Wishing You a Happy Thanksgiving

As we reflect on this season of gratitude, our office staff extends our warmest thanks to you—our members—for your continued support and partnership. We are truly grateful for the opportunity to serve you and the New York community banking industry.

Please note: Our office will be closed on November 27 & 28 to allow our team time to celebrate with family and friends.

From all of us, we wish you a joyful and safe Thanksgiving holiday!

Next week, we move into December. IBANYS’ Human Resources Conference -- our first virtual conference of Fiscal Year 2025-26 -- is Tuesday, December 9 (8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.) Join us for this special half-day session was developed to help community banks enhance their people strategy, strengthen compliance, and lead with confidence. Designed for community bank HR Managers, Training Officers, Branch Managers, Hiring Managers, Supervisors and IT professionals, it will bring together experts in HR leadership, cybersecurity, retirement planning, and organizational culture. You’ll gain actionable insights and practical tools to support your bank’s most valuable asset—your people.

Agenda Highlights:

• Ensuring Operational Compliance While Improving Participant Outcomes: Explore how to design

compliant, high-performing retirement plans.

• From Compliance Cop to Culture Catalyst: Transform HR’s role from policy enforcer to strategic

culture leader.

• Mitigating Hacker Vulnerabilities & Hiring Risks: How to protect against cybersecurity and hiring

threats.

• Leadership is Hard: Balancing Engagement, Culture & Well-Being: Discover how to cultivate an engaged, resilient workplace culture.

Please Note: The Registration Deadline: Thursday, December 4, 2025. Download the brochure and register today! Questions? Contact Linda Gregware: lindag@ibanys.net or (518) 436-4646.

. . . . . . . . . .

This week we gather with family, friends and loved ones for Thanksgiving – a day that’s about much more than feasting and football. It's a day of togetherness. . . a time to pause and reflect, appreciate what we have, take note of those less fortunate and express gratitude to those who make our lives meaningful. 

Thanksgiving's origins trace to a 1621 harvest meal shared by Plymouth, Massachusetts colonists and the Wampanoag people. The modern federal holiday was established by President Lincoln in 1863. 

• President Kennedy once noted: “As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them.” 

• President Reagan said Thanksgiving is “a day when Americans extend a helping hand to the less fortunate…a day of giving as well as a day of thanks.” 

Those comments are not only inspirational – they define the very spirit and mission of community bankers, who make a positive difference every day in the lives of the people and communities they serve. We at IBANYS are thankful for so much, including the privilege of representing and working for you. We are mindful of the responsibility and legacy you carry forward, and we deeply appreciate all you do to make life better for those who rely on you.

In the spirit of American humor, let’s also appreciate the a few memorable words from some renowned Americans on the more “flavorful” joys of the day:

• “I come from a family where gravy is considered a beverage.” — Erma Bombeck.

• “Cut my pie into four pieces, I don’t think I could eat eight.” — Yogi Berra

• "Turducken: You stuff the turkey with the duck, then you stuff the duck with the chicken. . . I've been eating it all day. . . I've never eaten just a few bites of things I liked in my life.” — John Madden

• “Thanksgiving. . . Not a good day to be my pants.” Kevin James

. . . We wish everyone a happy, healthy, meaningful . . .and “fulfilling” Thanksgiving Holiday.

John Witkowski, President & CEO

Linda Gregware, Director of Administration & Membership Services

Steve Rice, Director of Government Relations & Communications

Bill Crowell, Legislative Counsel

. . . . . .

Does your bank participate to the fullest extent in IBANYS? Know how to get the most value from your membership? Get your senior management teams, employees & directors involved!

• Check out our committees, webinars, seminars, meetings and conferences.
• Share our weekly updates and newsletters.
• Keep them up-to-date on upcoming opportunities & activities impacting your bank and our industry.

WANT TO GET MORE INVOLVED? WOULD YOU LIKE US TO ADD NAMES TO OUR DISTRIBUTION LISTS? Contact IBANYS' Director of Administration & Operations Linda Gregware (Lindag@ibanys.net) or me (Johnw@ibanys.net). . . Visit https://ibanys.net/ and review IBANYS' mission -- and, and what we do for New York community banks. We’re still the voice at the table representing just New York community banks, just as we were founded more than a half-century ago.

2026 IBANYS MEETINGS

Stay tuned! As meeting agendas are finalized, details and registration information will be shared via email, the IBANYS website (ibanys.net/meetings-schedule), and in upcoming e-newsletters.

IBANYS DECEMBER WEBINARS

ASSOCIATE & PREFERRED PARTNERS

You're invited

2026 U.S. Economic and Interest Rate Outlook

December 2, 2025 | Webinar

The Promised Recession... So Where Is It?

Piper Sandler invites you to a live webinar with Dimitri Delis, director of fixed income research.

Inflation is cooling but still sticky, the job market is losing steam, and yet growth keeps surprising. Liquidity seems stable, but the market’s plumbing tells a different story. Join our 2026 U.S. Economic and Interest Rate Outlook Webinar to uncover why the long-awaited recession hasn’t arrived—and what’s really holding the economy up. We’ll explore:



• How the wealth effect is fueling spending and when does it run out of steam.
• Why the White House’s policy agenda could redefine America’s fiscal path.
• Whether liquidity strains are emerging and what they mean for markets.
• How the Fed and Treasury are reshaping near-term and long-term yields.

Don’t miss this in-depth look at the hidden forces shaping the next market cycle. 

Date & Time

Tuesday, December 2, 2025

1:00-2:00 p.m. ET

Add to calendar

Registration

To confirm your attendance, please register below.

Register Now

Questions? Please contact Dimitri Delis.

Hosted By

Dimitri Delis, Ph.D.

Managing Director,

Director of Fixed Income Research

312 267-5158

dimitri.delis@psc.com

Financial Institutions Webinar Series

Join The Bonadio Group for our highly anticipated Annual Financial Institutions Professionals Series, taking place December 9, 10, & 11. This complimentary event brings together leading industry experts to explore emerging trends, key challenges, and forward-looking insights shaping the future of financial institutions. With a customizable agenda, you can focus on the topics that align most closely with your professional objectives.



Register now to take advantage of this unique opportunity to broaden your expertise and prepare for the year ahead, all while earning continuing professional education (CPE) credits.

THE WEEK OF NOVEMBER 24, 2025

The Municipal Market Monitor is a weekly overview covering key themes of the general municipal market. The update includes the AAA yield curve, municipal to treasuries ratio, fund flows, expected issuance volume and Piper Sandler’s weekly calendar, along with brief commentary, designed to provide issuers and investors insight into current market conditions.

Senior Lending Summit

December 2, 2025 (10:00 am – 3:00 pm CST)

Who it's for?

Senior Lenders, Chief Credit Officers, Chief Lending Officers, Senior Credit Officers and other senior bankers/managers responsible for lending-related functions.

Cost: $295 per bank with assets $2B and less

$395 per bank with assets in excess of $2B

What will it be like?

This will be an all-virtual event. Great lectures, roundtable discussions, numerous case studies, and opportunities to network.

5 hours of instruction are scheduled.

Topics Include:

• Review of Current Industries, Trends, and CRE Sectors
• Loan Pricing and Structuring Issues
• Dealing With Non-Bank Competitors
• Regulatory Exams, ALLL and Other Portfolio Management Issues
• It’s Time to Highlight and Recognize the Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Efforts of Your Borrowers
• The People Element: What Works for Hiring, Retaining and Training Lending Staff?

May 17-22, 2026

Barret Graduate School

Our three year graduate program. Annual one-week residency session.

Barret Graduate School Curriculum in Brief

One week per year for three years • 130+ hours of core classroom study • Nine on-campus case studies• Eight home study problems.

Over the three year graduate program, participants will have access to 200+ hours of training.

ICBA Information

ALBANY UPDATE

• With only weeks remaining until Gov. Hochul presents her election year state budget plan, revenue is coming in faster-than-expected -- but it may not be enough to hold off a tax hike to pay for NYC Mayor-Elect Mamdani’s agenda. NYS Comptroller DiNapoli told POLITICO Pro that Wall Street’s bull market has helped New York’s economy and coffers, but the state hasn’t felt the full impact of federal spending cuts yet. Top Democrats are unsure if tax hikes will be needed. Gov. Hochul has been telling reporters that federal government uncertainty may trigger a reassessment of whether tax increases are necessary. POLITICO Pro first reported state officials are considering an increase in the corporate tax rate. Mamdani said Sunday he supports tax hikes but would also back alternative revenue sources.  https://www.politico.com/newsletters/new-york-playbook/2025/11/24/mamdanis-outside-the-box-allies-00666702?nname=new-york-playbook&nid=0000014f-1646-d88f-a1cf-5f46b74f0000&nrid=00000152-f737-dcf0-a7d7-f73fb7700001

• Deputy State Senate Majority Leader Gianaris (D-Queens) set the stage for the upcoming 2026 state legislative session. https://nystateofpolitics.com/state-of-politics/new-york/politics/2025/11/21/gianaris-on-upcoming-session. He discussed a range of topics, including possible tax increases: “Both the Senate and Assembly have included an increased tax on high-income individuals going back for several years now. The governor is resistant to that. If she has other ideas for how to fund some of these important programs, we’re all ears…" Read More. 

• As Gov Hochul was highlighting affordability in New York City, clergy and community leaders in Buffalo urged her to address the affordability crisis across the state, noting 1) Rising costs for food, housing and utilities are pushing families to the brink and 2) Rising car insurance premiums are forcing families to choose between essential coverage or basic household needs. Read More.

• The latest Siena poll shows Gov. Hochul leading likely GOP challenger Rep. Elise Stefanik by 20 points, President Trump said he disagrees with Stefanik’s claim that NYC Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani is a “jihadist,” according to State of Politics. The Trump-Mamdani meeting could not have come at a worse time for Stefanik, whose path to defeating Hochul got "much more complicated," Politico New York reports. However, her former potential GOP primary opponent Rep. Mike Lawler (R-Hudson Valley) has now endorsed her over Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, the New York Post reports.

• The friendly meeting between President Trump and NYC Mayor-Elect Mamdani “shook up” the state’s political landscape. Gothamist. Mamdani has reset expectations” somewhat by getting “chummy with President Donald Trump” and opting to spurn a fellow democratic socialist hoping to primary House Minority Leader Jeffries (D-Brooklyn) and to retain a police commissioner (Tisch) popular among moderates and Republicans. Here's where things currently stand with Trump and Mamdani — and with New York's 2026 gubernatorial candidates.

• A changing of the guard may be underway within New York's predominantly Democratic congressional delegation, The New York Times reports. Several members are either retiring or facing primaries in 2026, amNewYork reports. Reps. Nadler (Manhattan) and Velázquez (Brooklyn/Queens have announced plans to retire at the end of their current terms, and there are potential or declared candidates in five other districts with incumbents: CDs 6, 8, 10, 13 and 15. Read More.

• Rep. Nydia Velázquez (D-Brooklyn & Queens) plans to retire at the end of her current term and hopes other longtime officials will take her cue. . https://nystateofpolitics.com/state-of-politics/new-york/news/2025/11/20/rep--nydia-vel-zquez-will-not-seek-reelection-in-2026. . . With the Velázquez announcement: Here are some of the possible NY-7 candidates. 

• Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) has become one of the most powerful players in the Democratic Party’s leadership vacuum. She “has learned to play the inside game,” WaPo’s Liz Goodwin and Yasmeen Abutaleb report, and is seriously considering either a Senate run or a presidential run in 2028.

• Progressives are ready to target New York’s congressional delegation after NYC Mayor-Elect Mamdani’s win. PIX11.

FEDERAL UPDATE

• Treasury and the IRS issued interim guidance for the ICBA-advocated ACRE Act tax exclusion for agricultural lending passed under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act -- which added a section to the Internal Revenue Code allowing lenders to exclude from gross income 25% of the interest they receive from loans secured by rural or agricultural real property. The ACRE Act exclusion—long sought by ICBA—was enacted under Section 139L of the OBBBA. The IRS said the guidance defines key terms, establishes standards for determining whether a loan is secured by rural or agricultural property, and provides rules regarding loans that refinance a prior loan but also include new money. Proposed regulations are forthcoming and will be similar to the guidance. In a joint letter earlier this year, ICBA and its affiliated state community banking associations called on Treasury to ensure the exclusion applies to as many agricultural loans as possible and urged Treasury to take a broad interpretation of loans used to acquire rural and agricultural real estate, including any loan secured by such real estate. ICBA is reviewing the guidance and plans to submit formal comments ahead of the Jan. 20 comment deadline. ICBA’s primary concern remains ensuring the regulations qualify as many loans as possible, consistent with the statute, and don’t impose restrictions that would deny interest rate relief to the farmers and ranchers the new law is designed to benefit.

• ICBA is asking community bankers to urge their senators to ensure the measure bars all digital assets market participants from offering yield, interest, or rewards on payment stablecoins. Use a customizable message on ICBA’s Be Heard grassroots action center to tell their senators to minimize risks to the banking system and local economies by extending the prohibition to crypto exchanges and other third parties.

• News On Regulatory Personnel. 1) The Senate Banking Committee has advanced the nomination of Travis Hill to be FDIC chairman; The nomination now heads to the full Senate for a final vote. 2) President Trump nominated Stuart Levenbach to be Director of the CFPB for a five-year term. 3) The FDIC announced the appointment of Dana Wade as Deputy to the Chairman and Chief of Staff. https://www.fdic.gov/news/press-releases/2025/fdic-appoints-dana-t-wade-deputy-chairman-and-chief-staff. 4) The Senate Agriculture Committee advanced the nomination of Mike Selig to be Chairman and Commissioner of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. If confirmed by the Senate, he would succeed Acting Chair Pham.  

• Federal Reserve Governor Miran said the Fed’s regulatory framework should allow community banks to remain the engines of their local economies, adding that he would support proposals to grant additional relief aimed at community banks. Miran noted “the costs and benefits of a regulation on a community bank are rarely comparable to those of the same regulation on a systemically important bank but heavily impact the credit available to Main Street businesses, where local knowledge is critical.”

• The OCC's Jonathan Gould sat down with American Banker (subscription required) for an interview. The Comptroller of the Currency said regulators must bring more new entrants into the banking industry, establish a level playing field between banks and fintechs, and shore up supervision amid mounting legal scrutiny.

• House Financial Services Committee Chair Hill (R-AR) wants to consider a range of ideas on how to improve deposit insurance and other issues facing community banks beyond a Senate bill raising insurance for business accounts. The American Banker (subscription required). https://www.americanbanker.com/news/hfsc-chair-hill-eyes-wider-scope-in-deposit-insurance-debate

• American Banker (subscription required) reports the CFPB plans to transfer its entire enforcement and legal divisions to the Department of Justice and furlough almost all staff in those units. https://www.americanbanker.com/news/cfpb-transfers-enforcement-to-doj-furloughs-some-staff?utm_campaign=NL_AB_Daily_Briefing_11212025&position=1&utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&campaignname=NL_AB_Daily_Briefing_11212025&oly_enc_id=6022C2600790I8Z

• The CFPB announced its Consumer Advisory Board will meet to discuss fair lending and small-dollar products next month. They will meet at 11 a.m. Tuesday, Dec. 9, on fair lending, and at 2 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 10, on small-dollar lending. Both meetings will be held virtually and open to the public. The CFPB in March said it would not prioritize enforcement or supervision related to its final rule on small-dollar lending, and it indicated earlier this month it would revise its disparate impact analysis to assess fair lending. ICBA has called on the CFPB to allow flexibility for banks to use their own reasonable underwriting guidelines and encouraged the agency to promote community banks as model small-dollar lenders. ICBA strongly supports equal access to credit while consistently supporting amending fair lending laws to clarify that disparate impact without a finding of intentional discrimination does not violate fair lending.

• Following the news of Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene’s (R-GA) surprise January retirement plans, other GOP House members are also reportedly considering retiring in the middle of the term – which could threaten Speaker Johnson’s (R-LA) majority, Punchbowl News reports. One member told Politico more details. More on GOP House politics: Why Mike Johnson is losing control of the House.