OCC: Supporting America Saves Week
WASHINGTON — Comptroller of the Currency Thomas J. Curry today issued the following statement in recognition of America Saves Week, February 22 – 27, 2016: The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency is pleased to support America Saves Week, which encourages individuals and families to prepare for the future and build personal wealth. National…
CFPB: Policy Finalized to Facilitate Consumer-Friendly Innovation
Bureau Publishes Policy to Reduce Potential Regulatory Uncertainty for Innovative Products that Promise Significant Consumer Benefits WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) finalized a policy to facilitate consumer access to financial products and services that promise substantial benefit to consumers. The new policy establishes a process for companies to apply for a…
ABA: Safe Banking For Seniors Program Launched
New, turnkey curriculum available for America’s hometown banks WASHINGTON — The American Bankers Association today launched its Safe Banking for Seniors program with the release of newly created curriculum and other materials. The program, first announced in September 2015, will mobilize bankers across the country to educate older Americans and their caregivers about elder financial…
CFPB: Steps Taken To Improve Checking Account Access
CFPB Concerned that Screening Inaccuracies and Lack of Account Options are Keeping Consumers Out of the Banking System WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is taking steps to improve checking account access amidst Bureau concerns that consumers are being sidelined by the lack of account options and by inaccurate information used to…
ABA: Survey Finds That Most Americans Pay Nothing For Bank Services
ABA highlights 8 tips to save on bank costs WASHINGTON — The majority of Americans—61 percent—pay nothing at all for bank services such as checking account maintenance and ATM access, according to a recent survey by the American Bankers Association. Most bank customers (72 percent) spend $3 or less in monthly fees—less than the cost…
Federal Reserve: Survey Provides Information on Mobile Financial Services
The use of mobile phones to access bank accounts, credit cards, or other financial accounts continued to increase among adults in the United States last year, according to a Federal Reserve Board report, Consumers and Mobile Financial Services 2015 (PDF). The report is the Board’s fourth looking at how consumers access banking services using mobile phones (“mobile…
ABA: CFPB Prepaid Rules Could Harm Underbanked Customers
In a news release, the American Bankers Association commented on the CFPB’s proposed rulemaking regarding prepaid cards: “The CFPB’s proposed rules for prepaid products include some onerous provisions that could create insurmountable compliance barriers for banks offering the cards, ABA said in a comment letter. This would be particularly harmful for “underbanked” individuals, many of…
FDIC: Branch Banking Remains Prevalent Despite the Growth of Online and Mobile Banking
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) today released a study showing that despite the increased use of online and mobile banking, brick-and-mortar banking offices continue to be the primary means through which FDIC-insured institutions deliver financial services to their customers. FDIC-insured institutions operated 94,725 banking offices as of June 2014, a decline of just 4.8…