ICBA Newsroom
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.
ICBA’s Romero Rainey, Paul Merski Named Top Lobbyists by The Hill
Independent Community Bankers of America President and CEO Rebeca Romero Rainey and ICBA Group Executive Vice President of Congressional Relations and Strategy Paul Merski are featured on The Hill’s 2021 list of the top influencers in the nation.
December 02, 2021 |
Press Release
Advocacy
Regulators update BSA/AML exam manual
The Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council updated its BSA/AML Examination Manual, which instructs examiners on assessing BSA/AML compliance.
December 02, 2021 |
ICBA NewsWatch Today
Compliance
Agencies adjust regulatory thresholds
Federal regulators announced 2022 updates to key regulatory thresholds.
December 02, 2021 |
ICBA NewsWatch Today
Compliance
CFPB: Community banks charge lower overdraft fees
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau said community banks charge lower overdraft fees than larger institutions.
December 02, 2021 |
ICBA NewsWatch Today
Advocacy
ICBA’s Independent Banker Names 2021 Best Community Banks to Work For
Independent Banker magazine today bestowed 2021 Best Community Banks to Work For honors upon five community banks for their exemplary efforts to create exceptional work environments for their employees.
December 01, 2021 |
Press Release
Out of Office: Chrissy Neff
Chrissy Neff, a digital systems administrator at $1 billion-asset Bank of Clarke County in Berryville, Va., adopted her first pet goat in 2018 and has since expanded her farm family to three goats—Lightning, Uni and Jerry—and Benjamin, a miniature donkey.
December 01, 2021 |
Independent Banker
The power of a CDFI
First Southwest Bank is carving out new business models to address a need for credit and financial services through nonprofit lending programs and software that leverages its community development financial institution (CDFI) funding.
December 01, 2021 |
Independent Banker
Lending
Beneficial State Bank’s financial activism
The idea that community banking can be a force for positive change is at the heart of Beneficial State Bank, which engages its customers through financial activism.
December 01, 2021 |
Independent Banker
New Era of Consumer Engagement by Mladen Vladic
SPONSORED | Over the past 18 months, the marketplace has experienced huge disruptions. The world has changed, and so have consumers. In fact. 75% of consumers have changed their spending habits since early 2020.
December 01, 2021 |
Independent Banker
Payments
Evaluate New Core Providers With Successful Vendor Management
SPONSORED | When selecting a new core provider, there are critical conversations that need to happen before signing a contract. Asking about the products, costs, and conversion timeline only skim the surface. Here are some discussion points for successful vendor management.
December 01, 2021 |
Independent Banker
Payments
Rebeca Romero Rainey: Focus on the light
While our decisions over the past year have been driven even more by our mission than by our bottom lines, we’ve also achieved good results.
December 01, 2021 |
Independent Banker
Robert Fisher: Committing to being in the moment
Let’s collectively commit to being more present in all of our interactions. It won’t be long until we recognize what a true gift that is to ourselves and those we serve.
December 01, 2021 |
Independent Banker
Charles Potts: 2021: A year of awakening
Community bankers’ awakening to new possibilities has made for an impactful year and will help position community banks to flourish in 2022 and beyond.
December 01, 2021 |
Independent Banker
Payments
Inside the evolving roles of community bank tellers
Today’s tellers meet very different customer needs than they did just a decade ago. In the wake of trends like falling in-branch transactions and the rise of digital services, some community banks are filling the gap by retooling tellers with an array of new titles and skills.
December 01, 2021 |
Independent Banker
The community banks standing by hospitality customers
Many hotels and other hospitality businesses haven’t fully bounced back from COVID-19 travel and safety restrictions, but community banks have been by their side through the challenges. Luckily, these lenders say loan demand is returning in many areas.
December 01, 2021 |
Independent Banker
Lending
Michael Emancipator: The case against the Section 1071 proposal
The CFPB’s proposed rule to implement Section 1071 would add a burdensome and costly reporting requirement onto all community bank small business lenders.
December 01, 2021 |
Independent Banker
Advocacy
How did compliance change in 2021?
This year has largely been a quiet time for regulatory and compliance reform. But while community banks were focused on the economic recovery of their communities, a few changes came during 2021.
December 01, 2021 |
Independent Banker
Compliance
Strategies for fighting remote authentication fraud
As more customers moved online, fraudsters took advantage of new and increasingly inventive opportunities to commit remote authentication fraud. Experts say community banks can use education, biometrics and solid cybersecurity practices to fight this growing area of crime.
December 01, 2021 |
Independent Banker
Compliance
Lindsay LaNore: Moving from idea to implementation
Terms like ideation and innovation have become buzzwords in our industry, but it takes great leaders to translate exciting ideas into real value.
December 01, 2021 |
Independent Banker
9 tips for smooth succession planning
Planning for future leadership is something every community bank must contend with, but it’s not always an easy process. That’s why community bankers and other experts are using succession planning to benefit the entire institution through better communication, recruiting and planning. Here are their tips for finding the best future leaders with as few bumps in the road as possible.
December 01, 2021 |
Independent Banker
CFPB issues annual threshold adjustment
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau raised the annual threshold adjustment maximum that consumer reporting agencies may charge consumers for making a file disclosure to a consumer under the Fair Credit Reporting Act.
November 30, 2021 |
ICBA NewsWatch Today
Compliance
ICBA, The Venture Center Announce 2022 ThinkTECH Accelerator Cohort
ICBA and The Venture Center, in partnership with the State of Arkansas, announced the selection of 11 companies for the fourth annual ICBA ThinkTECH Accelerator program, kicking off on Jan. 11, 2022.
November 30, 2021 |
Press Release
Small Business Lending
ICBA launches comment letter campaign on 1071 proposal
ICBA is calling on community bankers to submit personalized comments on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s proposal to implement Dodd-Frank Section 1071 collection and reporting requirements.
November 30, 2021 |
ICBA NewsWatch Today
Compliance
ICBA endorses HR. 6037, pushes back against SBA direct lending plan
ICBA continued its grassroots efforts against a provision under consideration in the Build Back Better reconciliation bill that would authorize the Small Business Administration from making direct loans under the 7(a) program.
November 30, 2021 |
ICBA NewsWatch Today
Lending Small Business Lending Small Business Administration
Yellen, Powell testifying this week
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell are scheduled to testify this week before the Senate Banking and House Financial Services committees.
November 29, 2021 |
ICBA NewsWatch Today
Crisis Preparedness
Five Democratic senators oppose Omarova nomination: report
Five Democratic senators reportedly don't support Saule Omarova’s nomination to lead the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, raising fresh doubts about her confirmation after ICBA and state community banks groups expressed opposition.
November 29, 2021 |
ICBA NewsWatch Today
Government Banks OCC
Cybersecurity advisory warns of holiday attacks
The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency and FBI issued a cybersecurity reminder for public and private sector organizations to remain vigilant against ransomware and other cyberattacks during the holiday season.
November 29, 2021 |
ICBA NewsWatch Today
Cybersecurity Technology
SBA office backs 1071 comment extension
The SBA Office of Advocacy expressed support for ICBA and state banking associations’ request that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau extend the comment deadline on its proposal to implement Dodd-Frank Section 1071 collection and reporting requirements.
November 24, 2021 |
ICBA NewsWatch Today
Compliance
OCC provides crypto guidance as agencies announce roadmap
Federal regulators said they plan to provide greater regulatory clarity on crypto-related activities next year, with the OCC issuing an interpretive letter with guidance on digital assets.
November 24, 2021 |
ICBA NewsWatch Today
Digital Assets Technology
ICBA cautions FHFA on excessive credit risk transfer reliance
ICBA said it is largely supportive of proposed amendments to the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s final capital rule, though it cautioned the agency not to allow Fannie and Freddie to become overly reliant on credit risk transfers.
November 24, 2021 |
ICBA NewsWatch Today
Housing Finance/GSEs
ICBA congratulates Powell, Brainard on Fed nominations
ICBA congratulated Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell and Fed Governor Lael Brainard after President Joe Biden said he intends to nominate them for new terms at the agency.
November 23, 2021 |
ICBA NewsWatch Today
Federal Reserve
Bill would bar SBA 7(a) direct lending
Legislation to bar SBA direct lending under its 7(a) loan program was introduced amid an ICBA grassroots campaign opposing the policy.
November 23, 2021 |
ICBA NewsWatch Today
Lending
ICBA: SBA plans should include community bank role
ICBA told the SBA it should continue partnering with community banks rather than attempting to remove them from the loan origination process.
November 23, 2021 |
ICBA NewsWatch Today
Lending
Statement on Federal Reserve Nominations of Jerome Powell, Lael Brainard
ICBA President and CEO Rebeca Romero Rainey issued a statement on today’s announcement that President Joe Biden intends to nominate Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell for a second term as chairman and Federal Reserve Governor Lael Brainard as vice chair.
November 22, 2021 |
Press Release
Federal Reserve
House passes spending bill without IRS reporting plan
The House passed its version of the Build Back Better reconciliation bill without numerous ICBA-opposed provisions, including the IRS bank reporting proposal.
November 22, 2021 |
ICBA NewsWatch Today
Taxes & Budget
Fed officials: Faster tapering may be needed
Federal Reserve officials discussed the potential need to speed up the tapering of asset purchases in response to rising job gains and inflation.
November 22, 2021 |
ICBA NewsWatch Today
Federal Reserve
ICBA Statement on House Passage of Reconciliation Bill
Independent Community Bankers of America President and CEO Rebeca Romero Rainey today issued a statement on the House passage of its budget reconciliation bill.
November 19, 2021 |
Press Release
Taxes & Budget
ICBA Introduces BankTech Ventures Investment Fund
The Independent Community Bankers of America today announced the Initial Closing of a fund launched by BankTech Ventures, LP. The venture capital fund is designed to accelerate technology opportunities and adoption at community banks.
November 19, 2021 |
Press Release
Technology
Agencies issue computer incident notification final rule
Federal banking regulators approved a final rule designed to improve the sharing of information about cyber incidents that may affect the U.S. banking system.
November 19, 2021 |
ICBA NewsWatch Today
Compliance Cybersecurity Technology
OCC nominee faces tough questions at Senate hearing
Community bank opposition to Saule Omarova’s nomination to lead the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency took center stage at a contentious Senate Banking Committee hearing.
November 19, 2021 |
ICBA NewsWatch Today
OCC
ICBA issues summary of employer vaccine mandate
ICBA published a summary of the Biden administration’s policy requiring employers with 100 or more employees to ensure their workers are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 or are tested weekly.
November 18, 2021 |
ICBA NewsWatch Today
Crisis Preparedness Risk
ICBA, state groups oppose Omarova OCC nomination
ICBA and state community banking groups expressed opposition to Cornell University law professor Saule Omarova’s nomination to lead the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency.
November 18, 2021 |
ICBA NewsWatch Today
OCC
ICBA, groups push for NCUA oversight hearing
ICBA and other groups called on Congress to hold an oversight hearing on troubling National Credit Union Administration rulemaking activity.
November 18, 2021 |
ICBA NewsWatch Today
Credit Unions
ICBA urging grassroots pushback against SBA direct lending plan
ICBA is calling on community bankers to continue the campaign opposing proposed changes to the SBA 7(a) loan program contained in the House budget-reconciliation bill.
November 17, 2021 |
ICBA NewsWatch Today
Lending
Hsu: Agencies planning additional clarity on crypto activities
Federal banking regulators will soon issue a short statement that describes the recently concluded interagency “crypto sprint,” Acting Comptroller of the Currency Michael Hsu said.
November 17, 2021 |
ICBA NewsWatch Today
Digital Assets Technology
Credit union satisfaction lags banks again: index
Consumer satisfaction with credit unions lagged banks for the third year in a row, according to a national survey covered by CU Today.
November 17, 2021 |
ICBA NewsWatch Today
Credit Unions
ICBA urging grassroots pushback against SBA direct lending plan
ICBA is calling on community bankers to continue the campaign opposing proposed changes to the SBA 7(a) loan program contained in the House budget-reconciliation bill.
November 16, 2021 |
ICBA NewsWatch Today
Lending
Republican senators denounce postal banking pilot
A group of 19 Senate Republicans led by Sen. John Boozman (Ark.) denounced an ICBA-opposed U.S. Postal Service pilot program to test postal banking.
November 16, 2021 |
ICBA NewsWatch Today
Postal Service Banking
IRS issues November Child Tax Credit payments
The Treasury Department said families with roughly 61 million eligible children received more than $15 billion in the fifth batch of Advance Child Tax Credit payments, most via direct deposit.
November 16, 2021 |
ICBA NewsWatch Today
Taxes & Budget
House committee Republicans issue CBDC principles
House Financial Services Committee Republicans released principles to guide Congress in evaluating potential proposals for a U.S. central bank digital currency.
November 16, 2021 |
ICBA NewsWatch Today
Digital Assets Technology
Partners in Fraud Prevention – A Conversation with Pioneer Trust Bank’s Betsy Steinberg and ICBA Bancard’s Rebecca Kruse
IRS reporting press push continues
The community banking industry continued its media push against the IRS bank reporting proposal, which remains a threat even after it was recently left out of the framework guiding Democratic discussions.
November 09, 2021 |
ICBA NewsWatch Today
Taxes & Budget
Treasury targets ransomware operators
The Treasury Department announced a new round of coordinated actions as part of the federal government’s response to ransomware.
November 09, 2021 |
ICBA NewsWatch Today
Cybersecurity Technology
ICBA-backed updates included in cyber reporting bill
Lawmakers reached an agreement on bipartisan cyber incident reporting legislation that includes ICBA-advocated updates to avoid excessive burdens on community banks.
November 08, 2021 |
ICBA NewsWatch Today
Cybersecurity Technology
ICBA continues IRS push in congressional roundtable
ICBA continued pushing back against the IRS reporting proposal during testimony at a House Financial Services Committee Republican roundtable.
November 08, 2021 |
ICBA NewsWatch Today
Taxes & Budget
ICBA releases new innovation podcast
ICBA released the second podcast in its new Communities of Innovation series on community bank innovation stories and experiences.
November 08, 2021 |
Podcast
Technology
CFPB targets faulty identity matching practices
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau issued an advisory opinion affirming that consumer reporting companies engaging in “shoddy name-matching procedures” are violating the law.
November 05, 2021 |
ICBA NewsWatch Today
Compliance
ICBA to Congress: Extend data security standards to nonbanks
ICBA called on Congress to extend Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act data security standards to retailers, technology companies, and other parties that process or store consumer financial data.
November 04, 2021 |
ICBA NewsWatch Today
Cybersecurity Technology
ICBA joining webinar on bank-like credit unions
ICBA Chairman Robert Fisher will participate in a National Taxpayers Union webinar scheduled for next week on the “rise of bank-like credit unions.”
November 04, 2021 |
ICBA NewsWatch Today
Credit Unions
Hsu: OCC has concluded fintech charter review
The OCC has concluded its review of bank charter applications and crypto-related interpretative letters and will be communicating its findings in the coming weeks, Acting Comptroller of the Currency Michael Hsu said.
November 04, 2021 |
ICBA NewsWatch Today
Digital Assets Technology
Independent Banker
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.
Marketing Resource Center
Visit this page regularly for new customizable press releases, opeds, tutorials, sharable videos, tip sheets, and sample social media posts which are available exclusively for ICBA members.
Access the toolkit
Example Text
ICBA NewsWatch Today
ICBA offers numerous specialty newsletters related to the community banking industry. Sign up for ICBA's daily email news bulletin for current and breaking industry news
Read Articles
Example Text
Subscribe to Independent Banker Magazine
Independent Banker® is the monthly publication of the Independent Community Bankers of America, recognized as the number one source ICBA members rely on for community banking news.
Subscribe Now
Example Text
Manage Your Email Notifications and Subscriptions
Sign up to receive or manage your email messages from ICBA. Questions? Contact ICBA.
Subscribe Now
Example Text