L-to-R: Sen. Angela Alsobrooks, 
Sen. Bill Hagerty, and Rep. Frank Lucas

Senators Angela Alsobrooks (D-MD) and Bill Hagerty (R-TN) filed the Senate version, while Rep. Frank Lucas (R-OK) introduced the House companion bill. 

Republicans on the House Financial Services Committee have introduced three bills that also would affect deposit insurance.

Rep. Andy Barr (R-KY) has filed a bill to direct the FDIC and NCUA to establish emergency transaction account guarantee programs to ensure the deposits that are maintained in noninterest-bearing transaction accounts.

L-to-R: Rep. Andy Barr, Rep. Dan Meuser, and Rep. Marlin Stutzman

Rep. Dan Meuser (R-PA) has introduced the Growing Deposit Insurance for the Future Act to update the inflation adjustment applicable to deposit insurance and share insurance.

And Rep. Marlin Stutzman (R-IN) has introduced a bill to require the FDIC and NCUA to study whether insurance coverage limits should be raised on covered transaction accounts.

Waters Seeks Answers from Fed

House Financial Services Committee Ranking Member Maxine Waters (D-CA) has sent a letter to the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City asking it to address a series of questions about the decision to grant the cryptocurrency firm Kraken Financial a one-year, “limited-purpose” master account. Waters requested the Kansas City Fed to clarify the terms of Kraken’s account access approval and provide additional information regarding the process and considerations it used.

FTC’s Warning about ‘Debanking’

The FTC has sent letters to PayPal, Stripe, Visa and Mastercard to warn them from engaging in alleged “debanking” activities.

FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson cites media reports of financial services companies allegedly denying customers access to services because of their political or religious views. 

Valerie Quiett, M&F

Supervisory Oversight over Nonbanks

The Financial Stability Oversight Council has proposed interpretive guidance on nonbank financial company designations and when the companies should be subject to Federal Reserve supervision. Under the Dodd-Frank Act, the FSOC can designate nonbank financial companies as subject to Fed supervision if they potentially pose a threat to U.S. financial stability.

The council last revised its guidance for making those determinations in 2023.

HMDA Data

The FFIEC has released the 2025 data on modified loan applications, as reported by 4,768 filers under the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act. The annual loan-level data for each HMDA filer is now available online. Previously, users could obtain the data only by making requests to specific institutions for their annual data.

Possible Changes to 401(k) Investing Rules 

The Labor Department has issued a proposal to allow 401(k) plan managers to rely on a safe harbor for investing in a broader range of alternative assets, including cryptocurrencies and private equity. The rule establishes factors for fiduciaries to consider, relating to performance, fees, liquidity, valuation, performance benchmarks and complexity. 

OCC Standards for Large Banks

As part of an effort to eliminate unnecessary regulatory burdens, the OCC has finalized a rule to rescind the agency’s updated recovery planning guidelines for banks with at least $100 billion in assets. 

OCC Report on Trading Activity

The OCC has released its Quarterly Report on Bank Trading and Derivatives Activities covering activity during the fourth quarter of 2025. 

FDIC Consumer Compliance Topics

The FDIC has issued the 2026 edition of Consumer Compliance Supervisory Highlights. It provides an overview of consumer compliance issues identified in 2025. 

AI Resources for Financial Services Industry

The Financial Services Sector Coordinating Council has released additional resources to help the financial services sector safely deploy artificial intelligence.

The new resources include:

• Identity and authentication resources, including “Mitigating AI-Powered Attacks Against Identity and Authentication” and the associated “Recommendations for Policy Makers.”

• “AI and Explainability in Finance: Explainability Challenges, Practices and Recommendations,” which includes steps to deliver intended and trustworthy outputs.

• The "AI Enhanced Fraud" resource, providing details on what education and awareness programs should look like to counter issues like deepfakes. 

Voluntary Accord to Fight Scams

A group of large tech companies have signed a voluntary accord pledging to take “proactive actions” to fight fraud and scams on their platforms and increase cooperation with law enforcement to identify financial fraud. The seven-page document lists several voluntary principles and actions the signatories agree to take to fight fraud, including enforcing anti-scam policies in a “timely manner” and increasing public education efforts. 

The timing of the pledge raises questions about whether it is a calculated move to try to forestall legislation and mandatory requirements and penalties like those proposed in the Safeguarding Consumers from Advertising Misconduct (SCAM) Act (S. 3774 and H.R. 7548). The legislation would require social media companies to verify advertisers’ identity, implement systems to detect fraudulent advertisements, and investigate and remove fake ads.

FinCEN Advisory

FinCEN has issued a financial institution advisory on red flags related to alleged fraudulent healthcare schemes targeting Medicare, Medicaid, and other Federal and state healthcare benefit programs.

Paying Whistleblowers

FinCEN has proposed a new rule to provide incentives to people who report tips on BSA and sanctions violations and other illegal activity. Awards would range from 10% to 30% of collected monetary penalties for individuals if their tips lead to a successful enforcement action by the Treasury Department or the Department of Justice. The rule also would establish protections for whistleblowers who provide information.

Announcing NCBA's New Membership Portal!

NCBA is rolling out a new membership portal powered by Novi to make it easier for members to connect with the Association and manage their engagement in one central location. The new portal will serve as a central hub for event registration, member data updates, affiliate directories, user groups, and more.

This upgrade is designed to create a smoother, more user-friendly experience while giving members better access to the tools and information they use most. Keep an eye on this Bulletin in the weeks ahead for more information about the new NCBA membership portal and what members can expect.

Need Credits? Earn CRCM, CPE, SHRM and More!

Looking to skill up? For a limited time, North Carolina Bankers Association is making it easier than ever to invest in your professional growth. Sign up for one of the upcoming webinars from our partnered providers:

Fidelity BancShares, Inc. and Fidelity Bank Announce Execution of Definitive Merger Agreement to Acquire Affinity Bancshares, Inc. and Affinity Bank

Fidelity BancShares, Inc., the holding company for The Fidelity Bank, and Affinity Bancshares, Inc. , the holding company for Affinity Bank, jointly announced the signing of a definitive merger agreement in which Fidelity Bank has agreed to acquire 100% of the common stock of Affinity in an all-cash transaction valued at approximately $142.8 million. The transaction marks Fidelity’s entry into Georgia.

It is not the strongest of the species that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change.

- Charles Darwin