From left to right: Frank Hughes, Regional Director (New York REGION), Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation; Bettyann Griffith, Vice President and Supervision Officer, Federal Reserve Bank of New York; Charles Shafer, National Bank Examiner, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency; Yolanda Ford, Deputy Superintendent, New York State Department of Financial Services; Steve Bush, President and CEO, Apple Bank

The NYLIB community gathered for dinner and a regulatory panel discussion focused on supervisory priorities and risks. The regulatory panel discussion was moderated by Steve Bush, President and CEO of Apple Bank, and featured prominent guest speakers from various government agencies, including the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), New York State Department of Financial Services (DFS), and Federal Reserve Bank of New York (FRBNY).

Moderator

Regulator Roundtable featuring Apple Bank’s Steve Bush

Steve Bush, the President and Chief Executive Officer of Apple Bank, served as moderator for the panel discussion. Steve previously served as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer at Apple Bank, with oversight for the bank's lending units, as well as financial, risk management, planning, and operating functions. Steve joined Apple Bank in 1992 from Chemical Bank, where he was a Vice President in the Asset and Liability Management and Finance Divisions.

Featured Speakers

Frank Hughes is the Regional Director for the FDIC’s New York Region, which supervises almost 600 banks with $1.8 trillion in assets. In this role, Frank oversees the regional supervisory activities of over 400 team members for the Division of Depositor and Consumer Protection and for the Division of Risk Management Supervision. Frank is also a member of the FDIC’s Training Oversight Committee and Investment Advisory Group. Frank recently returned to his permanent position as the Regional Director in New York after serving as the Regional Director in the FDIC’s Atlanta Region.

Frank has over 33 years of industry experience and has been with the FDIC for a total of 30 years. Prior to his current position, Frank served as Deputy Regional Director and Assistant Regional Director, both for the Division of Risk Management Supervision in the New York Region. Before coming to the New York Region, Frank was a Senior Examination Specialist and Supervisory Examiner in the FDIC’s Kansas City Region. In addition, Frank has served as a Senior Capital Markets and Securities Specialist, Case Manager, and Instructor for the FDIC’s Asset/Liability Management School. Outside of the FDIC, Frank has served as President and Board member of a community bank in Kansas City, Missouri, and as a Senior Examiner with the Federal Housing Finance Agency.

Yolanda Ford is Deputy Superintendent of the Community and Regional Banks Unit within the New York State DFS, responsible for the regulatory supervision of community/regional banks and credit unions.

Yolanda was appointed as Deputy Superintendent in February 2016. Prior to that, she was appointed Assistant Deputy Superintendent in the Community and Regional Banks Unit in 2008 and spent 23 years in field examination and supervision roles in various sectors of the New York State DFS (formerly known as the New York State Banking Department).

Charles R. Shafer joined the OCC in 2009 and is currently a National Bank Examiner in the New York Field Office. Charles has spent the majority of his career examining community banks, but has experience participating in various examinations of large and midsized institutions as well. He recently served as a Team Leader in New York, focused on examiner training and development.

Bettyann Griffith is a Vice President and Program Head in the Supervision Group of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York; she leads the Regional and Community Financial Institutions (RCFI) function. The RCFI function is focused on developing and executing the supervisory strategy of regional and community state member banks and holding companies in the Second District that have total U.S. banking assets under $100 billion. The portfolio also includes supervised financial organizations headquartered in Puerto Rico. Prior to her current role, Bettyann was the department head of Risk and Analysis within the function. Bettyann began her career in the Federal Reserve Bank of New York as an internal auditor.

Links to resources discussed by the panelists during their remarks have been provided below.

FDIC Resources

Supervisory Insights (Summer 2022), https://www.fdic.gov/regulations/examinations/supervisory/insights/sisum22/si-summer-2022.pdf

Notification of Engaging in Crypto-Related Activities (Apr. 7, 2022), available at https://www.fdic.gov/news/financial-institution-letters/2022/fil22016.html

Computer-Security Incident Notification Final Rule (Nov. 18, 2021), available at https://www.fdic.gov/news/financial-institution-letters/2021/fil21074.html

Conducting Due Diligence on Financial Technology Companies: A Guide for Community Banks (Aug 27, 2021), available at https://www.fdic.gov/news/financial-institution-letters/2021/fil21059.html

FRB Resources

Engagement in Crypto-Asset-Related Activities by Federal Reserve-Supervised Banking Organizations (Aug. 16, 2022), https://www.federalreserve.gov/supervisionreg/srletters/SR2206.htm

Contact Information in Relation to Computer-Security Incident Notification Requirements (Mar. 29, 2022), https://www.federalreserve.gov/supervisionreg/srletters/SR2204.htm

Community Bank Access to Innovation through Partnerships (Sept. 2021), available at https://www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/pressreleases/bcreg20210909a.htm

Conducting Due Diligence on Financial Technology Firms: A Guide for Community Banks (Aug. 2021), available at https://www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/pressreleases/bcreg20210827a.htm

Computer-Security Incident Notification Requirements for Banking Organizations and Their Bank Service Providers (Nov. 18, 2021), available at https://www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/pressreleases/bcreg20211118a.htm

CECL Resource Center, https://www.supervisionoutreach.org/cecl

OCC Resources

Acting Comptroller of the Currency Michael J. Hsu, Remarks at the TCH + BPI Annual Conference, Safeguarding Trust in Banking: An Update (Sept. 7, 2022), https://www.occ.gov/news-issuances/speeches/2022/pub-speech-2022-106.pdf

Acting Comptroller of the Currency Michael J. Hsu, Remarks before the Texas Bankers Association, Community Banking, Digitalization, and the OCC (Sept. 1, 2022), https://www.occ.gov/news-issuances/speeches/2022/pub-speech-2022-104.pdf

OCC Strategic Plan, Fiscal Years 2023-2027 (Sept. 2022), available at https://www.occ.treas.gov/publications-and-resources/publications/banker-education/files/occ-strategic-plan.html

Semiannual Risk Perspective, Spring 2022 (June 23, 2022), available at https://www.occ.treas.gov/publications-and-resources/publications/semiannual-risk-perspective/files/semiannual-risk-perspective-spring-2022.html

Computer-Security Incident Notification: Final Rule (Nov. 23, 2021), available at https://www.occ.gov/news-issuances/bulletins/2021/bulletin-2021-55.html

Conducting Due Diligence on Financial Technology Companies: A Guide for Community Banks (Aug. 27, 2021), https://www.occ.gov/news-issuances/bulletins/2021/bulletin-2021-40.html

Other Resources

Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), Stop Ransomware, https://www.cisa.gov/stopransomware

Financial Services Information Sharing and Analysis Center (FS-ISAC), Community Institutions, https://www.fsisac.com/community-institutions

Upcoming Events

The NYLIB team is thrilled that we were able to provide an opportunity to bring our colleagues together to explore key issues of importance to members of the banking industry. Our organization’s mission is to provide a forum for networking and education.

Edward Lutz, President, NYLIB & President, Lutz Advisors, Inc.

As we continue planning events and meetings, NYLIB is open to any suggestions on topics or issues that are of interest to the community and foreign banks in the tri-state area. Don’t forget to subscribe to our mailing list below, to stay informed on news and upcoming events.

Memorable Moments

Please enjoy more memorable moments from our Regulator Roundtable Dinner here. We encourage you to download your favorite moments and share them on LinkedIn. Don’t forget to tag the New York League of Independent Bankers (NYLIB)!