Comptroller of the Currency Issues Bulletin on Final Rule

WASHINGTON, July 22 -- The U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of the Comptroller of the Currency issued the following bulletin (No. 2019-32):

To: Chief Executive Officers of All National Banks, Federal Savings Associations, and Federal Branches and Agencies of Foreign Banking Organizations; Department and Division Heads; All Examining Personnel; and Other Interested Parties

Description: Final Rule

Summary

On July 22, 2019, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (collectively, the agencies) published a final rule implementing amendments to section 13 of the Bank Holding Company Act, commonly known as the Volcker rule. The amendments are contained in sections 203 and 204 of the Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief, and Consumer Protection Act.

Note for Community Banks

Most community banks meet the conditions under the final rule that exempt them from the Volcker rule.

Highlights

The final rule

* excludes from the definition of "banking entity" certain firms that have total consolidated assets equal to $10 billion or less and total trading assets and liabilities equal to 5 percent or less of total consolidated assets.

* permits, under certain circumstances, a hedge fund or private equity fund to share the same name or a variation of the same name with an investment adviser that is not an insured depository institution, company that controls an insured depository institution, or bank holding company.

Further Information

Please contact Roman Goldstein, Risk Specialist, Treasury and Market Risk Policy, at (202) 649-6360; or Tabitha Edgens, Senior Attorney, or Mark O'Horo, Senior Attorney, Chief Counsel's Office, at (202) 649-5510.

Jonathan V. Gould

Senior Deputy Comptroller and Chief Counsel

Related Link

* Revisions to Prohibitions and Restrictions on Proprietary Trading and Certain Interests In, and Relationships With, Hedge Funds and Private Equity Funds (https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2019-07-22/pdf/2019-15019.pdf)