Top Story Compliance Related

Yesterday, the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated ten current or former Venezuelan government officials pursuant to Executive Order 13692. These individuals are associated with undermining electoral processes, media censorship, or corruption in government-administered food programs in Venezuela. For details on the designated individuals, see our OFAC Update.

OFAC also announced its publication of two new Venezuela-related FAQs. The first pertains to the treatment of Petroleos de Venezuela, S.A. (PdVSA) subsidiaries under Executive Order 13808 ("Imposing Additional Sanctions With Respect to the Situation in Venezuela"). The second deals with U.S. person participation in meetings about restructuring outstanding Venezuelan and PdVSA debt that existed prior to the effective date of Executive Order 13808.

The CFPB announced yesterday it has filed a complaint in federal court against Freedom Debt Relief, the nation’s largest debt-settlement services provider, and its co-CEO Andrew Housser, for deceiving consumers. The CFPB alleges that Freedom charges consumers without settling their debts as promised, makes customers negotiate their own settlements, misleads them about its fees and the reach of its services, and fails to inform them of their rights to funds they deposited with the company.

Update, 7/9/2019: The CFPB announced 7/9/2019 that it had settled its suit against Freedom Debt Relief. See our Top Story.

The FTC has charged a Georgia-based debt collection business with tricking people into paying more than $3.4M for debts they did not owe, and a federal court has granted the FTC request to freeze the company’s assets.

• FTC Complaint

The OCC has issued Bulletin 2017-51 as guidance to provide transparency regarding its framework for evaluating certain types of licensing applications when an applicant bank has an overall Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) rating of “Needs to Improve” or “Substantial Noncompliance” or a less than satisfactory CRA rating in one or more geographic rating areas.

In remarks before The Clearing House Annual Conference in New York City, Acting Comptroller of the Currency Keith A. Noreika explored how the separation of banking and commerce evolved in the United States and called for a broader discussion of whether the separation continues to serve the best interest of the nation’s banking system and economy today.

The CFPB has published in the November 9, 2018, Federal Register three final rules increasing various threshold amounts in its regulations, applicable for calendar year 2018.

• The threshold amount at or below which a special appraisal is not required for a higher-priced mortgage loan under § 1026.35(c) of Regulation Z will increase to $26,000.
• The threshold amount for exempt consumer leases under Regulation M will increase to $55,800.
• The threshold amount for exempt consumer credit under Regulation Z that is neither secured by real property or personal property used or expected to be used as a consumer's principal dwelling nor a private education loan will also increase to $55,800.

The changes to the Official Interpretations of Regulations M and Z have been posted to BankersOnline's Regulations pages.

OFAC has published in the November 9, 2017, Federal Register a final rule amending the Cuban Assets Control Regulations, 31 C.F.R. part 515, to implement the national security presidential memorandum issued by the president in June. The changes are intended to channel economic activities away from the Cuban military, intelligence, and security services, while maintaining opportunities for Americans to engage in authorized travel to Cuba and support the private, small business sector on the island. OFAC also published a number of new and updated Frequently Asked Questions and a Fact Sheet pertaining to the regulatory amendment. OFAC's action was coordinated with the State and Commerce Departments, each of which announced actions related to Cuba.

Treasury announced Wednesday that Kenneth A. Blanco has been named Director of the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN). Mr. Blanco joins Treasury after serving as the Acting Assistant Attorney General of the Criminal Division at the United States Department of Justice. He has supervised many of the Criminal Division’s most significant national and international investigations into illicit finance, money laundering, Bank Secrecy Act, and sanctions violations, including investigations of global financial institutions and money services businesses. Much of his work is in the international banking and financial services area, working and collaborating with international partners in countries such as Mexico, Colombia and Panama, among others. Mr. Blanco is expected to transition to FinCEN Director from his current position at the Department of Justice in the next month.

The OCC has issued Bulletin 2017-50 announcing a revision of the “Subordinated Debt” booklet for the Comptroller’s Licensing Manual. The revised booklet incorporates updated requirements for issuing subordinated debt and including it as tier 2 capital, as well as revised sample notes for national banks and new sample notes for federal savings associations.

A Southern California-based auto dealership group will pay $1.4 million to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that it violated a 2014 administrative order prohibiting it from misrepresenting how much consumers could pay to finance or lease a vehicle.