21, 2000 - The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System has issued a final rule revising the Official Staff Commentary to Regulation Z, Truth in Lending (12 CFR 226). The final rule addresses short-term cash advances commonly called “payday loans” and clarifies that these loans, and similar transactions where there is an agreement to defer payment of debt, constitutes credit for purposes of the Truth in Lending Act.  Attachment

April 20, 2000 - General Motors Approved By OTS To Organize A Federal Thrift
WASHINGTON, D.C., April 20, 2000 – The Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS) has granted a thrift charter to General Motors Corporation (GM), Detroit. The new thrift, GMAC Bank, which will be located in Wilmington, Del., will be a full service banking operation. OTS also approved GM’s request to establish the GMAC Mortgage Corporation as an operating subsidiary of the thrift.

April 19, 2000 - OTS, NAIC Reach Historic Agreement to Share Financial, Operational Data
WASHINGTON, D.C., April 19, 2000 – The Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS) and the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) have completed a formal and historic model information sharing agreement, OTS announced today. The agreement incorporates non-public information on financial solvency, insurance activities and thrift activities, as well as consumer complaints, of the companies and thrift institutions NAIC members and OTS supervise.

April 17, 2000 - Responsible Sub-Prime Lending Part of Solution to Predatory Practices: Seidman Says
SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., April 17, 2000 – Asserting there is a difference between sub-prime and predatory lending, Director Ellen Seidman of the Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS) said today, responsible sub-prime lending “in my mind, is the most effective antidote” to predatory lending.

April 17, 2000 - NCUA Chairman Norman E. D’Amours has urged his fellow financial institution regulators to place equal emphasis on seeking to curb non-mortgage as well as mortgage related predatory lending.

April 14, 2000 - Anna Alvarez Boyd Named Acting Deputy Comptroller for Community Affairs
WASHINGTON -- Anna Alvarez Boyd will become acting Deputy Comptroller for Community Affairs following the departure May 5 of Jeanne K. Engel, who will become vice president for policy at the National Association of Home Builders.

April 13, 2000 - OTS Releases March National CRA Ratings
WASHINGTON, D.C., April 13, 2000 -- The Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS) today issued savings associations' Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) performance evaluation ratings that became available in March 2000.

April 11, 2000 - The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (the Board) has raised the asset size exemption threshold to $30 million for depository institutions that are required to report data under the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA). The previous exemption level was $29 million.  Attachment

April 10, 2000 - The National Credit Union Administration Board announced today that it has issued prohibition orders against two former credit union officials.

April 10, 2000 - FFIEC Lessons Learned From the Year 2000 Project
The Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC) has issued the attached statement, "Lessons Learned From the Year 2000 Project." Financial institutions are encouraged to conduct their own review of lessons learned from the Year 2000 effort, and apply them to future technology risk-management and project-management processes.

April 5, 2000 - The FDIC today issued its monthly list of state nonmember banks recently evaluated for compliance with the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA). The list covers evaluation ratings that the FDIC assigned to institutions in January 2000.

April 4, 2000 - OTS Begins Formal Inquiry Into Subprime Lending Practices
WASHINGTON, D.C., April 4, 2000 –The Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS) announced today it has begun a full-scale review of its mortgage lending regulations to determine how they impact the subprime market and issued an official appeal to the public for comment on how it should approach the issue. OTS is the first federal banking agency to formally address rising concern over predatory lending.

April 3, 2000 - The Federal Reserve Board today announced its approval of the application of Valley View Bancshares, Inc., Overland Park, Kansas, to acquire Bank of Lee's Summit, Lee's Summit, Missouri.

April 3, 2000 - OTS Approves Thrift Charter for Donegal Mutual Insurance
WASHINGTON, D.C., April, 2000 -- The Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS) has granted a federal thrift charter to Donegal Mutual Insurance Company to organize a the savings institution, to be known as Donegal Federal Savings Bank. It will be located in Marietta, Pa., home of the insurance company.