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The CFBB has announced that approximately 14,000 African-American and Hispanic borrowers who were unlawfully charged higher interest or higher broker fees on mortgage loans with Provident Funding Associates were mailed checks compensating them for their harm. The total of those payments is about $9 million. In May 2015, the CFPB and the Department of Justice filed a complaint alleging that Provident Provident charged approximately 14,000 African-American and Hispanic borrowers more on mortgage loans than similarly situated non-Hispanic white borrowers between 2006 and 2011.

In its announcement, the Bureau warned about scams that could develop around the settlement payments.

The White House announced yesterday afternoon that the president has signed H.J.Res. 111, overturning the CFPB's Arbitration Rule, into law. The Rule will now not take effect and a similar rule cannot be promulgated without specific authorizing legislation.

Acting Comptroller of the Currency Keith Noreika issued a statement following the president’s signing of the resolution.

The annual NMLS renewal period for 2018 began on November 1, 2017, and ends Sunday, December 31, 2017. Individuals and businesses are encouraged to renew their licenses or registrations early, so there is no impact to their business in 2018. More information can be found on the NMLS Annual Renewal Information webpage.

The Federal Reserve Board has released the statement issued by the Federal Open Market Committee following its November 1 meeting.

The CRA ratings received by eighteen national banks and federal savings associations in October have been released by the OCC. There were two outstanding and 16 satisfactory ratings. Both outstanding ratings were earned by small banks, one in Kansas and the other in Wyoming.

Teh Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has released a report on auto loans that found a sharp increase in riskier longer-tem loans. The Bureau's press release said that 42 percent of auto loans made in the past year were for terms of six years or longer up from 26 percent in 2009, while five-year loans declined over the same period.

In connection with its publication of amended Global Terrorism Sanctions regulations, OFAC has posted an update adding the SDGT sanctions tag to 41 existing SDN listings. See our OFAC Update for identification details.

FinCEN has issued Advisory FIN-2017-A007 to warn financial institutions about the potential for fraudulent transactions in the wake of disasters, including recent hurricanes and wildfires. The advisory includes descriptions of potential disaster-related frauds, including benefits fraud, charities fraud and cyber-related fraud. FinCEN also requested that any financial institution submitting a suspicious activity report of fraud that is disaster-related include the keyword "Disaster-related Fraud" in both the narrative and in field 31z (Fraud-Other) of the report.

OFAC has issued amended Ukraine- /Russia-Related Directive 4 and published new related FAQs. These actions were taken under Title II of the Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA). OFAC also published FAQs related to key provisions of CAATSA.

OCC Bulletin 2017-48, issued yesterday, announces updates of the OCC's policies and procedures regarding bank enforcement actions and related matters, which are changing effective on December 1, 2017. The updates are reflected in the “Bank Supervision Process,” “Community Bank Supervision,” “Federal Branches and Agencies Supervision,” and “Large Bank Supervision” booklets of the Comptroller’s Handbook. Bulletin 2017-49 was also issued, announcing the revision of the “Subsidiaries and Equity Investments” booklet.

The NCUA has announced it issued one prohibition order and four notices of prohibition in October 2017. Five individuals are prohibited from participating in the affairs of any federally insured financial institution.

• a former employee or institution-affiliated party of Progressions Credit Union in Spokane, Washington
• a former employee of Enterprise Credit Union in Brookfield, Wisconsin
• a former employee of Security Service Federal Credit Union in San Antonio, Texas
• a former employee of Xcel Federal Credit Union in Bloomfield, New Jersey
• a former employee of Singing River Federal Credit Union in Moss Point, Mississippi

​The Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has announced it is amending the Global Terrorism Sanctions Regulations, 31 C.F.R. part 594 (GTSR), to apply the blocking provisions of the GTSR to foreign persons that have been identified by OFAC as officials, agents, or affiliates of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). This amendment takes effect upon publication in the Federal Register on Tuesday, October 31, 2017.

Federal Reserve Bank Services has announced it will launch a redesigned website, new logo and new FED360° publication. The new website will feature a new user interface, with a mobile friendly design, reorganized content and easier access. FedFocus and FedFlash will be combined into a new FED360° publication, to be issued twice monthly.

The OCC, FRB, and the FDIC have published a proposed rule that would simplify certain aspects of the agencies' capital rule at 12 CFR Parts 3, 217 and 324. The majority of the proposed simplifications would apply solely to banking organizations that are not subject to the advanced approaches capital rule (the advanced approaches capital rule generally applies to banks that are part of banking organizations with $250 billion or more in total consolidated assets or $10 billion or more in total consolidated foreign financial exposure). Bulletin 2017-47 has been issued by the OCC regarding the proposal. Comments are due by December 26, 2017.

The CFPB has announced the launch of a new Mortgage Performance Trends tool that tracks delinquency rates nationwide. Information newly available through this tool shows that mortgage delinquency rates nationally are at their lowest point since the financial crisis. In addition to national data, the online tool features interactive charts and graphs with data on mortgage delinquency rates for 50 states and the District of Columbia at the county and metro-area level.

The FDIC released on Friday a list of orders of administrative enforcement actions taken against banks and individuals in September. There was a total of 23 orders, including one order issued in August. The administrative enforcement actions in those orders consisted of eight consent orders; five Section 19 orders; one civil money penalty; three terminations of insurance; five terminations of consent orders; and one termination of a restitution order.

The civil money penalty of $12,450 was assessed against a Wisconsin bank for violations of the National Flood Insurance Act, the Flood Disaster Protection Act and related regulations.

The consent orders were all issued to institution-affiliated parties of one Pennsylvania bank after the FDIC determined they had engaged or participated in unsafe or unsound banking practices with respect to the supervision and oversight of the Bank's mortgage banking division.

HUD has announced a package of 19 regulatory and administrative waivers aimed at helping communities to accelerate their recovery from Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria. While HUD granted a number of individual waivers following disasters in the past, today’s announcement represents one of the largest collections of regulatory and administrative waivers ever issued by the Department at one time. The action includes the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Program, HOME Investment Partnerships (HOME) Program, Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS (HOPWA) Program, and Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG) Program.

An advisory on how to respond to spam or phishing emails that may appear to be from NMLS has been posted on the NMLS Resource Center.

OCC Bulletin 2017-45 announces a notice in the Federal Register [82 FR 49764] seeking comment on a proposed rulemaking amending its Annual Stress Test rule at 12 CFR part 46. Comments are due by December 26, 2017.

OCC Bulletin 2017-46, issued October 27, announces revisions of the OCC’s Approach to Federal Branch and Agency Supervision and the Federal Branches and Agencies booklet of the Comptroller’s Licensing Manual.

An open meeting of the FDIC Advisory Committee on Community Banking will be held on Wednesday, November 1 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., in the FDIC's main building located at 550 17th Street, N.W., Washington, D.C.

The NCUA has announced the liquidation of New York State Employees Federal Credit Union. Palisades Federal Credit Union of Pearl River, New York, has assumed most of the liquidated credit union's assets and all members, shares and loans. This was the fourth federally insured credit union liquidation in 2017.

The CFPB has announcing the release of a state-by-state snapshot of the complaints it has received from student loan borrowers.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency has issued a full service national bank charter to Winter Park National Bank, Winter Park, Florida. The new bank is the first de novo national bank and first de novo approved for federal deposit insurance in Florida since the beginning of the financial crisis, nearly ten years ago.

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.

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.

The FHFA has released its September index, which reports a decrease in mortgage rates.

The Federal Reserve has released the August 2017 G.20 finance companies owned and managed receivables outstanding and auto loans: terms of credit report.

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 Board of Governors has announced new members of its Community Advisory Council (CAC).

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 Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the Census Bureau have jointly announced statistics on new residential sales for September 2017:

• New home sales—Sales of new single-family houses in September 2017 were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 667,000. This is 18.9 percent above the revised August rate of 561,000, and 17.0 percent above the September 2016 estimate of 570,000.
• Sale price—The median sales price of new houses sold in September 2017 was $319,700. The average sales price was $385,200.
• For sale inventory—The seasonally-adjusted estimate of new houses for sale at the end of September was 279,000. This represents a supply of 5.0 months at the current sales rate.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency has issued its August House Price Index. U.S. house prices rose in August, up 0.7 percent from the previous month, according to the HPI. The previously reported 0.2 percent increase in July was revised upward to 0.4 percent. The FHFA monthly HPI is calculated using home sales price information from mortgages sold to, or guaranteed by, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. From August 2016 to August 2017, house prices were up 6.6 percent.

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.

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.

Federal Reserve Financial Services has posted a notice that the Federal Reserve Banks are planning changes to the Check Adjustments platform in the fourth quarter of 2017. The changes will have no impact on submitting and receiving adjustments via either the FedLine Web or FedLine Advantage access solutions. A transition to the new platform is planned in a phased approach with the first phase starting in mid-November and the last phase concluding the first week in December 2017.

FDIC FIL-55-2017, issued yesterday, announced that the FDIC, the Federal Reserve System, the OCC, and the Conference of State Bank Supervisors will jointly host a free teleconference to discuss trends in community bank liquidity and funds management and related supervisory guidance. The teleconference is scheduled for Monday, November 6, 2017, 2:00 – 3:00 p.m. EST. Advance registration is required.

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.

The Federal Housing Administration has issued a letter extending its initial 90-day foreclosure moratorium for FHA-insured homeowners impacted by Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria for an additional 90 days, due to the extensive damage and continuing needs in hard-hit areas. FHA-insured homeowners may qualify for this relief under the following conditions:

• The household lives within the geographic boundaries of a disaster area declared by the president;
• A household member of someone who is deceased, missing or injured directly due to the disaster; or
• The borrower's ability to make mortgage payments is directly or substantially affected by a disaster.

• Press release

A report that examines the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) arbitration rule has been released by the Department of the Treasury. The report delves into the analysis CFPB used to prohibit mandatory arbitration clauses. It outlines important limitations to the data behind CFPB’s rule and argues that the CFPB did not appropriately consider whether prohibiting arbitration clauses would advance consumer protection or serve the public interest. The Treasury report said that:

• The CFPB’s rule will impose extraordinary costs—generating more than 3,000 additional class action lawsuits over the next five years, imposing more than $500 million in additional legal defense fees, and transferring $330 million to plaintiffs’ lawyers;
• The CFPB’s data show that the vast majority of class action lawsuits deliver no relief to the class—and that consumers very rarely claim relief available to them;
• The CFPB did not show that its rule will achieve a necessary increase compliance with the federal consumer financial laws, despite the rule’s high costs; and
• The CFPB failed to consider less onerous alternatives to its ban on mandatory arbitration clauses across market sectors.

The OCC will host a workshop in Albuquerque, New Mexico, December 4–6, for directors, senior management team members and other key executives of national community banks and federal savings associations supervised by the OCC. The Building Blocks for Directors workshop combines lectures, discussion, and exercises to provide practical information on the roles and responsibilities of board participation. The session is the final Building Blocks for Directors workshop scheduled for 2017.

OCC Bulletin 2017-44 and FDIC FIL-53-2017, issued yesterday, announced that the OCC and FDIC, with the Federal Reserve Board, have issued frequently asked questions (FAQs) on the liquidity coverage ratio (LCR) rule. The FAQs address:

• Treatment of outflows from liquidity facilities to public sector entities in connection with variable rate demand note programs
• Treatment of outflows for trusts
• Determination of maturity for instruments with remote contingency call options
• Treatment of outflows for trust ledger deposit accounts and custody assets
• Treatment of multicurrency deposit balances
• Treatment of inflows from secured loans to retail clients with open maturities
• Treatment of eligible high-quality liquid assets and monetization in securities lending transactions
• Treatment of certain deposits required to be held at a foreign central bank as foreign withdrawable reserves

The LCR rule applies only to depository institutions with $10 billion or more in total consolidated assets that are consolidated subsidiaries of internationally active banking organizations.

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.

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.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency announced on Friday its decision to add a preferred language question to the redesigned Uniform Residential Loan Application (URLA). This question will enable borrowers who prefer to communicate in a language other than English to identify that language. FHFA said the text of the question also provides clear disclosures that the mortgage transaction is likely to be conducted in English and that language resources may not be available. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will publish the final redesigned URLA later this year, and lenders will be able to use the new URLA in July 2019 (use of the revised form for Enterprise loans will be mandatory starting in February 2020).

FDIC FIL-52-2017, issued October 20, announced steps intended to provide regulatory relief to financial institutions and to facilitate recovery in areas of California affected by wildfires.

HUD has announcedit has allocated an additional $57.8 million to help Texas recover from Hurricane Harvey. The grant announced on Friday is provided through HUD's Community Development Block Grant – Disaster Relief Program (CDBG-DR). Combined with CDBG-DR grants already allocated to Texas from disasters that occurred in 2015 and 2016, HUD's support of long-term disaster recovery in the Lone Star State now totals more than $371 million.

In an address at the 2017 Herbert Stein Memorial Lecture for the National Economics Club on Washington, D.C, Federal Reserve Board Chair Yellen discussed the unconventional monetary policy tools used by the Federal Reserve since the start of the financial crisis and Great Recession and the role that those tools may play in addressing future economic challenges.

OCC Bulletin 2017-43, issued Friday, informs national banks, federal savings associations, and federal branches and agencies of foreign banks (collectively, banks) of the principles they should follow to prudently manage the risks associated with offering new, modified, or expanded products and services. Such changes should be developed and implemented consistently with sound risk management practices and should align with banks’ overall business plans and strategies. New activities should encourage fair access to financial services and fair treatment of consumers and should be in compliance with applicable laws and regulations. This bulletin rescinds and replaces:

• OCC Bulletin 2004-20, “Risk Management of New, Expanded, or Modified Bank Products and Services: Risk Management Process,” issued on May 10, 2004
• Office of Thrift Supervision Examination Handbook section 760, “New Activities and Services."