Financial Action Task Force Identified Jurisdictions Update

On October 23, 2020 the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) updated its list of jurisdictions with strategic deficiencies in their regimes to counter money laundering, terrorist financing, and proliferation financing.  The change may affect financial institutions’ obligations and risk-based approaches with respect to relevant jurisdictions. In Summary: Identified high-risk jurisdictions remain the same as the FATF’s February 2020 statement. Identified … Read More

Real Estate Geographic Targeting Orders

The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) announced the renewal of its Geographic Targeting Orders (GTOs) that require U.S. title insurance companies to identify the natural persons behind shell companies used in all-cash purchases of residential real estate.  These renewed GTOs are identical to the May 2020 GTOs.  The purchase amount threshold remains $300,000 for each covered metropolitan area. The terms of … Read More

Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (Regulation F) Final Rule

On October 30, 2020, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued a final rule to restate and clarify prohibitions on harassment and abuse, false or misleading representations, and unfair practices by debt collectors when collecting consumer debt. The rule focuses on debt collection communications and gives consumers more control over how often and through what means debt collectors can communicate … Read More

October’s Regulatory Recap

October’s Regulatory Recap is now available here.  Let us know if we can help in any way.   Please be advised that CSG provides financial services compliance audit and consulting services to our clients.  The services that we provide include certain tasks that may be characterized as “law-related services” under Rule 5.7 of the Rules of Professional Conduct governing lawyers.  Since some … Read More

Sound Practices to Strengthen Operational Resilience

The Federal Reserve, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) issued an interagency paper, Sound Practices to Strengthen Operational Resilience, which describes sound practices drawn from existing regulations and guidance for individual national banks, state member banks, state nonmember banks, savings associations, U.S. bank holding companies, and savings and loan holding companies … Read More

Proposed Changes to the BSA Travel Rule

The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) and the Federal Reserve Board have asked for comments on a proposed rule that would amend the recordkeeping and travel rule regulations under the Bank Secrecy Act. FinCEN and the Board, pursuant to their shared authority, are proposing amendments to the recordkeeping rule jointly, while FinCEN, pursuant to its sole authority, is proposing amendments … Read More

Ability to Repay and Qualified Mortgages (ATR/QM)

On October 20, 2020 the CFPB issued a final rule amending the ATR/QM Rule.  The rule extends the sunset date for the Temporary GSE QM category (GSE Patch). With certain exceptions, Regulation Z requires creditors to make a reasonable, good faith determination of a consumer’s ability to repay any residential mortgage loan, and loans that meet Regulation Z’s requirements for … Read More

FIN-2020-A008 Supplemental Advisory on Identifying and Reporting Human Trafficking and Related Activity.

In 2014 FinCEN published Advisory FIN-2014-A008, Guidance on Recognizing Activity that May be Associated with Human Smuggling and Human Trafficking — Financial Red Flags.  On October 15, 2020 FinCEN published a supplement to the 2014 Advisory, FIN-2020-A008, Supplemental Advisory on Identifying and Reporting Human Trafficking and Related Activity. Since the 2014 Advisory, FinCEN identified 20 new financial and behavioral indicators … Read More

Updates to FinCEN Rules and Regulations – Compliance deadline March 15, 2021

Anti-Money Laundering (AML) programs are intended to assist financial institutions with detecting and reporting suspicious activities to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), a bureau of the U.S. Treasury. In a newly published FinCEN rule, a state-chartered trust company (i.e. with no functional Federal regulator) must implement an AML program and is further required to comply with the Customer Due … Read More

Unemployment Insurance Fraud

The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) issued advisory FIN-2020-A007, Advisory on Unemployment Insurance Fraud During the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Pandemic.  The advisory was issued to alert financial institutions to unemployment insurance (UI) fraud observed during the COVID-19 pandemic.  The advisory includes descriptions of COVID-19-related UI fraud, associated financial red flag indicators, and information on reporting suspicious activity. Financial red … Read More