OCC: Federally Chartered Banks and Thrifts Allowed to Engage in Certain Stablecoin Cryptocurrency Activities
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) today published a letter clarifying national banks’ and federal savings associations’ authority to hold “reserves” on behalf of customers who issue certain stablecoins. Stablecoins refer to cryptocurrency backed by an asset such as a fiat currency, including U.S. dollars or other foreign currency. “National banks and…
OCC: Acting Comptroller’s Statement on the Federal Reserve’s Action to Modernize the CRA
Acting Comptroller of the Currency Brian P. Brooks today released the following statement in appreciation of the Federal Reserve Board’s Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPR), which solicits stakeholder comment on how to improve Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) regulations for state-chartered banks that are members of the Federal Reserve System. We welcome the Federal Reserve’s…
ABA: Statement on the Federal Reserve’s ANPR to Modernize CRA Rules
“Today’s Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking is an important step toward modernizing the Community Reinvestment Act in a manner that benefits communities and provides banks with regulatory clarity going forward. While we are still reviewing the ANPR with our members, we appreciate the Fed’s measured, research-based approach to formulating this critically important rule. “As the…
FEMA: President Trump Approves Major Disaster Declaration for Alabama
FEMA announced that federal disaster assistance has been made available to the state of Alabama to supplement state, tribal and local recovery efforts in the areas affected by Hurricane Sally from Sept. 14, and continuing. The President’s action makes federal funding available to affected individuals in Baldwin, Escambia and Mobile counties. Assistance can include grants…
Census Bureau: Data Challenge Expo Highlights Creative Use of Census Bureau Data in COVID-19 Response
The U.S. Census Bureau is partnering with the American Statistical Association (ASA) for the Annual Data Challenge Expo. Contestants are challenged to analyze the 2019 American Community Survey (ACS) 1-year estimates using statistical and visualization tools and methods to present their findings at ASA’s Joint Statistical Meeting (JSM) in the summer of 2021. The contest is open to…
SBA: Celebrating 50 Years of Surety Bond Guarantees
The Office of Surety Guarantees will Host a Free, Virtual Conference September 24-25 for Small Businesses The U.S. Small Business Administration’s (SBA) Office of Surety Guarantees (OSG) will host a two-day virtual conference to commemorate 50 years of Surety Bond Guarantees (SBG). The conference will assist small businesses seeking surety bonds and discuss SBA’s role in the future of the surety bond industry. “For the last 50 years, the public-private partnership of…
SBA: West Virginia and Massachusetts Women-Owned Firms Take Top Honors in Federal Contracting
The U.S. Small Business Administration announced two women-owned firms will receive awards honoring their work in federal contracting. Action Facilities Management, Inc. (AFM), an 8(a)-certified commercial facilities management firm specializing in infrastructure and security support services from Morgantown, West Virginia; and Specialty Materials Inc. (SMI), a firm specializing in composite fiber and prepreg products that support the aerospace…
SBA: $3 Million in Grants to Organizations Supporting Small Business Innovation and R&D Commercialization Awarded
The U.S. Small Business Administration granted 24 awards up to $125,000 each for specialized training, mentoring, and technical assistance for R&D-focused small businesses under the Federal and State Technology (FAST) Partnership Program administered by the SBA’s Office of Innovation and Technology. FAST seeks to improve outcomes in the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR)…
FDIC: Results of 2020 Summary of Deposits Annual Survey Released
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) today released results of its annual survey of branch office deposits for all FDIC-insured institutions as of June 30, 2020. The FDIC’s Summary of Deposits (SOD) provides deposit totals for each of the more than 85,000 domestic offices operated by more than 5,000 FDIC-insured commercial and savings banks, savings…
FDIC: First-Ever FDIC Academic Challenge Launched
Teams from universities and colleges throughout the country will examine effects of community banks on local economic development The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) today announced the launch of the agency’s first-ever Academic Challenge, a competition among teams of university and college students to address questions concerning the U.S. banking sector. The topic for this inaugural…