The Office of Comptroller of the Currency granted a full-service national bank charter to Winter Park National Bank. The grant represents the first full-service national bank charter issued since the financial crisis.
In a statement, Acting Comptroller of the Currency Keith Noreika stated that he is encouraged by renewed interest in forming de novo banks. He encouraged regulatory action to increase the efficiency of the de novo bank approval process:
"While Winter Park National Bank is the first de novo national bank and first de novo approved for federal deposit insurance in Florida since the financial crisis, I am encouraged that we are seeing increasing interest in becoming new banks and that de novo activity appears to be thawing slowly as the economy warms. But, de novo banks are still exceedingly rare. Making the process of establishing de novo banks more efficient can only accelerate the recent positive trend and create more economic opportunity for consumers, businesses, and communities across the nation."
Previously, Mr. Noreika expressed concern over the lack of de novo banking charters in the United States, calling the FDIC's failure to act on deposit insurance applications "unconscionable."
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