Comptroller Gould Outlines Plans for “Regulatory Reset”

Comptroller of the Currency Jonathan Gould stated earlier this week at the American Bankers Association annual conference that the best thing he could do for the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) would be a regulatory reset. He promised more community bank relief in the future and referred to the OCC’s actions during his time there as “down payments.”

Gould stressed at the convention that it would be important to “reset that risk tolerance and take a much more thoughtful approach, rather than kind of a merely reactionary approach, to regulation and supervision going forward,” according to Banking Dive. He also brought up his awareness of the uneven playing field between banks and credit unions.

Recently, the OCC has issued guidance to ease the regulatory burden for smaller community banks, especially as federal banking agencies have underscored the need for specific supervision and regulation under Trump appointees. This includes eliminating exam requirements for community banks that are not specifically laid out by statute, as well as reducing rates in the general assessment fee schedule.

Gould said that the OCC is looking to offer a simplified, strategic plan for community banks pertaining to Community Reinvestment Act performance, and is seeking reforms to the community bank leverage ratio, third-party risk management, and liquidity frameworks. He highlighted a lack of supervisory focus evident in federal banking agencies since the 2008 financial crisis.

“The problem with focusing on everything … is that you don’t focus on the things that most matter, right?” said Gould. “If you’re trying to be everything to everyone, you run the risk of being unsuccessful at your actual statutory mission, which is really safety and soundness and material financial risks.”

Gould said he views his role at the OCC as one that should facilitate ways to increase the industry’s long-term viability. He wants to ensure that large banks are not the only ones that have the risk management sophistication for new technologies like stablecoins.