Risky Business—Fed Agencies to Alter Bank Compensation

In an attempt to prevent banks and other financial institutions from the excessively risky practices that led to the financial crisis and Great Recession, financial industry regulators are seeking comment on a proposed rule that would implement Section 956 of the Dodd-Frank Act and change compensation structures and align banks’ incentives.

The new proposed rule is a revision of a rule that was proposed in April 2011 and is developed jointly by six federal regulatory agencies: the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the FDIC, the Federal Reserve Board, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), the SEC, and the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA).

Section 956 of the Dodd-Frank Act requires that federal regulating agencies jointly issue guidelines “(1) prohibiting incentive-based payment arrangements that the Agencies determine encourage inappropriate risks by certain financial institutions by providing excessive compensation or that could lead to material financial loss; and (2) requiring those financial institutions to disclose information concerning incentive-based compensation arrangements to the appropriate Federal regulator,” according to the proposed rule.

Under Dodd-Frank, financial institutions covered are any of the following types of institutions that have $1 billion or more in assets:

• Depository institutions or depository institution holding companies
• Broker-dealers registered under section 15 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
• Credit unions
• Investment advisers
• Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac
• Any other institution the regulators jointly decide should be covered

“By requiring proper alignment of compensation incentives with an organization’s risk appetite, the rule calls on lending officers and other employees to put the interests of their institution above their own,” Comptroller of the Currency Thomas J. Curry said. “The rule will play an important role in helping safeguard financial institutions against practices that threaten safety and soundness, or could lead to material financial loss for the institution. It will also complement the OCC’s Heightened Standards guidelines, which address risk governance at large national banks and federal savings associations.”

Representatives from JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, and Bank of America all declined to comment on the new proposed rule.

Comments on the proposed rule must be received by July 22, 2016.

Click here to view the proposed rule.