CFPB and the Community Banks

Gauging the impact of new financial regulations on the nation’s community banks is a top priority for regulators, according to testimony from a congressional hearing last week. The FDIC is focused on addressing megabank risks while being sensitive to the regulatory impact on community banks, FDIC Chairman Martin Gruenberg told the Senate Banking Committee.

Comptroller of the Currency Thomas Curry said he has directed OCC staff to look for ways to minimize potential burdens on community banks and to organize and explain the agency’s rulemaking documents to facilitate community bankers’ understanding of how the rules affect their institutions.

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Richard Cordray said the bureau knows community banks might be more likely to retreat from the mortgage market if the new rules are too burdensome. He said the CFPB is working to tailor its rules to encourage small providers to continue providing credit and other services.


---ICBA