Week of Feb. 24

In This Issue…

• From Adrian’s desk …
• Community bank advisory committee disbands
• Bankers at state Capitol: Register for OBA’s 2025 Contact Banker Program
• Welcome new strategic members; deadline for directors compensation survey approaching
• OBA TikTok Time …
• OBA education corner …

From Adrian’s desk …

By Adrian Beverage
OBA President & CEO

Just some random tidbits that might be of interest to our bankers this week!

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Things continue to unfold in Washington, D.C., as the Trump Administration immediately puts its stamp on the government. Jonathan Gould was nominated to serve as comptroller of the currency. Gould is a financial regulatory attorney in private practice and previously served as senior deputy comptroller and OCC chief counsel from 2018-21. Trump also nominated Jonathan McKernan to serve as the head of the CFPB. McKernan was most recently a director on the FDIC board. He will face a confirmation hearing on Feb. 27.

Meanwhile, the CFPB has had to hit pause on staff terminations and the defunding of the bureau as a whole, after a federal judge issued preliminary injunction against the actions on Feb. 14.

The Trump administration is also apparently considering folding the FDIC into the Treasury Department. There is a possibility of having one person oversee both the OCC and the FDIC. The OCC would take over all the FDIC’s supervisory efforts, including shutting down failed banks while the FDIC would handle deposit insurance.

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In Oklahoma City, we’re still trying to whittle down the HUNDREDS of bills filed for this session. I’m currently trying to get my arms around it all in time for our government relations council meeting on Wednesday.

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The on-again, off-again, Nebraska men’s basketball season has the switch in the negative position at the moment. Two losses in the last week, to Penn State and Michigan, have put the Cornhuskers NCAA Tournament hopes on hold, at least for the moment. The less said about last night’s game against Michigan, the better: both teams combined to shoot 34 of 123 from the floor, for a robust 27.6% shooting percentage.

Ugh.

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Community bank advisory committee disbands

President Trump issued an executive order last week that, among its provisions, disbands agency advisory committees on community banks and credit unions as part of the administration’s effort to trim the size of government.

The order – Commencing the Reduction of the Federal Bureaucracy – eliminates the FDIC’s Advisory Committee on Community Banking and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s Academic Research Council and Credit Union Advisory Council. The order also calls on administration staff to identify other “unnecessary governmental entities and federal advisory committees that should be terminated on grounds that they are unnecessary.”

The order did not list the CFPB’s Community Bank Advisory Council, which has been dissolved, according to the bureau’s website.

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Bankers at state Capitol: Register for OBA’s 2025 Contact Banker Program

We have set the dates for the 2025 Contact Banker Program: March 11, March 25, April 15 and April 29.

• 9 a.m. — Briefing at Capitol.
• Noon — Depart Capitol for lunch.
• 1:30 p.m. — Adjourn.

On the date you select, there will be a short briefing before we start walking the halls of the Capitol. Please know, we will stay together as a group the entire morning. We will do our best to have you spend a few minutes with both your state senator and state representative to either start a new relationship or strengthen one that is already in place. We won’t ask you to discuss current legislation. We want you to just chat with your member about issues facing your community or other pressing matters. Depending on what week you select, we will either sit in on a committee meeting or in the gallery to watch the action on the floor. Once we have finished all of our business at the Capitol, the OBA government relations team will take everyone to lunch to discuss the events of the morning.

Everyone at the Capitol knows bankers are involved in the political process because of the Contact Banker Program. This program is meant for all employees at the bank. There is no cost to attend other than your time. 

Please register online (preferred) OR submit the form linked here. Click the date below that works best for you to register online.

• Tuesday, March 11
• Tuesday, March 25
• Tuesday, April 15
• Tuesday, April 29

When you register, you will be asked two questions:

1. Who is your State Senator?
2. Who is your State Representative?

Not sure who is your senator or representative? Click this find your legislators link and enter your HOME ADDRESS (home address, not bank address).

Questions? Please contact Megan McGuire (megan@oba.com / 405-424-5252).

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Welcome new strategic members; deadline for directors compensation survey approaching

The OBA would like to welcome its latest strategic members!

GOLDMARK CREATIVE
Contact: Caitlyn Grossardt
42 E 16th Street
Tulsa, OK 74119
(539) 895-0212
Email: info@goldmarkcreative.com
Website: www.goldmarkcreative.com

GoldMark is a Tulsa-based, full-service creative and marketing firm with over 30 years of experience. It specializes in branding and graphic design services, but also provides expertise in website development, search engine optimization, videography, photography and social media that will help your bank attract new customers and increase revenue.

SEAWORTHY STRATEGY
Contact: Jacob Mann
629 W Main Street, Suite 209
Oklahoma City, OK 73102
(405) 301-0172
Email: jacob@seaworthystrategy.com
Website: www.seaworthystrategy.com

Seaworthy is a B2B modern marketing agency propelling Oklahoma banks through websites, branding, video, photography and HubSpot/CRM services. It uses strategic problem-solving and transformative design to deliver tangible results. Seaworthy clients love that the agency collaborates with them, custom-tailoring services around their goals. Seaworthy provides the quality and impact of a big agency with the attention and speed of a boutique agency.

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Additionally, we’d like to bring to bankers’ attentions that the deadline for the Director Comp Survey is approaching on Feb. 28. This survey only includes financial institutions.  2024 director compensation data will be gathered surrounding board meeting fees, committee fees, chair fees, retainers, equity, benefits and total director compensation, as well as 10 director compensation trends questions.  Data cuts will be broken out by asset size and/or region, where available.

Participation Instructions: 2025 Director Compensation Survey

1. Click on the link (2025 Director Compensation Survey Link) or visit the website (blanchardc.com) to access the secure survey link.
2. Download the excel file and complete the survey.
3. Email the completed survey to surveys@blanchardc.com or utilize the secure upload link (Secure Upload Link) (also available on website) by Friday, Feb. 28.

To pre-order your copy of the survey, express your interest in the subscription option or if you have any questions regarding the survey, please contact Laura Roth at surveys@blanchardc.com or 612-850-0153.

We appreciate your time and commitment to contributing to the success of our surveys.

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OBA TikTok Time …

Welcome to the continuation of our semi-regular feature in the OBA Update: OBA TikTok Time!

The OBA created a TikTok account to feature fun, entertaining little video segments that feature our bankers and those who work with them. No, a TikTok account is not required to view these short videos as you can navigate directly there just by using the link we provide here in the OBA Update. For those concerned about security via TikTok, you can also easily view the videos through our Instagram account.

We’ll feature our most recent TikToks each week in the TikTok Time of the OBA Update. For this edition, we just have a short one to give everyone a chance to smile! The OBA’s new communications intern, Olivia Hendrix, had her first-ever byline in print for a story she wrote in February’s Oklahoma Banker newspaper. We were lucky enough to catch the college sophomore when she first picked up the paper to see her achievement!

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OBA education corner …

We were talking to a friend and former co-worker earlier this week, and she mentioned she was stressed with her new job while also working on her master’s degree. She said she was studying this weekend and was so focused that when she finished, she realized Eric Clapton’s “Layla” had just played for nine hours straight on her stereo … the original version, not the languid and boring “unplugged” version from the early 90s. To which we can only say, “Rock on!” While burning up your favorite classic song, don’t forget to take part in some upcoming continuing education opportunities for you and your staff in 2025!

• Marketing and Advertising Compliance: All-Day Streaming, March 4, webinar — In this day and age of UDAP/UDAAP, it’s clear that how you say what you say in your advertisements is just as important as what you say.
• ACH Origination and Risk: A Guide to Being an ODFI, March 4, webinar — The session will cover the essential fundamentals, including how ACH transactions are initiated, processed and settled.
• Your Guide to Letters of Credit, March 4, webinar — Whether your financial institution issues letters of credit, accepts letters of credit, or takes liens on letters of credit rights, this program is for you.
• Overdraft and Related Fees: What Should We Do?, March 5, webinar — Overdrafts are certainly a topic we’ve heard a lot about lately. Are they outlawed? (Hint: No). Should we consider eliminating them? (Hint: No, but be careful).
• FedNow and RTP Compliance with OFAC and Regulation E, March 6, webinar — This session will delve into Regulation E compliance, focusing on error resolution and consumer protection to ensure your institution meets key regulatory expectations.
• SAR Decision Making, March 6, webinar — There are two major sources of red flags: systems and the frontline. What are your procedures from systems or frontline to investigation to SAR?
• 2025 Retail Management Workshop, March 11-12, Oklahoma City — This two-day, interactive, workshop is designed to provide a complete overview of management and leadership principles for retail managers serving in all roles of the retail banking line of business for the bank.
• Avoiding Check Fraud Liability: From Prevention to Loss Allocation, March 12, webinar — This webinar provides attendees with tips to avoid check fraud losses, as well as an overview of the laws that apply to loss allocation when check fraud occurs.
• IRA Beneficiary Payout Options: The New Rules and When They Take Effect, March 13, webinar — The proposed regulations released in February 2022 tried to clarify the original intention of the SECURE Act of 2020. After waiting in limbo for over two years, in July 2024 the IRS released the final regulations that take effect beginning in 2025.
• Commercial and Business Lending Basics for Support Personnel, March 17, webinar — This webinar is designed to take the mystery out of the commercial and business lending process and the confusing terminology often used by lenders.
• 2025 Bank Director Symposium, March 25, Oklahoma City — The objective of this symposium is to provide updates on topics including regulatory expectations, vendor management, succession planning, talent acquisition, ALCO and other critical areas for a bank’s success.
• Opening Business Accounts, March 26-Oklahoma City; March 27-Enid — In this evening seminar, participants gain confidence and a clear understanding of the regulatory, compliance, documentation and state law requirements for opening business accounts.
• 2025 OBA Senior Management Forum, April 6-8, Indian Wells, California — One of the key benefits in the conference will be talking with your peers. Attendees at the OBA 2024 Senior Management Conference will be surrounded by those with similar titles, similar workloads, similar problems and likely solutions to issues that can be just as similar. If you have any questions or want to get signed up, contact the OBA’s education department at 405-424-5252.

Also, the OBA is proud to promote the recognition of bankers who have devoted 50 or more years of service to the banking industry. All eligible nominees will be honored at the 2022 OBA Convention on May 14 at the Skirvin-Hilton in Oklahoma City. Click here to download a nomination form. If you have any questions, please contact Janis Reeser at 405-424-5252 or janis@oba.com.

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