Worldwide: Financial Services

Mississippi bankers recently traveled to Washington D.C. for their annual fly-in, meeting with federal regulators and congressional representatives to discuss enforcement priorities and banking policy. The meetings revealed a notable shift in tone compared to previous years, with discussions becoming markedly more congenial and collaborative between industry representatives and government officials.

Financial institutions face new questions about accepting state-issued mobile driver's licenses and other government-issued verifiable digital credentials under customer identification programs. The September 2026 guidance from FinCEN and federal banking agencies clarifies when banks and credit unions may rely on these digital credentials, but leaves critical implementation decisions about technology, validation, and reasonable-belief standards to each institution.

On October 2, a community banking trade association filed a lawsuit against the OCC in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, challenging the agency's authority to grant national trust bank charters to cryptocurrency companies. The complaint alleges that the OCC exceeded its authority under the National Bank Act (NBA) and violated the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) by permitting institutions that neither accept deposits nor primarily engage in fiduciary activities to obtain national trust bank charters.

The SEC's newly formed Retail Fraud Working Group aims to combat fraud targeting everyday investors through enhanced detection and enforcement. Learn about the types of misconduct being targeted, warning signs investors should watch for, and what steps to take if you suspect investment fraud.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency has filed a motion presenting three distinct procedural paths in response to a multistate lawsuit challenging its mortgage escrow account rules: dismissal based on standing and ripeness grounds, transfer to the District of Columbia, or potentially a pause while the Supreme Court considers related preemption issues. The motion particularly targets three Second Circuit states for alleged forum shopping, arguing they cannot obtain relief in Oregon that would circum

The CFTC has released an Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking seeking public comment on a comprehensive framework for retail crypto asset transactions, while the SEC advances parallel digital asset regulations through Regulation Crypto Assets and temporary exemptive relief for tokenized securities venues.

A proposed class action in North Carolina alleges that payment processors systematically charged small businesses undisclosed monthly "junk fees" for services like PCI compliance. This case represents a potential shift in merchant-processor disputes, as plaintiffs attempt to leverage consumer-focused pricing transparency laws and expanded unfair trade practice statutes to challenge business-to-business fee practices that have traditionally been litigated solely as contract disputes.

The SEC's Division of Examinations has released new guidance highlighting common deficiencies in investment advisers' annual compliance reviews, revealing critical gaps in documentation, testing procedures, and policy alignment. With examination coverage rates declining and enforcement actions targeting compliance failures, advisers face heightened scrutiny over their ability to demonstrate thorough, timely, and accurate annual reviews that catch policy-practice drift before regulators do.

As Akin previously reported in our December 11, 2025 alert, a law prohibiting many “stay-or-pay” provisions in employment contracts took effect in California on January 1, 2026. This law, Assembly Bill (AB) 692...