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The Federal Reserve Board has issued SR 17-12 with timing expectations for the completion of safety-and-soundness examination and inspection reports for regional banking organizations.

The Treasury Department has released a report examining the current regulatory framework for the asset management and insurance industries and makes recommendations to ensure the regulatory framework is aligned with the Administration's Core Principles for financial regulation.

Mid America Bank & Trust Company, Dixon, Missouri, has been issued a consent order by the Federal Reserve Board directing that the bank pay approximately $5 million in restitution to nearly 21,000 consumers for deceptive practices in violation of section 5 of the FTC Act related to balance transfer credit cards issued by the bank through third parties. See our Penalty page for further information.

On Thursday, OFAC sanctioned seven individuals and three entities of the North Korean regime in response to the regime's ongoing and serious human rights abuses. Treasury took this action in conjunction with the State Department's "Report on Serious Human Rights Abuses and Censorship in North Korea," which has been submitted in accordance with the North Korea Sanctions and Policy Enhancement Act of 2016.

OFAC also deleted several entries from its list of Transnational Criminal Organizations designees. For the names and identifying information of the designated individuals and entities, see our OFAC Update.

FATF has announced it will join with the Financial Action Task Force of Latin America (GAFILAT) in Buenos Aires for six days of meetings beginning October 29, at which delegates will discuss counter-terrorist financing, financial inclusion, information sharing and measures to combat money laundering and the financing of terrorism and proliferation in Portugal and Mexico.

The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) imposed sanctions on eight individuals and one entity on Wednesday, targeting leaders, financiers, and facilitators of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria in Yemen (ISIS-Y) and al-Qa’ida in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP). This action was taken in partnership with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, as the co-chair of the recently established Terrorist Financing Targeting Center (TFTC), as well as all other TFTC member states: the Kingdom of Bahrain, the State of Kuwait, the Sultanate of Oman, the State of Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates.

As a result of Wednesday’s OFAC action, all property and interests in property of these persons subject to U.S. jurisdiction are blocked, and U.S. persons are generally prohibited from engaging in transactions with them. For identification details of the designees, see our OFAC Update.

The NCUA has announced an upcoming webinar, “What, Why and How: Credit Union Diversity,” scheduled for Thursday, November 2, beginning at 2 p.m. EDT.

Politico and other news outlets report that the Senate, with Vice President Pence voting to break a tie, voted to kill the CFPB's Arbitration Rule. The House of Representatives had passed a similar resolution in July under the Congressional Review Act to reject the Bureau's regulations. The resolution next goes to the White House for presidential approval, which is expected. The administration signaled its stance on the controversial regulations in a report issued Monday by the Treasury Department. When a regulation is overturned under the Congressional Review Act, it cannot go into effect and government agencies cannot issue any similar rule in the future, unless specifically authorized by subsequent legislation.

The Federal Trade Commission is providing additional guidance on how the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule applies to the collection of audio voice recordings by organizations covered by the law, which requires certain operators of commercial websites or online services to obtain parental consent before collecting personal information from children under 13. In a new policy enforcement statement, the FTC noted that the COPPA rule requires websites and online services directed at children to obtain verifiable parental consent before collecting an audio recording. The Commission, however, recognizes the value of using voice as a replacement for written words in performing search and other functions on Internet-connected devices. The FTC will not take an enforcement action against an operator for not obtaining parental consent before collecting the audio file with a child’s voice when it is collected solely as a replacement of written words, such as to perform a search or to fulfill a verbal instruction or request—as long as it is held for a brief time and only for that purpose.

FDIC FIL-54-2017, issued October 23, announced the regulator will co-host with the CFPB a webinar on November 15, 2017, from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. EST. The presentation will provide an overview of two financial education resources that can be helpful for people with disabilities—the FDIC's Money Smart and the CFPB's Your Money, Your Goals. The webinar will help familiarize participants with recent enhancements to Money Smart and Your Money, Your Goals that are designed to further promote economic inclusion of people with disabilities.