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First Israeli Enforcement Action Against a Company for Bribery of Foreign Government Officials
In a first under Israeli law, an IT solutions provider was fined approximately $1.2 million by the Tel Aviv Magistrate’s Court on December 15 for bribing a government official from the African county of Lesotho. The Israel-based company produces high-tech identification cards and products for population registration and border control. In 2012, the company entered into a $30 million agreement with the government of Lesotho to sell its products to the African country. The company was charged with paying a mediator $500,000 to advance that deal, with a significant amount of that sum intended as a bribe for the director general of Lesotho’s interior ministry. As part of the plea agreement, the company must also cooperate with an ongoing parallel investigation in Lesotho and implement an anti-corruption compliance program.
The prosecution and plea agreement represent the first time a company has been indicted or convicted of bribing a foreign official under Israeli law. In July 2008, Israel added Article 291A to its penal code, outlawing bribery of foreign public officials. The law was enacted in conjunction with Israel entering the UN Convention against Corruption in February 2009 and the OECD Convention on Combating Bribery of Foreign Public Officials in International Business Transactions in March 2009. Prior to the case against the company, Israel had come under international criticism for lack of enforcement of Article 291A. The case adds Israel to the list of countries prosecuting companies for bribery of foreign officials and places Israeli companies on notice of future prosecutions.
Special Alert: OCC Takes the Next Step Toward a Fintech National Bank Charter
On December 2, 2016, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (“OCC”) announced its plans to move forward with developing a special purpose national bank charter for financial technology (“fintech”) companies. Accompanying the Comptroller of the Currency, Thomas J. Curry’s announcement, the OCC published a white paper that describes the OCC’s authority to grant national bank charters to fintech companies and outlines minimum supervisory standards for successful fintech bank applicants.[1] These standards would include capital and liquidity standards, risk management requirements, enhanced disclosure requirements, and resolution plans. Over the past several months, the OCC has taken a series of carefully calculated steps to position itself as the preeminent regulator of fintech companies in a hotly-contested race among other federal and state regulators who have similarly expressed interest in formalizing a regulatory framework for fintech companies. This proposal from the OCC reflects the culmination of those efforts.
Click here to read the full special alert
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BuckleySandler welcomes questions regarding this new approach to fintech and banking, and would be happy to assist companies in determining whether a national bank charter would be beneficial for executing on their corporate strategies. Questions regarding the matters discussed in this Alert may be directed to any of our lawyers listed below, or to any other BuckleySandler attorney with whom you have consulted in the past.
- Jeremiah S. Buckley, (202) 349-8010
- John P. Kromer, (202) 349-8040
- Jeffrey P. Naimon, (202) 349-8030
- Clinton R. Rockwell, (310) 424-3901
- Walter E. Zalenski, (202) 461-2910
CFPB Publishes Fall 2016 Rulemaking Agenda
On December 2, the CFPB published its Fall 2016 Statement of Regulatory Priorities, and its Fall 2016 rulemaking agenda, addressing current and future rulemakings in accordance with its obligations under the Regulatory Flexibility Act. In its Agenda, the Bureau notes, among other things, that: (i) publication of a final Arbitration rule is expected in February 2017; (ii) the Bureau intends to finalize proposed amendments to TRID by March 2017; and (iii) the Bureau plans to release in March 2017 a proposed set of technical corrections to the HMDA reporting requirements and proposed amendments to Regulation B “to clarify how financial institutions and creditors subject to Regulation C and Regulation B may comply with both regulations.” There was no next step identified for the proposed rule on payday loans and deposit advance products.
In a corresponding blog post, the Bureau provided a brief status update and overview of its various rulemakings, which are grouped into pre-rule, proposed rule, final rule, long-term, and completed stages. The CFPB noted that it anticipates that the next “larger participant” rulemaking will focus on the markets for consumer installment loans and vehicle title loans, including whether to impose registration requirements on non-depository lenders.
Congress Approves 10-Year Extension of Iran Sanctions Act
On December 1, the U.S. Senate, by a 99-0 margin, passed a 10-year extension of the Iran Sanctions Act (ISA) sending the measure to the White House and delaying any potentially tougher actions until next year. Originally approved in 1996, the extended bill passed onto the Senate in November with only one vote against it from the House. Congressional authority to enforce sanctions against Iran—which was due to expire on December 31 if not renewed—will be presented to President Barack Obama, who will decide whether to sign the bill into law in the coming days.
Trump Names Ben Carson to HUD Post
In a press release issued December 5, President-Elect Trump named retired pediatric neurosurgeon Ben Carson as Secretary of Housing and Urban Development. Carson was a 2016 Republican presidential candidate. Raised in poverty in inner-city Detroit, he was head of pediatric neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore for nearly three decades, rising to national fame in 1987 when he led the first successful separation of twins conjoined at the head.
OCC Releases Schedule of Fees and Assessments for 2017
On December 1, the OCC issued Bulletin 2016-43, which informs all national banks, federal savings associations, and federal branches and agencies of foreign banks of the fees and assessments the OCC will charge for calendar year 2017. The rates for all asset categories have been adjusted for inflation. The bulletin becomes effective January 1, 2017.
OCC Issues Q1 2017 CRA Evaluation Schedule
On December 2, the OCC posted its schedule of Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) evaluations to be conducted in the first quarter of 2017. In a press release accompanying the 2017 schedule, the OCC encouraged public comment on the national banks and federal savings associations scheduled to be evaluated, and suggested that “comments be submitted to the institutions themselves at the mailing addresses listed on the schedule, or to the appropriate OCC supervisory office prior to—or as early as possible during—the month in which the evaluation is scheduled.” The OCC will consider all public comments received prior to the close of the CRA evaluation.
Division of Corporation Finance Director Keith Higgins to Leave SEC; Shelley Parratt to Become Acting Director
In a December 6 press release, the SEC announced that Keith F. Higgins, Director of the SEC’s Division of Corporation Finance, plans to leave the SEC in early January. Since joining the SEC in 2013, Mr. Higgins led the Division’s implementation of significant rulemaking and other responsibilities under the Dodd-Frank Act, Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act (JOBS Act), and Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act (FAST Act). Upon Mr. Higgins’ departure, Shelley Parratt, Deputy Director for the Division of Corporation Finance, will become the acting Director. Ms. Parratt has served previously as acting Director. Ms. Parratt has served as Deputy Director of the Division since 2003, and has been responsible for assisting in strategic planning and developing Division policies and procedures and overseeing the disclosure review program. Ms. Parratt came to the SEC’s Division of Corporation Finance in 1986. She received her M.B.A. from Syracuse University and her B.A. from St. Lawrence University.
Legislators Appeal to CFPB Regarding Payday Loan Proposal
In a letter sent to CFPB Director Richard Cordray on December 1, a group of Republican members of Congress expressed concern about the Bureau’s proposal regarding payday, vehicle title, and certain high-cost installment loans. The letter observes that CFPB’s proposal “attempts to further regulate an industry that is already highly regulated by nearly a dozen federal laws including the Truth in Lending Act, the Fair Credit Reporting Act, the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, and the Electronic Fund Transfer Act.” Specifically, the letter contends that the CFPB’s framework will effectively preempt existing statutory and regulatory frameworks and/or eliminate regulated small dollar credit products from the market, thereby leaving consumers without access to credit or forcing them to seek “riskier, illegal” forms of credit.
Fed Forms Fintech Working Group
On December 2, Fed Governor Lael Brainard announced, at the Conference on Financial Innovation in Washington DC, that the Fed has formed a Fintech working group. The move comes as the OCC takes steps toward launching a fintech bank charter. According to Ms. Brainard, the group will incorporate personnel with a broad array of expertise and will be tasked with “facilitat[ing] innovation where it has the potential to yield broad social benefit, while ensuring that risks are thoroughly managed.” While Ms. Brainard highlighted several benefits from the growth of Fintech, the Fed Governor also raised certain concerns innovations relying on data sharing could create security, privacy, and data-ownership risks, despite increased convenience to consumers. Specifically, Ms. Brainard explained, the Fed must “be attentive to the potential social benefits of these new technologies, prepared to make the necessary regulatory adjustments if their safety and integrity are proven and . . . vigilant to ensure risks are well understood and managed.”