On July 12, 2021, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Board), the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) proposed interagency guidance on how banks should manage third-party relationships, including partnerships with fintech companies. The proposal would offer a framework for banks when developing risk management practices for their third-party relationships, taking into account the level of risk, complexity, size of the organization, and the nature of the third-party relationship.
Continue Reading Bank Regulators Propose Interagency Guidance on Fintech Partnerships
Banking and Finance
Mobile Banking Startup Varo Money Becomes First Fintech Company Granted a National Bank Charter
By Carolee Anne Hoover on
On July 31, 2020, Varo Money Inc. announced that it was granted a national bank charter by the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC). The charter will allow Varo, a mobile banking fintech, to launch a national bank and offer a range of financial services and products that are backed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp (FDIC).
The announcement marks a historic moment for fintech companies, as Varo will become the first fintech company to obtain a national bank charter with the OCC.
The Role of Fintech Lenders in the Paycheck Protection Program
The latest regulations coupled with the Treasury Department guidance have left many scratching their heads as to whether fintech companies will be able to provide small business loans under the recently enacted Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), a crucial part of the U.S. legislature’s latest attempts to address the serious economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. …
Square Obtains FDIC Charter To Operate Its Own Bank As An Industrial Loan Company
By Carolee Anne Hoover, Anthony Le & Molly M. White on
On March 18, 2020, Square Inc., became the first U.S. fintech company to receive conditional approval of an Industrial Loan Company (“ILC”) charter from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (“FDIC”), to pair with its prior charter approval on March 17, 2020 from the Utah Department of Financial Institutions. It became the first new de novo…