Hi everyone! Reviewing a drive report through a vendor and could use some assistance. Do these reports cover red flags under FCRA, or does it only review OFAC/Fraud hits? If they pass, is that all you really look for or are additional steps needed? Any assistance you could provide would be appreciated.

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Tuesday, April 23 | 1 - 2 p.m. CST

Corrupt officials, both foreign and domestic, have long been a source of economic decline for countries around the globe. The U.S. financial system is a primary destination of illicit funds surrounding senior foreign political figures and political corruption. Learn the red flags of kleptocracy and how to keep your financial institution free from funds for terror financing and other illicit activity. Terri Luttrell, CAMS-Audit will lead the presentation. 

Join the webinar to learn:

• Ways that corrupt government leadership can create risk
• Red flags that Abrigo’s financial crime investigators have seen
• How to mitigate illicit activity and risk for your bank or credit union

Earn 1 CAMS credit and 1.25 CAFP, CFSSP, CRCM credits for attending. 

Register today. 

Quality control is a necessary piece of a successful BSA/AML program. Although, there is nothing in the FFIEC manual that requires a formal quality control process, it is something that regulators look for during an exam. It brings the investigations process full circle and is another part of your internal controls. Quality control in closed alerts and cases helps to ensure that the decision making and the documenting process follows the standards defined by your institution and can be used as a coaching opportunity for staff.

Abrigo's quality control template provides a good starting place for institutions looking to implement or enhance their current QC process. If you missed our webinar on BSA/AML Investigation Best Practices and Quality Control you can watch it at your convenience on our website. 

Abrigo CECL Survey - Results show progress, some laggards

For the third year in a row, Abrigo (formerly Farin, MST, Sageworks, and Bankers Toolbox) surveyed 125 individuals at a wide range of financial institutions to gauge CECL preparedness. The 2019 survey shows that as the Q1 2020 compliance date looms for SEC registrants, institutions of all types are making progress – but not enough, according to CECL experts. Nearly half of survey participants (and a majority of SEC filers) have already collected and validated data. This is important, because collecting and validating data for the loan loss calculation is typically one of the more significant bottlenecks and challenges in CECL implementation.

“The clock is ticking,” said Regan Camp, Senior Director of Advisory Services at Abrigo, (formerly Farin, MST, Sageworks, and Banker’s Toolbox). “While many financial institutions are taking the necessary steps to make sure they are prepared for this important change in accounting for credit losses, it’s clear that others are falling behind their peers.”

Download and read the full whitepaper.

Would anyone be willing to share a template for a Tax Allocation agreement between a Bank and Holding Company with Sub S status?  I am working on updating ours to reflect the Sub S election.  Thank you!

The cannabis industry can be hazy for financial professionals. Add the legislative issues facing the U.S. federal and state governments, and it can become highly overwhelming. In our latest blog, Terri Luttrell, CAMS-Audit discusses the difference between marijuana and hemp and where CBD falls into all of this. The 2018 Farm Bill legalized industrial hemp, but what exactly does that mean for financial institutions? Where does that leave CBD?

Read more: https://www.abrigo.com/blog/2019/04/02/banking-marijuana-hemp-and-cbd/ 

Hi Everyone,
Did you get a chance to see Jelena McWilliams, Chairman of the FDIC speech last week?
If not here it is https://www.fdic.gov/news/news/speeches/spmar1419.html. We found the part about De Novo Banks the most interesting. Only 2 were created from 2010-2016. Do you think the initiatives are enough on the FDIC’s part to help to create more banks, or do you think Fintechs are going to be the new banks? What are your thoughts?

Is anyone aware of a regulation that requires a proxy card to be separate from a signature card.  Right now we have our customers sign a separate proxy card and signature card and we were wondering if could all be included in one document. Our bank is in Illinois.

Does anyone have a sample of a letter or instructions you would give a HELOC customer at closing. It would detail how to make advances, make payments, etc.. I would like to give a letter with their checks when they close.

Traditionally, the IRS has been known to scrutinize S Corporations for not paying a “reasonable salary” to its shareholders - but do you know what that actually means? Check out Nadine Adams’s latest Compliance Corner post where she explains the definition of “reasonable salary” and how this should be accounted for:

https://www.pkm.com/compliance/what-is-considered-a-reasonable-salary-for-an-s-corporation-shareholder/

With the constant changes to regulatory compliance requirements, it can be hard to keep up. Download our Q1 checklist to make sure you are ahead of the curve on the top things your compliance team should be focused on right now.

https://www.pkm.com/resource/regulatory-compliance-to-do-list-q1-2019/

Is it possible to purchase loans from few years back for the purpose of upcoming CRA exam?

According to a 2017 Econsultancy report (from thefinancialbrand.com, "10 Essential Email Marketing Insights for Banks & Credit Unions"), marketers rate email as a tactic that has one of the highest returns on investment. This can be true when email marketing is done right. But when done wrong, the consequences can be bad (and even ugly!).

LISTEN: To learn how businesses can successfully leverage email marketing, listen to this podcast from Bankers Healthcare Group listed at the bottom.

DOWNLOAD: We’ve also summarized the five biggest takeaways from the episode in the attached doc.

I'm just curious is there any bank that still accepts these type of checks?
Thanks.

CECL is in the news a LOT now that we're less than a year out from the transition. Robert Ashbaugh and Chris Emery are making sure your financial institution understands all of the recent changes and the ways that those changes and proposals might affect your institution's CECL implementation. Tune in for our free webinar in two weeks -- get registered here: http://bit.ly/2GrF1mr

In January, 56 community banks from 20 states joined Bankers Healthcare Group for a behind-the-curtain experience at our Informational Regional Seminar in Nashville, Tenn.

Our 75 attendees heard from BHG’s Founder/Chairman/CEO Al Crawford and c-suite leadership team in finance, credit, underwriting, compliance, marketing, sales, and analytics. This was a great opportunity for them to learn about our business model, commercial medical loan program and financial strength, and uncover new revenue opportunities for their banks.

We had a great mix of prospective customers and current customers from some of BHG’s 940 bank partners, which gave everyone a chance to network and learn. Prospective customers love to hear about the experiences of current customers, while current customers appreciate the business and product updates, as well as the opportunity to connect with key BHG contacts.

Our seminars are a great way to get to know BHG—and we hold them throughout the year, across the country. If you’d like to attend an upcoming seminar, please email bhgbanks@bhg-inc.com or call 877-731-6562 to get the details!

About BHG: Bankers Healthcare Group (BHG) is the leading provider of financial solutions for licensed healthcare professionals. The company originates, underwrites and funds medical and professional loans before selling them to local banks nationwide.

To date, BHG has underwritten nearly $15 billion in commercial loan requests with an average size of $100,000, providing a network of more than 940 U.S. community banks a source for premium loans, portfolio diversification, and competitive yields without overhead costs traditionally associated with this quality borrower. Banks purchase BHG loans through a secure, online system that allows for daily sale and delivery of loans. This has been a highly effective channel for a bank to quickly approve and purchase loans according to their underwriting standards. BHG’s 2018 sales distribution has averaged $4 million per day and new loans are posted daily.

Pinnacle Financial Partners, Inc., and its subsidiary Pinnacle Bank hold a 49% total interest in BHG.

Thursday, February 14 | 1 p.m. CST/2 p.m. EST
Register here

Independent model validations are an important part of every financial institution’s AML program, yet many are uncertain about what they should entail, who can perform them, and how their vendor’s model validation fits.

In this webinar, Debra Eshbaugh, CAMS, will highlight what vendors include in their model validations, and how it differs from, yet complements, the independent model validation regulators require from financial institutions.

You will learn:

• The importance of independent model validations
• How the scope and depth of a model validation are determined
• What work you need to do ahead of a model validation being performed

Register here

Our holding company is buying a nonbank mortgage lender. We are comparing compliance issues/docs, etc. in preparation for consummation of this acquisition. I am discussing privacy notice requirements (GLBA) with the nonbank. In my reading, it appears that FTC is the enforcement regulator for privacy on nonbanks...but I cannot find any templates, rules, etc. on FTC website. I am wondering if anyone else has been through this process and had better success?

The tighter labor market has led to community banks approaching recruiting and employee retention more strategically. Join Abrigo for a complimentary webinar with Jared Morris, Senior Credit Officer at Peoples State Bank on January 30, as he walks through best practices that his bank has followed to find success in these areas: http://bit.ly/2B29sMN

In case you missed our first Regulatory Compliance Update of the New Year, you can catch the recording below! Be sure to give it a listen for the latest updates, upcoming deadlines and more for 2019.

https://www.pkm.com/resource/regulatory-compliance-update-live-january-22-2019/