Novel & Special-Purpose Charters

It seems the OCC does not believe the GENIUS Act creates a new charter type, contrary to speculation late last year. They would, however, be pleased to offer applicants charters they already have. In the preamble to its proposed GENIUS Act rule, the OCC adopts a narrower reading than it could have of the savings clause that follows the Act's list of activities permitted to a stablecoin issuer. The savings clause says that nothing in the activities provision "shall limit a permitted payment stablecoin issuer from engaging in payment stablecoin activities or digital asset service provider...

Nobody likes Vullo v. OCC, New York's challenge to the nondepository national fintech charter half a decade ago. For most people in the industry, the case stands for the idea that the OCC can’t charter national banks that don’t take deposits, unless the bank is restricted to trust company activities. The OCC dislikes this for a few reasons, but mostly because it isn’t true. The lower court’s decision against the OCC was reversed on procedural grounds, and the case went away after the applicant at issue applied for deposit insurance. Had the lower court’s substantive reasoning been put to the...

Controversy is clustering around the GENIUS Act provision granting state depository institutions national money transmission and custody powers when acting through a stablecoin issuer subsidiary. Bank trades and state regulators are pushing to repeal the provision, saying it gives preemption power to uninsured banks like Wyoming's SPDI. But how do they know the provision applies to uninsured banks? And why didn't more people notice that sooner rather than later? The answer lies in the convoluted way the Act defines "state chartered depository institution." The definition's cross-references...

We assist financial institutions and fintechs with charter strategy, regulatory applications, and transactions, including bank-fintech partnerships and acquisitions. Our practice covers the full range of licensing options including commercial bank charters, ILC charters, trust bank charters, and money transmission licenses. We prepare regulatory applications, conduct due diligence on acquisition targets, advise on control issues under the Bank Holding Company Act, Bank Merger Act, and Change in Bank Control Act, and help structure bank-fintech partnerships to address regulatory expectations....

We provide comprehensive legal counsel to banks ranging from community institutions to the largest national and regional banks, as well as specialized trust, wealth management, and employee benefits institutions. Our services span regulatory compliance and examination support, licensing and charter applications, M&A transactions, and public policy advocacy before Congress and federal banking regulators. Capital Analysis: We assess treatment of assets, instruments, and transactions under bank or GSE capital rules. Consumer Compliance: We assist clients with compliance matters on a variety of...

BJ Sanford advises payments and fintech companies, U.S. and foreign banks, trade associations, investors, and policy and consulting firms. His practice centers on payments regulation, public policy, and the regulation of bank activities and structure. He also advises clients on regulatory capital, bank investments and control, affiliate transactions, the U.S. operations of foreign banks, and regulatory examinations. Payments regulation. BJ advises payments firms and banks on payment regulation, product development, and compliance with rules including Regulation E, Regulation Z, Regulation II...

Ray Natter advises on bank regulatory matters, including bank structure, securities and corporate practices, and legislative affairs. He brings experience from the OCC, the Federal Reserve Board, and the Senate Banking Committee, and is recognized as one of the leading experts in financial services law. Ray served as deputy chief counsel of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency from 1995 through 2004, where his responsibilities included the development and review of all of the agency's regulatory undertakings; at the OCC he also led the legal department's securities and corporate...