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Portions of "NewsWatch" are reprinted with permission from "NewsWatch Today", a publication of
the Independent Community Bankers of America, and brought to you as a
part of your bank's relationship with the Arkansas Community Bankers
Association. We're pleased to provide information about current
issues affecting community banks. If you prefer not to receive
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FCS Regulator
Issues ICBA-Opposed Lending Proposal
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As anticipated,
the Farm Credit Administration, regulator of the Farm Credit System,
published a proposal in Monday's Federal Register to allow broad-based
lending for FCS institutions in cities up to 50,000 people. The
proposal, strongly opposed by ICBA, would authorize each FCS
institution to "invest" in rural communities for practically
any purpose. These investments would allow FCS lenders to compete
directly with community banks for any type of loan as long as FCS
labels the loan as an "investment." The proposal will be open
for public comment until Aug. 15.
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FDIC Publishes
Compliance Checklist
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The FDIC's summer issue of
Supervisory Insights offers a summary checklist of recently released
regulations and supervisory guidance, along with upcoming compliance
deadlines from various federal agencies. The checklist arranges
regulatory deadlines in reverse chronological order and includes links
to more information.
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Underbanked
Market Segment Study Released
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The attitudes
and preferences about financial services for eight underbanked consumer
groups-identified by traits such as cash users, compulsive savers and
regular borrowers-are discussed in a study by the Center for
Financial Services Innovation. Twenty-six percent of the underbanked
segments have a prime credit score while 72 percent were consider
subprime borrowers or borrowers with little to no credit history,
according to the study.
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OCC: Large
Banks Tighten Underwriting Standards
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Commercial and
retail underwriting standards tightened for the first time in four
years at the 62 largest banks, according to a report by the Office of
the Comptroller of the Currency. Examiners reported increased risk in
the national lenders' commercial and retail portfolios-a trend expected
to continue to increase over the coming year. The weakening economy,
rising energy costs, turbulence in the secondary credit markets, the
downturn in the housing market, and the anticipated impact of relaxed
underwriting standards over the past few years on payment performance,
were cited as factors.
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Home
Foreclosures Fall, Repossessions Jump
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The pace of home
default and foreclosure auction notices slowed in May, but bank
repossessions of homes posted a double-digit percentage increase,
according to RealtyTrac Inc., which produces an online property
foreclosures listing. Total inventory of bank-owned REOs increased to
more than 700,000 properties, the company reported. One in every
483 U.S. households was foreclosed upon or was involved in a
foreclosure action last month.
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