Press Release

FDIC Board Approves Proposal on Deposit Account Recordkeeping Requirements to Facilitate Timely Access to Deposits in Large Bank Failures

Proposal Would Apply to Institutions with More Than 2 Million Deposit Accounts

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE February 17, 2016

Media contact: Barbara Hagenbaugh (202) 898-7192 bhagenbaugh@fdic.gov

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) today approved a proposal for recordkeeping requirements for FDIC-insured institutions with a large number of deposit accounts to facilitate rapid payment of insured deposits to customers if the institutions were to fail.

The proposed rule would apply to insured depository institutions with more than 2 million deposit accounts. Under the proposal, these institutions would generally be required to maintain complete and accurate data on each depositor. Further, the institutions would be required to ensure that their information technology systems are capable of calculating the amount of insured money for each depositor within 24 hours of a failure.

The FDIC is not proposing or considering making these requirements applicable to smaller institutions, including community banks.

"Timely access to insured deposits is critical to maintaining public confidence in the banking system," FDIC Chairman Martin J. Gruenberg said. "This proposal would bolster the FDIC's ability to provide depositors at banks with a large number of deposit accounts the same rapid access to their insured funds in the case of a failure as the FDIC does in smaller resolutions."

The FDIC is required to provide depositors with access to their insured accounts as soon as possible after an institution fails. Typically, this money is available by the next business day. However, for a bank with a large number of deposit accounts, payments might be delayed if the bank's records are unclear or incomplete, making it difficult to determine what is insured and what is not. A failed bank with multiple deposit systems, or a sudden failure with little advance notice, could further complicate this work.

The FDIC issued an advanced notice of proposed rulemaking on deposit account recordkeeping for institutions with a large number of deposit accounts in April 2015 to solicit public comment. That feedback helped shape the proposal issued today.

The FDIC will accept comments on the proposal for 90 days after it is published in the Federal Register.

###

Notice of Proposed Rulemaking - PDF (PDF Help)

Statement by Chairman Martin J. Gruenberg

Congress created the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation in 1933 to restore public confidence in the nation's banking system. The FDIC insures deposits at the nation's banks and savings associations, 6,270 as of September 30, 2015. It promotes the safety and soundness of these institutions by identifying, monitoring and addressing risks to which they are exposed. The FDIC receives no federal tax dollars—insured financial institutions fund its operations.

FDIC press releases and other information are available on the Internet at www.fdic.gov, by subscription electronically (go to www.fdic.gov/about/subscriptions/index.html) and may also be obtained through the FDIC's Public Information Center (877-275-3342 or 703-562-2200). PR-10-2016

The FDIC does not send unsolicited e-mail. If this publication has reached you in error, or if you no longer wish to receive this service, please unsubscribe.