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The ICBA Newsroom collects and centralizes all the NewsWatch Today articles, press releases, Main Street Matters blogs, advocacy letters and other news that impacts community bankers.

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ICBA Applauds CR Farm Aid Package, Farm Bill Extension

Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA) President and CEO Rebeca Romero Rainey today issued the following statement applauding the initial inclusion of a farm bill extension and a $10 billion farm aid package in the year-end continuing resolution.
December 17, 2024 | Press Release   Congressional Matters Agriculture Farm Bill 

OCC: Commercial credit risk stabilizing

The OCC reported that the federal banking system remains sound but said it expects banks to remain diligent and adhere to prudent risk management practices across all risk areas.
December 17, 2024 | ICBA NewsWatch Today   OCC 

ICBA: New ACH proposals are burdensome, risky

ICBA said it opposes the addition of a fourth daily same-day Automated Clearing House processing window because it would be burdensome for community banks by adding late-day operational stress, accounting challenges, and settlement risk.
December 17, 2024 | ICBA NewsWatch Today   ACH 

ICBA to Congress: Pass Farm Bill Extension and Farm Aid Before Adjournment

Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA) President and CEO Rebeca Romero Rainey today issued the following statement urging Congress to pass a farm bill extension and a farm aid package in addition to assisting citizens recovering from weather-related disasters.
December 16, 2024 | Press Release   Agriculture Farm Bill 

ICBA announces ThinkTECH Accelerator Cohort

ICBA announced the selected companies for its eighth ICBA ThinkTECH Accelerator Program (AP8). The solutions represent vendor management, check fraud prevention, integration, digital banking for families, conversational AI, and commercial lending.
December 16, 2024 | ICBA NewsWatch Today  

FCC eliminates use of Weiss ratings as standard for banks

The Federal Communications Commission eliminated the use of the Weiss ratings as the standard for U.S. banks to be considered “acceptable to FCC” for purposes of issuing qualifying program letters of credit.
December 16, 2024 | ICBA NewsWatch Today   Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation 

Report: Gaps in cross-border payment regulation open the door for fraud

Inconsistencies in regulations on cross-border payments create opportunities for fraud, money laundering, terrorist financing, and other illicit financial activities, according to the Financial Stability Board.
December 16, 2024 | ICBA NewsWatch Today   Fraud 

ICBA ThinkTECH Accelerator Cohort Revealed

The Independent Community Bankers of America® (ICBA) today announced the selected companies for its eighth ICBA ThinkTECH Accelerator program (AP8).
December 16, 2024 | Press Release  

Report: Most fraud complaints involve crypto

Most fraud-related complaints involve fraudulent crypto investments initiated through social media contacts that later develop into relationship confidence scams, according to the Securities and Exchange Commission.
December 13, 2024 | ICBA NewsWatch Today   Digital Assets 

CFPB issues final rule capping overdraft fees

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau issued a final rule on overdraft services that will cap fees at banks and credit unions with more than $10 billion in assets.
December 13, 2024 | ICBA NewsWatch Today   Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Compliance 

Community bank net income rises in Q3

Community bank net income rose 6.7% in the third quarter on higher net interest income and was up 3.9% from a year ago, according to the FDIC’s latest Quarterly Banking Profile.
December 13, 2024 | ICBA NewsWatch Today   Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation 

ICBA Strongly Opposes CFPB Overdraft Rule

Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA) President and CEO Rebeca Romero Rainey today issued the following statement on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s final rule on overdraft services.
December 12, 2024 | Press Release   Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Overdraft Services 

ICBA remembers Past Chairman Bill McQuillan

ICBA Past Chairman William "Bill" Leo McQuillan died in Lakewood, Colo., on Dec. 4 at the age of 76. The former president and CEO of City National Bank in Greeley, Neb., served as Nebraska Independent Community Bankers chairman in 1988-1989 and ICBA chairman in 1998-1999.
December 12, 2024 | ICBA NewsWatch Today   Bank Director/Board Member 

Wall Street Journal editorial: Tax credit unions

Northwest Federal Credit Union’s stadium naming-rights deal with the Washington Commanders points to the need for the federal government to tax credit unions, according to a new Wall Street Journal column.
December 12, 2024 | ICBA NewsWatch Today   Credit Unions 

OCC’s Hsu lauds ICBA check fraud efforts

ICBA and many banks are going the extra mile to fight fraud, but banks and industry trade groups cannot effectively address fraud all by themselves, Acting Comptroller of the Currency Michael Hsu said.
December 12, 2024 | ICBA NewsWatch Today   Fraud 

ICBA tells Fed to improve discount window, protect FHLBs

The Federal Reserve should embrace technology to improve its discount window and preserve the role of the Federal Home Loan Banks in providing liquidity, ICBA told the agency.
December 11, 2024 | ICBA NewsWatch Today   Federal Reserve 

FDIC board to discuss budget, AML, bank capital

The FDIC announced that its board of directors is scheduled to meet at 10 a.m. (Eastern time) Tuesday, Dec. 17.
December 11, 2024 | ICBA NewsWatch Today   Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation 

’80s-themed ICBA PAC auction set for ICBA LIVE

ICBA PAC is hosting its 36th Annual Auction Fundraiser on Wednesday, March 12, during ICBA LIVE in Nashville. Tickets for the ’80s-themed event go on sale Friday, Jan. 3.
December 11, 2024 | ICBA NewsWatch Today  

CFPB’s credit card late fee rule shot down

A federal judge upheld an order blocking the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s $8 cap on credit card late fees.
December 10, 2024 | ICBA NewsWatch Today   Consumer Financial Protection Bureau 

CFPB seeks input for rulemaking on domestic violence, elder abuse

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau launched a rulemaking to address the effects of inaccurate credit reporting affecting survivors of domestic violence, elder abuse, and other forms of financial abuse.
December 10, 2024 | ICBA NewsWatch Today   Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Compliance 

Fed clarifies account access guidelines

The Federal Reserve provided a technical clarification that its account access guidelines also apply to excess balance accounts.
December 10, 2024 | ICBA NewsWatch Today   Federal Reserve 

ICBA’s Romero Rainey, Merski recognized as top lobbyists

ICBA President and CEO Rebeca Romero Rainey and Group Executive Vice President of Congressional Relations and Strategy Paul Merski were featured on The Hill’s 2024 list of the nation’s top lobbyists.
December 09, 2024 | ICBA NewsWatch Today  

Independent Banker shares top compliance issues of 2024

Guidance and proposed rules from regulatory agencies this year kept community banks on their toes, according to the latest Independent Banker magazine.
December 09, 2024 | ICBA NewsWatch Today  

Report: Banking system is sound but faces challenges

The U.S. banking system remains resilient—supported by sound levels of regulatory capital, adequate liquidity buffers, and healthy levels of profitability—but the industry must address emerging vulnerabilities, according to the Financial Stability Oversight Council’s 2024 annual report.
December 09, 2024 | ICBA NewsWatch Today   Digital Assets 

Forum next week on using tech to protect seniors

ICBA’s ThinkTECH Solutions Forum: AgeTech is scheduled for noon (Eastern time) Thursday, Dec. 12.
December 06, 2024 | ICBA NewsWatch Today  

Romero Rainey, Merski Recognized Among The Hill’s Top Lobbyists for 2024, Showcasing ICBA’s Advocacy Leadership

Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA) President and CEO Rebeca Romero Rainey and Group Executive Vice President of Congressional Relations and Strategy Paul Merski make their seventh consecutive appearance on The Hill’s Top Lobbyists List of association executives.
December 06, 2024 | Press Release   Advocacy 

Independent Banker shares farm bill prospects

A new five-year farm bill will run about 1,000 pages and include a vast array of programs, so the most likely action is an extension of the current bill and possibly an emergency aid package, according to the latest Independent Banker magazine.
December 06, 2024 | ICBA NewsWatch Today   Farm Bill 

Fiserv chief nominated to lead Social Security

Frank Bisignano—chairman, president, and CEO of Fiserv, a global provider of payments and financial services technology solutions—was nominated by President-Elect Donald Trump to be commissioner of the Social Security Administration.
December 06, 2024 | ICBA NewsWatch Today   Government Banks 

Treasury sanctions money laundering network using digital assets

The Treasury Department sanctioned five individuals and four entities associated with the TGR Group, an international network of businesses and employees that act on behalf of Russian elites.
December 05, 2024 | ICBA NewsWatch Today   Department of Treasury 

ICBA: CFPB’s 1071 rule exceeds its authority

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s 1071 small-business rule exceeds the agency’s statutory authority and is arbitrary and capricious, ICBA said in a new court filing.
December 05, 2024 | ICBA NewsWatch Today   Consumer Financial Protection Bureau 

Agencies issue statement on financial exploitation of elderly

Five federal financial regulatory agencies, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, and state financial regulators issued a joint statement to provide supervised institutions with examples of risk management and other practices that may be effective in combatting elder financial exploitation.
December 05, 2024 | ICBA NewsWatch Today   Financial Crimes Enforcement Network 

What to Say to Customers When They Are Being Scammed

On a daily basis, my team identifies, investigates, and responds to fraud, including customer scams. While our fraud monitoring systems flag unusual activity, the bulk of our time is spent evaluating the situation and then discussing it with the customer to get to the bottom of what really happened.
December 04, 2024 | Payments Quarterly  

Agencies seek further comment on regulatory burden

The federal bank regulatory agencies announced the third notice requesting comment to reduce regulatory burden as required by the Economic Growth and Regulatory Paperwork Reduction Act of 1996.
December 04, 2024 | ICBA NewsWatch Today   EGRPRA s.2155 

CFPB proposes rule on consumer reporting

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau issued a notice of proposed rulemaking related to consumer reporting and the requirements of the Fair Credit Reporting Act.
December 04, 2024 | ICBA NewsWatch Today   Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Compliance 

OCC updates unfair practices booklet

The OCC issued version 1.1 of the “Unfair or Deceptive Acts or Practices and Unfair, Deceptive, or Abusive Acts or Practices” booklet of the Comptroller’s Handbook.
December 04, 2024 | ICBA NewsWatch Today   Compliance 

Relationship Managers Are Here for You

Community banks have a strong history of offering their customers personalized service. Our relationship management team has the same philosophy and supports community bank payment needs one-on-one. We know bankers wear many hats, and sometimes taking the time to understand the ins and outs of your card portfolio, or answer critical payments-related questions, can take longer than expected.
December 04, 2024 | Payments Quarterly  

The Card Trends to Watch in 2025

What 2025 holds for payments remains to be seen. Decreasing interest rates may fuel larger spending and comfort with revolving credit, but some businesses have begun limiting their acceptance of cards or passing fees along to customers, which could drive decreased use. Couple those developments with a shifting regulatory environment, and the future of card payments gets a bit murky.
December 04, 2024 | Payments Quarterly  

Regulators hosting fair lending webinar today

Federal regulators are slated to host an interagency webinar on fair lending at 2 p.m. (Eastern time) today. The webinar will cover redlining, Community Reinvestment Act rules, the relationship between CRA and fair lending, and more.
December 04, 2024 | ICBA NewsWatch Today  

Independent Banker honors best community banks to work for

This month’s Independent Banker magazine recognizes the best community banks to work for, selected by the input of full-time employees.
December 03, 2024 | ICBA NewsWatch Today  

Fed’s Waller expects rate cuts to continue over next year

Monetary policy is still restrictive and putting downward pressure on inflation without creating undesirable weakness in the labor market, according to Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller, who added that he expects rate cuts to continue over the next year.
December 03, 2024 | ICBA NewsWatch Today   Federal Reserve 

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Independent Banker is the award-winning monthly member publication of ICBA. Continually rated the best news source by community bankers, IB provides timely, relevant information and insights to help community banks continue to flourish.

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