§__.25(a) – 1
Q: How can certain credit card banks help to meet the credit needs of their communities without losing their exemption from the definition of “bank” in the Bank Holding Company Act (BHCA), as amended by the Competitive Equality Banking Act of 1987 (CEBA)?
A1. Although the BHCA restricts institutions known as CEBA credit card banks to credit card operations, a CEBA credit card bank can engage in community development activities without losing its exemption under the BHCA. A CEBA credit card bank could provide community development services and investments without engaging in operations other than credit card operations. For example, the bank could provide credit card counseling, or the financial expertise of its executives, free of charge, to community development organizations. In addition, a CEBA credit card bank could make qualified investments, as long as the investments meet the guidelines for passive and noncontrolling investments provided in the BHCA and the Board’s Regulation Y. Finally, although a CEBA credit card bank cannot make any loans other than credit card loans, under 12 CFR .25(d)(2) (community development test – indirect activities), the bank could elect to have part of its qualified passive and noncontrolling investments in a third-party lending consortium considered as community development lending, provided that the consortium’s loans otherwise meet the requirements for community development lending. When assessing a CEBA credit card bank’s CRA performance under the community development test, examiners will take into account the bank’s performance context. In particular, examiners will consider the legal constraints imposed by the BHCA on the bank’s activities, as part of the bank’s performance context in 12 CFR .21(b)(4).
Source: Interagency Questions & Answers Regarding Community Reinvestment | July 2016