Transmittal Archive

The Board, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), the National Credit Union Administration, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), and the Conference of State Bank Supervisors issued an interagency statement encouraging financial institutions to work constructively with borrowers affected by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and providing additional information regarding loan modifications. More... The agencies view prudent loan modification programs offered to financial institution customers affected by COVID-19 as positive and proactive actions that can manage or mitigate adverse impacts on borrowers, and lead to improved loan performance and reduced credit risk. For more information, see the Interagency Statement on Loan Modifications and Reporting for Financial Institutions Working with Customers Affected by the Coronavirus on the Board’s website: https://www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/pressreleases/files/bcreg20200322a1.pdf.

The Board, the FDIC, and the OCC are encouraging banking organizations to use their capital and liquidity buffers as they respond to the challenges presented by the effects of the coronavirus. More... For more information, see the Statement on the Use of Capital and Liquidity Buffers on the Board’s website: https://www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/pressreleases/files/bcreg20200317a1.pdf.

The member agencies of the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC) recently updated guidance identifying actions that financial institutions should take to minimize the potential adverse effects of a pandemic. More... For more information, see the Interagency Statement on Pandemic Planning on the Board’s website: https://www.federalreserve.gov/supervisionreg/srletters/SR2003.htm.

The Board has adopted final amendments to its Regulation A to reflect the Board’s approval of a decrease in the rate for primary credit at each Federal Reserve Bank. More... The secondary credit rate at each Reserve Bank automatically decreased by formula as a result of the Board’s primary credit rate action. The final rule is effective March 24, 2020 (Regulation A, Docket R-1700), the same day it was published in the Federal Register. The rate changes for primary and secondary credit were applicable on March 16, 2020.

The Board is amending Regulation D (Reserve Requirements of Depository Institutions) to revise the rate of interest paid on balances maintained to satisfy reserve balance requirements (IORR) and the rate of interest paid on excess balances (IOER) maintained at Federal Reserve Banks by or on behalf of eligible institutions. More... The final amendments specify that IORR is 0.10 percent and IOER is 0.10 percent, a 1.00 percentage point decrease from their prior levels. The amendments are intended to enhance the role of IORR and IOER in maintaining the federal funds rate in the target range established by the Federal Open Market Committee. The final rule is effective March 24, 2020 (Regulation D, Docket R-1701), the same day it was published in the Federal Register. The IORR and IOER rate changes were applicable on March 16, 2020.

The Board is amending Regulation D to lower reserve ratios on transaction accounts maintained at depository institutions to 0 percent. The interim final rule is effective March 24, 2020 (Regulation D, Docket R-1702), the same day it was published in the Federal Register. The changes to reserve requirement ratios were applicable on March 26, 2020.

The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) issued a final rule to reflect inflation adjustments to its civil monetary penalties (CMPs) as mandated by the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act of 1990, as amended by the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act Improvements Act of 2015 (collectively referred to herein as the “act”). More... This rule adjusts certain CMPs within the jurisdiction of FinCEN to the maximum amount required by the act. The final rule is effective February 19, 2020 (Department of the Treasury, Financial Crimes Enforcement Network at 3-1700), the same day it was published in the Federal Register.

The Board, the FDIC, and the OCC are adopting a final rule to revise the definition of “high volatility commercial real estate (HVCRE) exposure” in the regulatory capital rule. More... This final rule conforms this definition to the statutory definition of “high volatility commercial real estate acquisition, development, or construction (HVCRE ADC) loan,” in accordance with section 214 of the Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief, and Consumer Protection Act. The final rule also clarifies the capital treatment for loans that finance the development of land under the revised HVCRE exposure definition. The final rule is effective April 1, 2020 (Regulation Q, Docket R-1621) and was published in the Federal Register on December 13, 2019.

The Board, the FDIC, and the OCC are issuing a final rule to implement a new approach—the standardized approach for counterparty credit risk (SA-CCR)—for calculating the exposure amount of derivative contracts under these agencies’ regulatory capital rule. More... Under the final rule, an advanced approaches banking organization may use SA-CCR or the internal models methodology to calculate its advanced approaches total risk-weighted assets, and must use SA-CCR, instead of the current exposure methodology, to calculate its standardized total risk-weighted assets. A non-advanced approaches banking organization may use the current exposure methodology or SA-CCR to calculate its standardized total risk-weighted assets. The final rule also implements SA-CCR in other aspects of the capital rule. Notably, the final rule requires an advanced approaches banking organization to use SA-CCR to determine the exposure amount of derivative contracts included in the banking organization’s total leverage exposure, the denominator of the supplementary leverage ratio. In addition, the final rule incorporates SA-CCR into the cleared transactions framework and makes other amendments, generally with respect to cleared transactions. The final rule is effective April 1, 2020 (Regulation Q, Docket R-1629) and was published in the Federal Register on January 24, 2020. The mandatory compliance date for advanced approaches banking organizations is January 1, 2022.

The Board, the FDIC, and the OCC are issuing a final rule to implement section 402 of the Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief, and Consumer Protection Act. More... Section 402 directs these agencies to amend the regulatory capital rule to exclude from the supplementary leverage ratio certain funds of banking organizations deposited with central banks if the banking organization is predominantly engaged in custody, safekeeping, and asset servicing activities. The final rule is effective April 1, 2020 (Regulation Q, Docket R-1659) and was published in the Federal Register on January 27, 2020.

The Board is adopting a final rule to revise the Board’s regulations related to determinations of whether a company has the ability to exercise a controlling influence over another company for purposes of the Bank Holding Company Act or the Home Owners’ Loan Act. More... The final rule expands the number of presumptions for use in such determinations. By codifying the presumptions in the Board’s Regulation Y and Regulation LL, the Board’s rules will provide substantial additional transparency on the types of relationships that the Board generally views as supporting a determination that one company controls another company. The final rule is effective April 1, 2020 (Regulation Y and Regulation LL, Docket R-1662) and was published in the Federal Register on March 2, 2020.